Why presenting if you don't connect?

Over the years, I've had so many contacts with people working in the performing arts world in particular and the rest of the creative world that when I reached out to  a presenter of the Centennial Theater in Bishop, recently, I felt that I should talk about what I call the business of connecting humans to various expression of meaning.

I'm always surprised to notice and observe that some professional of the arts world don't seem interested to establish connections outside of what they perceive as their world and interest.From the outside, one could even draw the conclusion that their preoccupation for art and the creative expression is at best remote. Why is it that some presenters seem to be more interested in protecting their position  and their institutional position on the creative chessboard more than evaluating the value of connecting deeply with new and fresh source of talents?

If I was asked to lead a creative institution of any size, my focus would be to bring fresh and vibrant artistic and creative expression to my community.  To me, whether you are leading the Lincoln Center or a a local presenting center, you must show curiosity and passion for creative surprises or move on to another job. The point of any presenting house is not self preservation but the creation of a sacred, daring space where the creative and artistic cultures and expressions of the world (or a neighborhood) are presented to a community so that a new conversation can start or continue. In a way, part of the problem I am pointing at is that these "presenting centers" are called presenting house, perhaps there title should be changed to "conversation houses", "creative dialogue houses"...

After all, presenters are not so much in the business of presenting art as they are  in the one of fostering creative conversations leading to social, aesthetic, playful insights on us and our worlds. They are in the business of connecting humans to meaning. So if connecting with humans is a problem in the first place because you are too busy maintaining the bricks in place and you establish your presenting house as an institution (fortress) to the very artists who are the source of your life force, I call you on it today and encourage you to shift your focus to a vibrant, thought provoking, inspiring hub. Presenter of the world, you can be active and open members of your respective communities and meaningful players of our creative world... Kickstarter is doing it right now, one creative project at a time.

It's not that easy

I see friends and colleagues around me being overwhelmed by their will to create something meaningful in their professional and personal life while keeping a sense of control and pleasure. It's not something easy to do, but while reading this post by Mark McGuinness on 99percent, I decided to outline what would be for me the simplest way to draw the foundation for an authentic and creative modern life. Here it is:

• Understand the nature of workflow: In other words, explore to understand how anything in the world gets done and created. There are many perspective, but most often, it comes downs to something very similar. Observe how work evolves and unravels in your world and lear from people who pushed the observation further.
  
• Know what's on your plate: Do what you can to get the full picture of what you are committing yourself to, whether in your professional or your intimate life. My favorite example comes from David Allen's GTD approach.
• Review often: What is relevant for you today, might lose its relevance in a few weeks. It's obvious, but many of us continue to clog our inner creative space worrying about projects and goals that are obsolete.
  
• Don't wait, do!: It does not matter if you make mistakes. There is no better procrastination technics than to wait for the perfect iteration.
• Step back often too: As a way to balance our ability to jump and create, it is as valuable to be able to go to the balcony as Ronald Abadian Heifetz and Marty Linsky would encourage and creative leader to do. Whether you step back by regularly playing bowling or by contemplating in your backyard, insist on creating an environment and conditions that encourages you to develop your reflective mindset and your ability to transcend action. It's just another way to underline how much perspective is important and how intentional it is to develop that habit.