You Have to Choose: Teach and Challenge.....or Follow

The process of making things is a funny one. As creatives (entrpreneurs and small business owners fit into this category too), our work is constantly beholden to the opinions of those around us. Yet I think too many time we (myself included) give the onlookers too much power and control. For those of us who create commercially, this means handing over the keys to our customers and clients. If we were to map the spectrum of these relationships, it would likely look something like this:

Remaining at either end of the spectrum is easy. There are consequences, of course, but resolutely refusing to give up any control isn't difficult—it may just result in fewer clients. Conversely, surrenduring all creative license and becoming "the pen" for your client's every creative whim isn't difficult either. The tough part is walking that middle line—listening and absorbing the intent of the client and balancing it with what we know to be the correct decision based on experience, education, intuition, etc.

At the end of the day, you are where you are for a reason. Existential reasoning aside, you were hired for a purpose—likely because you had a skill set that the company needed. Be humble, be teachable, but embrace the knowledge that you posess. Use that knowledge to help educate others and challenge the status quo. The alternative is blindly following; which doesn't really do anyone any good.