Is It Time to Cut Ties with Your Creative Team?

Passionate people care passionately about the things they commit their lives to.

Since passion is the impetus of creativity—they go hand-in-hand.

But too much passion can be a problem if it culminates in perpetual conflict. It’s all about finding a balance between creative discourse and unproductive push-back.

But there are some situations where finding that balance just isn’t possible.

If you find yourself butting heads with your creative team regularly, and aren’t sure if this is just the creative process itself, or a bad fit,

consider the following before acting:Are they arguing for the value of the work, or because they enjoy the battle?

Pay attention to the issue, not necessarily the push back itself.

If their argument centers on ways to improve the project or elevate the message, they are doing their job.

But, if they can’t offer solutions to the problem or they refuse to engage in reasonable artistic discourse to get there, see the behavior for what it is, and consider cutting ties.

Has this process culminated in success before?

While the creative process should never hurt, there will be moments when you long for it be over.

Some teams find their groove with a little bit of added drama—blame Reality TV, but a rush of “will it or won’t it happen?” can motivate those big personalities to pull out all the stops.

Just keep in mind, a messy creative process isn’t worth the effort if the final piece doesn’t achieve your vision.

If you’ve been through this process with your team before, and it did not lead to the success you were hoping for, acknowledge that. It means something.

If you’re not ready to cut ties, do a postmortem on the project after the dust settles.

Figure out as a team where things went pear-shaped, establish strategies to avoid those issues in future, and identify the individuals within your organization that may be complicating the process.

Is the result worth the pain?

Trust your gut.

If it says no, it’s probably right. You know how much conflict you’re comfortable with and when it is too much. Learning to follow your instincts now can save you a lot of stress down the line.

By identifying the creative characteristics you value the most, it will help you to build stronger, more capable teams in the future.