Creativity x Organization = Impact

Scott Belsky, CEO of Behance speaks about the fact that most ideas never happen. “I strongly believe that great ideas don’t happen simply becuase they are great or by accident,” said Belsky. He believes this is mostly due to a lack of accountability, lack of leadership, disorganization and isolated networks and lack of feedback exchange. For him, “the greatest breakthroughs happen when very creative people are also productive”. His company, Behance, goes out and consults companies by meeting with and interviewing the best creatives (photographers, writers, agencies, churches, non-profits, etc.) to find out when and how to make good ideas happen.

Belsky’s “Action Method” includes three stages that boost productivity in a creative environment:

1. Action Items – Measure a meeting in action steps. Often times they don’t have agendas. Don’t meet just because it’s Monday. Be comfortable canceling recurring meetings.

2. Create a Backburner Ritual – Once a month, go through the “backburner” items to decide whether they are worth pursuing or need to come off the “to do” list in order to focus on more important things.

3. Reference Items – Pull content and ideas from various sources.

He shared a couple of other great tips to make ideas come into fruition such as, generating ideas in moderation and prioritize. Every company has a “sober monitor” (aka the idea killer) so creatives need to focus attention on ideas that make sense. He also emphasized to seek cross-pollination by not being afraid to fight your way to breakthroughs. See other’s points of view even if you hate it, don’t become burdened by consensus and don’t chose the lowest common denominator.

Belsky is also currently writing a book titled “Make Ideas Happen” that will be published by Penguin.