It’s Difficult Doing Creative Work When You’re Exhausted
Gary Stevenson is feeling tired.
His latest ‘Gary’s Economics’ series ended with a very open conversation about burnout, tiredness and the impact this has on his output and ongoing campaign.
It was refreshing to hear.
In a sea of content that talks about hustling hard, optimising efficiency and constantly feeding the algorithm just to get noticed – it’s nice to hear someone recognising how exhausting this can be.
I think It’s also worth reflecting on this topic when it comes to the creative output in B2B Marketing (and the wider advertising industry).
Many people bemoan the state of creativity in B2B, but very few actually reflect on why 75% of B2B advertising lacks the creativity to deliver a long term impact.
So I thought I would share some of my own thoughts and reflections.
- It’s difficult doing creative work when you’re exhausted
A recent study found that 55% of people in the UK now feel ‘hyper fatigued’ thanks to stress, the general state of the world and excessive social media usage. Like Gary said, it’s quite easy to lose your creative flow when your battery is depleted.
- People are expected to move at the pace of Ai
ChatGPT has thrown our expectations of how quickly something can be created completely out of whack. People are now less willing to give the time and space for great creativity when something ‘perfectly acceptable’ is available in minutes from an LLM.
- Wallets are tight
When budgets are cut, the GREAT in ‘Great Creative’ gets cut along with it. Tighter budgets often mean people are willing to accept average more than they were before as they simply don’t feel they have the luxury to afford brilliant creative thinking.
- Sales want to keep their jobs
And who can blame them? The economy isn’t so hot right now, so sales people aren’t too interested in waiting months on end for your big creative brand campaign to start reaping the rewards. The lead tap needs turning on and banner ads might just do.
- It’s just not worth the risk
In a very unsteady economic, political and social climate – the appetite for risk may well take a back seat. A nervy context leads to unnerving creativity and quickly leads everyone down the road to average.
Of course there is no simple answer to any of these things, but as Charles Kettering said: “A problem well stated is half-solved”.
There are many studies that show the impact of brilliant creative and long term brand building in B2B and beyond. Those who consider and manage the external factors that are holding them back will be the ones who lead the charge in the second half of this decade.