Behind every great artist is a great team…
I absolutely love this painting by Ed Heck. It’s wonderfully silly, and at the same time expresses a sobering truth.
Even the best of us need a little help if we’re going to fly.
A few years before I helped launch The Anima Series I started a similar artsy-Christian-video venture called “Creators for the Creator.” Never heard of “Creators for the Creator?” I’m not surprised. That’s probably because it failed. Just a few months after it’s launch, Creators for the Creator ceased to exist. There were many factors that contributed to its downfall, but I think the biggest reason was that I was trying to do it alone. I had big dreams for the project, but I was trying to fly without any help.
“I can do it by myself. I don’t need any help.” Those are not the words of an artist. Those are the words of a three year old learning to use the bathroom. If you want to create art, it's time to drop the "lone wolf" mentality. If you think that collaboration is a sign of weakness or lack of talent, then you’re believing a lie. The fact is, every artist collaborates in some way, every single one. Behind the leader of every major movement, behind ever CEO, behind every award-winning artist there is a team of highly talented individuals (agents, publishers, designers, marketers, grounds crew, ect.) who work day in and day out to keep the project in the air.
Airlines don’t just hire pilots. Every pilot has a co-pilot, and every pilot duo has an entire crew of flight attendants, and every flight has grounds people, air traffic control specialists, baggage carriers, the list goes on and on. Without everybody doing their job, the plane doesn't stay in the air very long.
With Creators for the Creator, I was one pilot trying to manage an entire airline. Now, with The Anima Series, I not only have a close team of people with whom I collaborate with on a daily basis, I have an even larger community of audience members that are just as important to everything we do as a company. Without this team, The Anima Series would have never gotten off the ground.
It’s not just about you and your gifts. It’s about what your gifts can accomplish in collaboration with others.
Even the best of us need a little help if we’re going to fly.
A few years before I helped launch The Anima Series I started a similar artsy-Christian-video venture called “Creators for the Creator.” Never heard of “Creators for the Creator?” I’m not surprised. That’s probably because it failed. Just a few months after it’s launch, Creators for the Creator ceased to exist. There were many factors that contributed to its downfall, but I think the biggest reason was that I was trying to do it alone. I had big dreams for the project, but I was trying to fly without any help.
“I can do it by myself. I don’t need any help.” Those are not the words of an artist. Those are the words of a three year old learning to use the bathroom. If you want to create art, it's time to drop the "lone wolf" mentality. If you think that collaboration is a sign of weakness or lack of talent, then you’re believing a lie. The fact is, every artist collaborates in some way, every single one. Behind the leader of every major movement, behind ever CEO, behind every award-winning artist there is a team of highly talented individuals (agents, publishers, designers, marketers, grounds crew, ect.) who work day in and day out to keep the project in the air.
Airlines don’t just hire pilots. Every pilot has a co-pilot, and every pilot duo has an entire crew of flight attendants, and every flight has grounds people, air traffic control specialists, baggage carriers, the list goes on and on. Without everybody doing their job, the plane doesn't stay in the air very long.
With Creators for the Creator, I was one pilot trying to manage an entire airline. Now, with The Anima Series, I not only have a close team of people with whom I collaborate with on a daily basis, I have an even larger community of audience members that are just as important to everything we do as a company. Without this team, The Anima Series would have never gotten off the ground.
It’s not just about you and your gifts. It’s about what your gifts can accomplish in collaboration with others.
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Follow jon on Twitter @jonjorgenson
Follow jon on Twitter @jonjorgenson
