Are You Making Space for Your Creative Vision?

Having creative vision is imperative when you’re starting and growing a small business. But is there a place for that vision - to see the bigger picture - when you’re working the day-to-day?

“You can’t be the visionary and the holder of that vision at the same time,” says Justine Clay, speaker and business coach for creative entrepreneurs and freelancers.

“You need other big-hearted, big thinking, action takers to help you articulate it, create space for it, and hold you accountable to doing whatever it takes to make progress towards it,” she writes in a blog for Freelancers Union, a nonprofit that promotes the interests of independent workers through advocacy, education, and services.   

Find Vision Holders

One way to make a space for your creative vision, Clay says, is to look for people in your life who can be your “vision holders.”

“We ALL need people who – unencumbered by the personal baggage and demons we carry – are able to see our vision and are willing to hold space for it when we inevitable falter,” she adds.

Why You Need Space For Creativity

“Creativity is perhaps the most important attribute for successful entrepreneurs to possess and cultivate,” says John Boitnott, a San Francisco-based digital media consultant and investor.

“After all, creativity powers innovation, establishes new perspectives and solutions to old problems, and empowers business leaders to craft a bold vision for their companies and pursue it vigilantly,” he writes in a blog for Entrepreneur.

When entrepreneurs can tap their creativity, their ideas can lead to innovative processes and products, which sets up their business for a competitive advantage, says Anastasia Belyh in a blog for Cleverism, a career marketplace and magazine focused on job seekers and employers.

 “The whole process of entrepreneurship is rooted in creation and exploration of new ideas. When an entrepreneur is able to generate a new idea that is feasible as well as efficient, it gives him an edge over the competition,” she writes.

Take Time to Think

To foster creativity, allow yourself time to think - to brainstorm and dream. Carve out that time so that it becomes a scheduled routine.

“It’s important for busy entrepreneurs to power down on a consistent basis if you want to keep your powers of creativity in optimal form,” advises Boitnott.

He points to meditation as one way entrepreneurs can stoke their “creative fires,” pointing to studies that suggest that “simply sitting quietly and observing without judging whatever is going on around and within you is far more effective in triggering creative thinking.”

Dare to Share

For some entrepreneurs, putting big and creative ideas out there can be difficult, in part due to being laughed out of town. But you have to try.

Many creative entrepreneurs have achieved extraordinary things after being brave enough to share their ideas aloud, despite any ridicule they experienced along the way, notes Clay.

If you’re going to think and go big, you have to cultivate courage and tenacity, she says.

“The first step to building your vision is to articulate it.  It may not be fully formed or clear yet, so use your creative skills to bring it to life,” Clay writes. “Draw it, write it, shape it. Just get those ideas out of your head and into the world.”