I feel that process and structure are terms that often have negative connotations to them. In the past two and a half years, I have learnt a lot personally and professionally about creating good habits through process and structure to, in turn, allow for creativity and growth. I used to believe that processes were not something you needed when looking to be creative and that you also couldn’t be creative when implementing structure.
I have worked in various roles within marketing and what I observed previously when at my busiest, was that processes and structure “went out the window” when deadlines were fast approaching for companies. Marketing should be a creative industry but often one of two things are the case (from my experience)
ONE: Teams, companies & individuals are too strict on particular solutions because “that’s what worked before” and as a result creativity lacks.
OR
TWO: There is no structure and this means working harder until it fits in the order of the day.
In Trigger Movement, we have created a system internally (shout-out to Michael, our Head of Digital Operations) for project management but also project development. It allows us to be efficient at administration (costing, proposals, setup etc.) and day-to-day tasks which then frees more time up to focus on the creative elements of our projects and roles.
It’s from this that I have learned the value of giving myself some easy structures to stick to in my personal life. I discovered that if I implement small structures and habits into to my daily life that make me more efficient, it would allow me to focus more time on the things I care about most. For example, giving myself set training times and days for running or the gym so that I don’t put training on the long finger was important. In order to do this, I must prepare my bag the night before as (I’ll be the first to admit) I am sometimes lazy when it comes to getting out of bed. This, in turn, means I am more active and therefore my mood is often a lot better. I grew up playing sport so when my career took over I let sport get pushed to the long finger and I wasn’t as happy as a result.
I’m not saying you need to structure everything but you may be able to
Also, I do want to put a disclaimer on this piece. This is clearly not a new idea (see “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg as an example) but is something I have learned first hand! I hope this helps you.
Ryan Hopkins
Trigger Movement