Give creative thinking a sporting chance

No.169: Mon 30th?October?2023

Hi, it’s David here.

This week's newsletter is written by Nick Presley, Community Member, Creative (who was interested in Customer Experience way before most of us had experienced it ourselves) and an avid sportsman who thinks a lot about winning as an individual and winning in teams.

In our discussions with CMOs in our ‘BeenThere/DoneThat Where Next?’ Series (you can watch the series on our site?here) the subject of managing teams comes up regularly, just as Nick speaks about this week as he shares his thoughts on the learnings we can take into our professional lives from those who play professional sports.

As always, we are curious to hear what you think.

David Alberts

Co-Founder and Chief Vision Officer at BeenThere/DoneThat

Hi, it’s Nick?here.

Recently I’ve been very lucky.

I’ve just returned from France watching World Cup Rugby and before that was in Cornwall playing in a golf tournament. And for my birthday, knowing I like motorsport, friends bought me tickets to next year’s 24-hour Le Mans Hypercar race. Finally, my wife got me a new road bike, so I’ve been clocking up the miles around the roads of South-East of England. Giving me time to think…

There are so many lessons that creatives and agency folk can learn from how sports stars and teams go about achieving elite performances, not least how to eliminate luck from outcomes and take control of their own destiny.

Rugby is a team game. Golf is usually an individual sport, but occasionally played by teams. Cycling is both – The Tour De France, the pinnacle of the sport, seems to idolise an individual winner, who could never actually get there without a massive team to help them. Motor racing is also about celebrating the brilliance of one person – but they would be nothing without a team of incredible experts behind them.

The crux is the balancing act between nurturing and indulging a superstar individual with the power of a great team working together.?A point argued strongly by Dale Smith from The Frameworks back in his 2017?Medium?article?(1). Do great ideas come from individuals arguing them through or groups of heads building on initial thoughts and innovating them? I agree with him that it needs to be both. It works best when egos are checked at the door and people are prepared to compromise their own success for the greater good.

Something that doesn’t always seem to happen in this year’s?Unchained – a behind-the-scenes story of the 2022 Tour De France on?Netflix?(2). Watch it and you’ll understand how difficult it is for team managers to balance the needs of individuals versus the big picture – something I’m sure we’ve all come across in our agency lives.

Golf is more sedate, but no less stressful on the mind. Learning how to control thoughts and emotions is more crucial to success than the physical ability to hit a little white ball. Learning to lose is also important. Professional golfers lose far more tournaments than they ever win – just like in ideation. You come up with loads of ideas that will never actually run, so learning how to accept rejection is vital to the development of creative thinkers.

A few years back I discovered?Imagine Golf, a podcast that reviews different books each week with short daily episodes?(3). I’ve listened to over 800 and lost count of the number of times I’ve thought the subject matter could so easily relate to the creative work I do.

One example: You’re playing badly and need to find a way out. So visualize yourself as one of the Pro’s whose game you admire (mine is the American, Justin Thomas), and it is them hitting your ball, not you. You’d be amazed how suddenly you swing smoother, with better tempo – improving your overall performance. Translate that to doing creative work. You’re struggling for an idea, and you’ve been banging your head against a brick wall. Change mindset. Think of an agency whose work you really admire and imagine you’re their creative director. What idea would they come up with? Again, you’ll be amazed how things pop into your head and clouds start clearing. The ultimate virtual teamwork – teaming up with someone who doesn’t even know you’re doing it!

Finally, back to motor racing. I’m not going to talk again about how teams work for the greater good of the individual. I am unashamedly going to plug a publication that regrettably you will have to purchase to get the full benefit of.?Road Rat?magazine?(4) was founded in 2018 by Coldplay bass player, Guy Berryman, and is just the most sumptuous celebration of stunning design, beautiful photography and crafted wordology. Even if you don’t want to pay the subscription, just looking at spreads on their website should get your creative juices flowing.?

Nick?Presley

Community Member at BeenThere/DoneThat

Supporting Articles

1. Medium?- What businesses can learn from sport about teamwork

2. Netflix Unchained - Probably the most compelling sports documentary series showing the fight between team and individual

3. Imagine Golf - Daily podcast that even if you don’t care for golf, uses foresight and insight that can relate to working in a creative agency

4. Road Rat Magazine

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