Gearing up

Tools of the trade:

Running a complicated project always requires equipment. This might seem like an understatement, but consider the implications of not having the right gear...

Many tasks could be improved by having the right gear from the get-go; without the right gear, you will  likely end up in a situation where a project has to be delayed because you don't have a critical something. You might be surprised by how many things require a tiny widget to work properly... without that little cog, the machine stops.

Have a system... preferably a good system. If you are creatively oriented, then you need to have a structure built around you that fosters creativity. In The Bauhaus, the idea of a designer was born; someone who creates art corporately instead of for a patron. So, unless you have a patron who will stick by your creative vision through and through, get organized! Creativity does not take shape by letting it veg out.

Who is wielding the gear?

And if organizing yourself wasn't easy, imagine what you'd do if you had to lead a team of creative people? If you want to be a manager - even as a friend who helps his friends get the job done - you've got to recognize people's strengths and weaknesses so that people can find their place in the creative structure.

Having the right equipment ties into a larger sense of preparedness. Do you have the rights skills to get the job done? If you have a large project, do you have the right people on your team? A team must contain the right balance of planners and doers... too many planners and you will have good resources, but will not make progress; and if you have too many doers but not enough planers you will see a pattern whereby your team always rushes into things, but doesn't necessarily have the follow-through to get the job done.



The image above belongs to Paula Soler-Moya.