This week I had a smashing good time in a workshop I led with members of the Halton Peel Communicators Association — freelance writers, photographers, web strategists and related experts who wanted to take their writing “to the next level,” a concept I borrowed from video games.
I say “smashing,” not to mimic my British friends, but to stress how we often benefit from blowing up the templates that usually guide our daily work. Templates are a necessary force of both good and evil. They give us a model to follow, based on techniques that have worked well for others.
As soon as a video goes viral or a business strategy succeeds, people develop the template, telling you how to do it. These templates are useful. Like you, I frequently follow them. Sometimes I try to create them.
But templates can confine. They can keep you at the same level. They can wear out. They may reek of laziness and mediocrity.
If you’re serious about reaching the next level, try smashing the template first.
Destroy then rebuild
Many would call this “thinking outside the box” or “disrupting.” Aside from my aversion to tired jargon, I prefer “smash the template” because it implies the energy required to demolish the old wall.
The workshop participants talked about the popular media they enjoy most: hockey, mysteries, video games, talk radio, Twitter, classical music, internet surfing, Bollywood and more. Then they formed groups, clustered around their shared interests.
I asked them to apply techniques from their favorite media to rewriting a news release about an art student who slowly killed a chicken as a performance art project. I picked a topic that was controversial, with many possible angles. To my surprise, no one was so grossed out to insist on my vegan alternative.
At first, a few people clung to the standard communication templates, but soon joined in the fun. The results were impressive, from a court room drama where the victim was revealed only in the last scene, to the artist and the fowl protector who donned chicken costumes to duke it out in a pay-per-view fundraiser.
The woe of status quo
Early in my career, my suggestions for fresh approaches were often met with “but we’ve always done it this way.” I was elated when globalization and other pressures heated up competition and innovation.
Even in our constantly mutating media, it seems to be human nature to crack the code and develop best practices and templates. But touch screens, disposable mop heads and other game changers go way beyond best practices and templates.
I love the freedom to play with new approaches that blogging can encourage. Although I often follow templates, I also seek out opportunities to adapt novel techniques from popular media, such as advancing levels from video games or the story structure of crime dramas. I’ve started another blog and a Facebook page, where I can wander off topic, get personal or experiment with my web cam or other things that do not always go well.
When you rely on templates, you reduce the risk of failure. But you raise the risk of getting stuck.
Smashing the template is no guarantee that you’ll go viral or even make it to the next level. But it can be the first step.
