Comfort vs Respect Amidst Idea Making

GE’s “Ideas Are Scary” ad dramatizes the reality of idea-making.

"Make what has never been made before."

At least with Science there is the vague notion of objective when searching and creating -- a cure, a hypothesis, a patent -- a rallying cry to follow. Science is rarely for the sake of itself. 

But Art often is. Watch any toddler with a marker -- like the adult Idea Person, they are seeking with only a vague notion of what constitutes success. 

"And if you could also make it legible and meaningful and insightful for the greatest diversity of audiences, too, that would be great."

"Also, for the ages."

"No cats."

Whether in novel form or mural form or screenplay form or :15 social media video form, there is little safe harbor on the journey for Art. Who knows what's out there (or not out there) in the fog? And this isn't said to elicit pity. The stakes, the cost, of Art are clear enough miles and years before the work begins. Idea People choose to be here in a subjective, emotional realm. 

No. This is said for those who are on the journey for other reasons.

"And make sure it matches the King's 13th couch -- the one in the second tower on the 7th floor with the Norwegian dragon theme..."

"The presentation got pushed up to tomorrow."

"I'm really nervous about this, you guys."

As Fenske has said, "Advertising is Art in the service of Business."

So we shouldn't be surprised by the appearance of frustration or other emotions during the Art-making process. We should welcome them. Imagine Picasso politely, even robotically accepting every mistake, every criticism, every change request along the journey. It wouldn't be the movie we all have in our heads about how Art is made!

Because advertising is a business, however, we often are surprised when emotions arrive amidst the briefing, the developing, the reviewing, the assessing, the presenting, the selling. As if, we business people making Art in the service of Business shouldn't be emotional while making Art.

This is where respect gets tricky. It takes a different form. 

Now, of course business people get emotional at work. That's humanity, at work. 

But.

Art/Idea-making is inherently uneasy and uncertain and uncomfortable. 

It is the business of creating the un-status quo, the not-yet-accepted; embracing the new long before the new is common or liked or popular. It is the business of trafficking in absurdity with cold calculation. It is the business of creating then killing your creation, over and over and over. It is a business of faith. There's very little sustaining psychological comfort in seeking the unknown to fit specific business criteria, day in, day out.  

This is not an environment in which to confuse feeling comfortable with feeling respected. 

Simply because, there is little, if any, comfort in the seeking, articulating and road-testing of Ideas. As the Jesuit psychologist and author Anthony De Mello it, "The only way someone can be of help to you is in challenging your ideas." 

What constitutes respect in the realm of ideas is predicated upon embracing uncertainty while the clock is ticking, while the outcome is not clear, while we are being faithful something will appear to change our fortunes. Respect among collaborators in this realm is far from comfort-making. Instead, it is often challenge-making. In fact, comfort just might be the last thing you want to feel in creating anything new and differentiated and memorable.