{"id":1370,"date":"2010-03-18T08:35:23","date_gmt":"2010-03-18T08:35:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localenterprise.wordpress.com\/?p=1033"},"modified":"2010-03-18T08:35:23","modified_gmt":"2010-03-18T08:35:23","slug":"master-class-for-creative-entrepreneurs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/realisedevelopment.net\/index.php\/2010\/03\/18\/master-class-for-creative-entrepreneurs\/","title":{"rendered":"Master Class for Creative Entrepreneurs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last night I found\u00a0myself\u00a0in the very wonderful boardroom at Broadcasting Place in Leeds running a masterclass for students on the MA in\u00a0Creative\u00a0Enterprise at Leeds Met.<\/p>\n

In essence I told them not to worry about being too focussed (See Norman Perrin’s excellent post on Obliquity<\/a>). \u00a0I introduced them to the ‘baited hook’ strategy, where you cast out lots of juicy baits and see which ones get a bite. \u00a0This seems perfect for ‘creatives’ who on the evidence of last night seem incapable of not innovating. \u00a0They always have new ideas, skills and visions to bring to market. \u00a0My advice….don’t fight it just find a way to get\u00a0product\u00a0to market quickly, and if the bites don’t come, then fail cheaply and quickly. \u00a0We explored this against a backdrop of ’10 000 hours theory’ that suggests you never have a really tasty bait until you have served your time and really mastered a craft! \u00a0You pay your money and you take your chance….<\/p>\n

I also did some stuff with them on the\u00a0importance\u00a0of building balanced management teams with people who can look after great product, great marketing and sales and wonderful financial management. \u00a0A quick\u00a0dissection\u00a0of a few businesses in the room showed them to be packed full of creatives – but\u00a0certainly\u00a0short, if not completely absent, of real passion for marketing, sales and financial management. \u00a0This, to say the least, is a problem. \u00a0I hope they recognised that perhaps as well as hanging out with other creatives (who\u00a0provide\u00a0validation and yet more ideas) they might need to hang out with a few ‘suits’ in order to get the diversity of passion and skill that\u00a0their\u00a0businesses need. \u00a0The course tutor said that she could see a look of\u00a0relief\u00a0pass across faces when I said that they should not be expected to be great at everything themselves. \u00a0That it was OK to\u00a0build\u00a0teams, to ask for help. \u00a0That someone else should be doing the bits in the business that they hate. \u00a0We explored how proper mentoring and coaching could help fill this gaps and that skills could be begged, borrowed and bartered. \u00a0The inadequacies of some mentoring programmes designed to help where described by entrepreneurs who had been on the\u00a0receiving\u00a0end. \u00a0So much mentoring is more about CSR and\u00a0professional\u00a0development for the mentor than it is about really helping the entrepreneur. \u00a0We also spent much of the evening\u00a0talking\u00a0about the merits of ‘kissing frogs’ and seeing\u00a0which\u00a0ones turned into to Princes\/Princesses! \u00a0Don’t just accept the mentor you have been sent. \u00a0Go and search for the right one yourself!<\/p>\n

The 90 minute masterclass (for me at least) flew by – ending with a riff on the importance of managing your own\u00a0learning, along with a few insights into how to do this,\u00a0and keeping\u00a0yourself\u00a0on track with your own personal vision for the kind of person you need to be. Staying true to yourself. \u00a0 Following your muse.<\/p>\n

At the end, as has happened several times before when I have done this kind of gig,\u00a0participants\u00a0told \u00a0me that ‘I really understood the way that artists think and work’. \u00a0This reaction initially puzzled me. \u00a0I have a degree in Physics and a schooling in enterprise and entrepreneurship. \u00a0I did once read Gombrich’s History of Art and I do know what I like….but how could I have developed any real insight into the psyche of the artist?<\/p>\n

The truth is of course that artists are people too. \u00a0The\u00a0same\u00a0ideals\u00a0of psychology, personal growth, honesty in work, and staying true to a\u00a0personal\u00a0vision and values apply whether you are an artists, physicist,\u00a0engineer\u00a0or nurse. \u00a0The real secret of my work here is connecting with people about their personal visions – and not getting sucked into the nitty gritty of the business.<\/p>\n

I’d love to do more of this kind of short masterclass – so if there are any opportunities out there do get in touch!<\/p>\n