I work a lot with leaders. High performers, CEOs and Executives. They have excelled in so many aspects of their professional lives and have found themselves in positions of power and influence. Yet, despite their expertise, many are over their head. They are struggling to keep up with the increasing complexity of life and personal responsibilities. They are burnt out, shut down and overwhelmed. It is not their professional intellect that is limited. If I ask them any number of complex business related questions, they respond instantly, articulately and with wit. The problem is their emotional system is inadequate to keep up with the overall requirements. When I ask them how they feel, or why they feel a certain way, the response I get is silence.

Humans can develop both horizontally and vertically. Horizontal development consists of the acquisition of new skills, tools and resources. It’s an increase of information. It’s like adding new apps to your phone. Vertical development, on the other hand, is more like an update of the phone’s operating system entirely. It is not about teaching an individual new skills but about transforming the way an individual thinks, impacting what they do and how they behave. It’s a fundamental change in the way we see ourselves and the world around us. It is the subject of object shift, taking what was once an unconscious belief, ideas or assumption, and bringing it into awareness; enabling us to reflect, edit and adapt as we see fit. Arising from Harvard and Cambridge, it is seen as the necessary antidote to the issues faced by those at the top of their profession.

So what, if anything, has this got to do with poetry and creative writing? Surely this sort of activity is pretty much as far away as you can get from the practicalities of busy, corporate life? 

Wrong.

Research shows us that the necessary tools for vertical development – emotional intelligence, creativity, self-awareness, increased empathy, receptivity – can all be cultivated through creative writing. 

The burnt out High Performer or struggling CEO does not need an increase in organizational skills as much as a better understanding of him or herself. To know how they feel, to have the space to reflect and the opportunity to make decisions in a grounded, receptive way. To understand how they relate to others and why, to be able to notice emotions and regulate when needed, to see multiple perspectives and to understand – deeply – when to push and when to pull back in order to thrive.

So why is it that creative writing helps?

Creative writing, and poetry in particular, asks us to turn inwards. It demands to know how we feel and to articulate that feeling into words. It helps us to process emotions, to deepen our understanding of ourselves, and to strengthen our problem solving capacities. It encourages us to think about things differently, find new perspectives on a situation and find novel ways of explaining or exploring our point of view. Sharing poetry with others then leads to connection. It lets us into another’s inner world and opens the opportunity for deeper empathy and collaboration.

If we are to develop we need to take the power of creative expression seriously. Creative workshops like Evoke are essential in the cultivation of the holistic tools needed for leaders to meet the ever increasing demands of complex organizational life.

David Gibbs MBACP