Chris spoke about business and creativity on behalf of the ACT Labor Government at a CraftACT event to mark 2011 Business in Focus Month on Thursday 29 September.
I acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land we are meeting on, the Ngunnawal people. I respect their continuing culture and the contribution they make to the life of this city and this region.
Chris noted that Canberra boasts a diverse and vibrant creative sector, making up about 10 per cent of all ACT businesses – nearly double the national average. However, it is not only the creative sector that makes Canberra is a creative city.
He said:
Creativity is evident across all sectors and business types, and is a defining feature of a wide range of the ACT’s business success stories.
So what is it about creativity that makes it so important to business success? And can creative types – craft and design practitioners – equally benefit from working on their business skills?
One of the key features of creativity is that it is, at its essence, a practice of being open to ideas. Many an idea – for a business system, product, or work of art – is lost before it is given the chance to fully form. Creative people are typically willing to acknowledge ideas, and to allow them to sit with other ideas, to enter a discussion with colleagues, friends or mentors.
I see collaboration as a key feature of all creative activity.
Chris went on to note the unique collaboration between government, academia, business and art in Canberra which helps provide the basis for a prosperous, sustainable and vital future.
The full text of the speech is available online.
