The Power of Collaboration

The Power of Collaboration

Thank you to Adesola for sharing the YouTube video of Dr. Shelle VanEtten de Sánchez’s talk on the Power of Collaboration:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmQVNE-MbKI


“What each of us can accomplish on our own will fit in the palm of our hand, but that is insignificant compared to what we can accomplish together.”


Some incredibly wise words from Dr Shelle VanEtten de Sánchez and something I have actually been thinking about a lot recently as I have been working on a new creative project. 

For the past 6 months I have had an idea. Essentially to write a collection of short plays for children to teach them about Shakespeare and his stories, indirectly and without boring them to death.

Over the summer I researched, I wrote, I brainstormed. Come Autumn I presented the idea to the group and it fell flat. It did not work. Ego bruised and feeling disheartened I knew I was approaching the work completely wrong. So, I took a step back, I passed it on, gave the children my idea and let them play. Chew it up, spit it out, they chopped it, changed it, reworked it.

The collaboration made it a huge success. This play isn’t my play. This is our play. Sharing the same common goal, we have created an exciting and informative piece of art. We are now moving on to our second project in the same sphere. This time I am letting go. 

Recently I have thought about how you cannot force creativity, you have to let it grow. You have to sit and be patient. Part of the fun is the roller-coaster of a ride it takes us on to the final product. The things that work, that don’t work, that take you by surprise and down a completely different avenue.

I agree with Dr Shelle VanEtten de Sánchez wholeheartedly, with the correct diverse collaborators you can remake the work into something bigger and better than it was before. It belongs to the collective but you have to let it go.


Dr Shelle VanEtten de Sánchez’s 5 lessons of collaboration:
1.    Let go of your ego (let other people edit your work)
2.    Practice makes perfect – collaboration takes practice
3.    Share and share alike – Share work, recourse, blame and credit
4.    Hold tight is very safe and very small – you never know what will happen when you release an idea to the group – but with the right partners it leads to bigger and better things

5.    Team work does not equal collaboration

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