Empathy and creativity
Empathy. It’s a big word.
Firstly, it’s something you do with humans. You empathise. It is the power of understanding and imaginatively entering into another person’s feelings and it’s the most powerful tool in a creative’s toolbox.
interrogation
At the beginning, we interrogate. We have to. It’s important that we ask questions and learn as much as we can about our clients. It’s a bit like jumping in a puddle as a kid: Jumping around, getting water everywhere and all the mud goes into your hair and onto your face — once you’ve finished jumping and splashing you walk on a little bit further and you see a big patch of mud and think, ‘you know what, i’m going to roll around in it’. You do just that. And in turn, you absorb, you become immersed. You don’t wash it off just yet. That’s the absorption of the details of our clients ambitions, their visions, their behaviours, their dreams, their objectives and fears. And then, when the interrogation is over, we start to empathise.
Empathy is the cornerstone of creativity with purpose.
Empathy sits at the centre of creativity because unless we understand what others see, what they feel and what they experience — what’s the point?
think about it
Why is Shakespeare still going four hundred years on? Simple. His plays offer some of the greatest insights into human behaviour and these behaviours are still relevant today.
stories
We talk a lot about storytelling. Stories help us relate, they help us empathise. I think it has something to do with when we were kids: At bedtime our parents would read us stories that filled our heads with dreams and pictures. Then, growing up and learning to read ourselves, discovering all kinds of worlds. From there, as teenagers we might go to the theatre or go to the cinema with purpose of exploration. As adults, we might go on holiday or go to a cool restaurant or even go to the gym — then we come home to tell our friends and families about our experiences, about our days , perhaps something we saw or heard— this is all storytelling, however menial. You get to know a lot about someone just by listening to their stories.
note: if you ever really want to get to know someone, take a look at their bookshelf.
in the digital world
In the business of marketing — marketers seem to be under the illusion that in this whizzy tech-savvy world, data is the only way to learn about your audience. Resist the urge to think that way — it’s really bloody lazy. Yes, it gives us some insight but to learn what really matters to customers and to buyers is to engage with them — because they are humans and humans crave engagement. People who need people and all that.
Technology is only useful when it understands human beings.
It’s true, our experiences are being redefined by waves of new technology and the takeover of digital. Most of what we look at today is on a screen. To be more empathetic you must observe — put digital output into context — talk to your audience, interview them and interact. Watch them work in a real world environment and then you will begin to understand their needs differently. It’s about experience — experience will give you greater empathy.
See, listen and interact.
And when we’ve grasped empathy, that’s when creativity can really come alive and bring purpose and value to your business.
picture: luke kemper/mercury press and media ltd
