The 7 Keys to Creative Collaboration

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Group work doesn't have to suck. In this sketch note video, we explore what makes creative collaboration work.

Transcript.
We’ve all had times when group work failed. Perhaps you missed deadlines, failed to communicate, and didn’t learn from mistakes.

But chances are, you’ve also been part of a team where you accomplished something epic together that you could have never done on your own. 

So, what makes creative collaboration work effectively?  

Here are seven ideas.

1. Ownership: Members need to be empowered from the start. Here, they can to solve problems, generate ideas, and design systems that lead to success.

2. Dependability: Creative collaboration requires members to hit their deadlines and develop creative endurance. 

3. Trust: When members trust one another, they work interdependently. Here, they genuinely listen to one another and assume the best in each other. Over time, they become transparent and even vulnerable.  

4. Structure: The structure should be loose and flexible. But you need to have structure in creative collaboration. It needs to exist. This is why I love design thinking. It’s a flexible framework for getting the most out of the entire creative process.

5. A Shared Vision: I’m not referring to vision statements that you put on a wall or slap onto a website. I’m thinking more in terms of a sense of direction. It’s a shared desire, a goal you are aiming for, and picture of what you will produce. 

6. Fun: The best collaborative groups are the ones where you want to be together. They laugh. They play together. And this can actually boost both convergent thinking and divergent thinking.

7. Candor: This is one of the key takeaways from Creativity Inc., a book by one of the co-founders of Pixar. It’s the idea that groups need to be honest about what’s working and failing. This honesty allows you to adjust and iterate and ultimately create something awesome.