Lin-Manuel Miranda talked about keys to being a creative. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for ... [+]
I was a speaker at the Fast Company Innovation Festival so I got to pop in on the session that featured Lin-Manuel Miranda, the well-known creator of Hamilton.
The discussion was about the relationship between creative people and their commercial sponsors, and it featured Miranda and Elizabeth Rutledge, the CMO of American Express.
Miranda had a lot to say about maintaining integrity while working with a large company and a fascinating take on what it takes to be a successful creative. There are plenty of lessons here for entrepreneurs and everyone who is trying to be creative in their own lives.
Authenticity
Miranda shared the story of how he decided to be an ambassador for American Express. A director he admired asked him to be in a commercial for a luxury car. Miranda got excited about the idea of it, until his wife brought him back to earth by reminding him that they don’t own a car.
When Amex came to him he found that he could authentically represent the brand. He had been a cardholder since 1996, and he cared about their “Small Business Saturday” initiative. When they shot the commercial they placed it right in his neighborhood.
As an entrepreneur, your power comes from your authenticity, but it’s important to understand what that really is. Authenticity is not about the mood you’re in right now or just doing the things you feel like doing. Authenticity is a deeper connection to your values, to what is genuinely meaningful to you. When you connect to that authenticity it helps you inspire others, and it helps you inspire yourself when you get bogged down in the day-to-day logistics of running a business.
The importance of community
Miranda put it simply: “I write musicals. I have to work with other people all the time. I work with choreographers, I work with lighting designers. It’s about listening to the other people you’re working with.”
But he also talked about the importance of collaboration in the very act of creating the work. He originally met Alex Lacamoire, the musical director of Hamilton, in the basement of a drama book store. Lacamoire suggested they meet every Friday and review what they had written. “You have to have someone outside of your own brain who will help you create, and you have to find the community who will hold you accountable.”
When you’re building a business or just being creative in your own life you need to find your tribe. Those are the people who will encourage you, brainstorm with you, listen to you, and give you a kick in the butt when you need one.
Overcoming creative blocks
A question that often gets asked of artists is how do you deal with creative blocks?
“I don’t think of it as a block,” Miranda said in response. “I think of it as an approach that is not going to get me all the way there. It comes down to never running out of approaches, and that comes down to building tools in your toolbox”
“Sometimes you have to sneak attack the page,” Miranda said. “Craft comes in when the idea doesn’t just drop into your lap and you have to draw from a set of tools that you have developed over the years.”
This is an important point for all creators, all leaders and all entrepreneurs. We all have what could be called creative blocks, whether they show up when you’re trying to write the strategy deck or figuring out the words to use in having a difficult conversation.
The key to breaking through this is to hone your craft. The tools of the craft of leadership are, for example, delegating more effectively; holding people accountable without making them feel bad; helping your employees solve their own problems. There are so many large and small behaviors to hone in being effective with your employees.
You also need to make sure you are working on yourself by developing your emotional self-control, your maturity, your perspective.
Use these ideas from Miranda as thought-starters to up your own creative game.
