You know the feeling of finishing a session in your studio and walking out lighter than you walked in? I want to bottle that feeling and bring it to your business.
On Saturday, November 14, I’m hosting “How You Create Is How You Lead” at the Maker House in North Hill. It’s a 90-minute, hands-on workshop for makers, artists, and creative entrepreneurs. I’ve run it before, but this version will be different, and I want to tell you why.
Where this workshop came from
Over the past few years, I worked closely with several business owners: a musician, a travel founder, a bike shop owner, and a client with an MBA. They all kept doing the same thing. They’d casually describe how they make things. One needed every detail perfect before starting. Another loved the big idea and lost interest at the finish line. Another worked best when everything was falling apart.
Then they’d describe a stuck spot in their business. I’d hear the same story, but they didn’t connect the two. They assumed their stuck points were a motivation problem, a confidence problem, or a discipline problem. But the way you handle a blank page is often the way you handle a blank calendar, a pricing decision, or a hard conversation. Your creative habits are an early signal of how you lead.
This workshop holds up a mirror to that pattern. You won’t fix anything, and nobody’s going to call you out. You’ll just notice, and noticing is where change starts.
What to expect
We’ll start by settling in and setting an intention for our time together. After that, you’ll find out which of three entrepreneurial roles comes most naturally to you: the Doer, the Dreamer, or the Improviser. Then we’ll make things. Your hands will be busy, you’ll be talking with the people around you, and I’m saving the rest as a surprise.
You don’t need to see yourself as an artist. You just need to be willing to play for a couple of hours.
Why it’s small this time
The first time I ran this, we had a big room and a complicated printmaking process. For people who’d never touched that kind of equipment, the technique got in the way of the insight. Some people spent the whole time worried about doing it wrong.
This time, I’m capping the group at five. With that few people, the workshop becomes a conversation. You’ll have time to say what you noticed out loud, and the people listening will get it, because they’re in the same room doing the same thing. My “End the Day Come Play” sessions work the same way. People walk out feeling lighter and a little less alone with their work.
Why the Maker House
North Hill CDC’s mission is to unite people, places, and programs to stimulate a robust and creative economy in North Hill while anchoring an intercultural community that celebrates its diversity. The Maker House is one way they do that. It’s a community hub at 762 Elma Street with studio space, a meeting room, a full kitchen that opens onto People’s Park, and equipment like a laser cutter, embroidery machine, and sublimation printer. Its resources prioritize women in the community but are open to everyone. Creative people can rent space and equipment there to grow their practice or business.
That lines up closely with what I believe at Aducate: creative professionals deserve spaces and support designed for how they actually work. Strategy doesn’t have to happen in a conference room. Sometimes the clearest thinking happens when your hands are busy.
Details
- When: Saturday, November 14, 3:00-4:30 PM
- Where: The Maker House, 762 Elma Street, Akron
- Length: 90 minutes
- Group size: Limited to five
- Cost: Free to attend
If you’ve read my earlier posts on the lab and the Doer, Dreamer, and Improviser archetypes, this is the experience behind them. Come see what your own creative habits have been trying to tell you.