A little-known secret that shouldn’t be one: collaboration is the secret to creativity. It’s not just about working with other people, it’s about working with the *right* people. I look for collaborators outside my area of expertise, people who bring new kinds of expertise to the table. A designer, a developer, a retoucher—everyone contributes to the vision in a different way. This is how I stretch myself as an artist.
The benefits of collaboration go far beyond just creating better art. When we collaborate with others, we gain new perspectives and insights that we may not have thought of on our own. This can lead to breakthroughs in our work, and even in our personal growth and learning. In my experience, some of my most successful projects have come from collaborating with experts in fields outside my own. For example, I worked with a world-class software developer to create the Best Camera app, which was named app of the year on the iTunes platform.
But collaboration isn’t just about finding people to help with a specific project. It’s about building a team of people around you who can support you in all aspects of your career and life. By surrounding yourself with high-performing individuals, you can push each other to do your best work and achieve your goals.
So, if you’re an artist looking to level up your game, my advice is simple: collaborate! Seek out the best people you can find, people whose work excites you, people who are cutting-edge in their area. Learn to organize, communicate, and delegate tasks so that each of you can focus on your strengths. Take what you can from every experience but prioritize adding more value to the project through giving.
Remember, collaboration is the key to creativity. It’s not just about creating better art, it’s about growing and learning as a person.
So if you’re looking to level up your ideas and creations, get out there and collaborate. Work with real people in the real world in any capacity you can and learn from it all. Seek out the best you can find, the people whose work excites you like nothing else. Learn to organize, communicate, and delegate tasks so that each of you can focus on your strengths. Take what you can from every experience but prioritize adding more value to the project through giving.
It can be intimidating to surround yourself with people as good as you or better than you are, who care as much or more than you do, but remember this: A-gamers work with A-gamers, B-gamers work with C-gamers. If you want to be great, surround yourself with awesome people doing their best work, even if it keeps you on your toes more than you’d like. The best way to level up your own game is to level up the team around you.
Enjoy!
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