Georgia loves a tangent.
She loves travel, words, alliteration and the motivating power of getting things done.
When Georgia needs to crack a creative challenge, she doesn’t go looking for inspiration.
She moves towards the work.
She blocks out a few hours or sometimes a whole day. Georgia opens a document and starts writing.
No waiting for perfect conditions or a flash of inspiration.
Just focus, commitment and a willingness to begin before the answer is clear.
As she writes, the challenge starts to reveal itself.
Words step forward and questions surface.
Ideas begin to take shape.
Georgia explores what the audience needs, how they might feel and what the communication needs them to do.
Then she distils.
She looks for the language with energy. The phrase that sticks. The words with enough rhythm and bounce to carry the idea into the campaign, imagery or call to action.
Gut instinct matters.
But so does the sense-check:
Does it stack up? Am I proud of it? Will it work?
Because creativity isn’t there to decorate the work. It has a job to do.
CREATIVE WORKOUT:
Write your way into it
Give yourself 20 minutes.
Choose a strategy, campaign, message or challenge that needs some focused attention.
Open a blank document and make a start.
Step 1: Set the job
Complete these three sentences:
We need our audience to know…
We need our audience to feel…
We need our audience to do…
Keep it simple. This is the job your idea needs to address.
Step 2: Blitz the page
Set a timer for eight minutes and write.
Don’t edit. Don’t worry about structure. Follow the tangents.
Explore motivations and blockers:
- What is getting in the audience’s way?
- What might make them care? How can we be relevant?
- What needs to be said?
- What words, phrases or images keep appearing?
Step 3: Find the line
Read what you’ve written.
Highlight the words and phrases with the most energy.
Now distil the thinking into one short line:
- A central thought.
- A campaign idea.
- A call to action.
- A few words that capture what matters.
Play with rhythm, repetition or alliteration but only when it makes the idea stronger.
Step 4: Ask, “Will it work?”
Put your line through Georgia’s creative risk assessment:
Does it stack up?
Is it built on something true?
Am I proud of it?
Does it feel clear, distinctive and worth sharing?
Will it work?
Will the audience understand and relate to it? Will they feel something, be motivated and know what to do?
Now show it to someone who isn’t close to the challenge.
Don’t ask whether they like it.
Ask:
What do you think this is saying?
What is it asking you to do?
A little distance can reveal what total immersion hides.
ABOUT GEORGIA:
Georgia Turner is an independent communications consultant with 25 years’ experience leading in-house public sector communications, marketing, engagement and research teams.
She brings strategic thinking, creativity and infectious energy to organisations navigating change, developing narratives and creating campaigns that influence perceptions and behaviour.
Tap her up for team workshops, strategic engagement programmes, strategies, narratives and campaigns.
Find out more about Georgia and her work:
Georgia Turner Communications
Georgia on LinkedIn
THE CREATIVE COOLDOWN:
Focus on focus
Sometimes the best way to find an idea is to stop looking for one and get stuck into the work.
This TIME article shares 15 ways to sharpen your focus, from blocking out dedicated time and ditching distractions to properly switching off afterwards.
It might be from 2015, but the principles still feel very right:
Give the work your full attention. See what turns up.
Read: 15 Ways to Stay Focused All Day
