About theBlogStack’s July guest writer: Hi I’m Marianne Kaiser! I help brands—from scrappy startups to Fortune 500s—tell stories that move people, shift behavior, and stand out in crowded, complex markets. I care deeply about rare disease, women’s health, patient advocacy, and telling stories with clarity, care, and depth. In 2024 I founded Contrary Collective – the kind of team I always wished existed. We specialize in healthcare, finance, and tech—and we only say yes when we know we can knock it out of the park.
Outside of work? I hoard fonts, overuse em dashes, read fantasy novels like snacks, believe in signs from the universe, and (yes) drive race cars.
Creativity On a Schedule (Kind Of)
Creativity doesn't show up on command, but you can lay out a welcome mat:
🔁 Create rituals: We block time for deep work. We use 90-minute sprints and make space for pauses.
🧠 Create psychological safety: We make room for dumb ideas, wrong turns, and experiments. We celebrate the attempt, not just the win.
✨ Create inspiration: We encourage doing things that have nothing to do with work—watch weird movies, walk around unfamiliar towns with no headphones, ride the bus and eavesdrop like it’s your job. Eat something you’ve never tried. Make up words. Sing songs. Take a dance break. (Yes, even you. Especially you.)
And for the love of your overworked amygdala: put your damn phone down. Let your mind be bored for once. That’s where ideas sneak in.
Tools, Tactics, and Talismanic Reading
You want a reading list? Of course you do. Here’s what I recommend—whether you’re leading a team or trying to lead yourself through a creative rut:
📖 Critical Response Process – Liz Lerman: This one changed the way I give and receive feedback. It’s collaborative, respectful, and it actually gets results.
📖 A Big Life – Mary Wells Lawrence: The original ad badass. A woman carving out a space in a world that didn’t want her in it. Read it for the attitude alone.
📖 Hegarty on Advertising – John Hegarty: Punchy and real. Like having a creative director yell kindly at you from across a Soho office.
📖 Hey Whipple, Squeeze This – Luke Sullivan: If you work in advertising and haven’t read this, what are you even doing.
Also recommended: the weird, the offbeat, the not-your-usual-TED-Talk circuit. Let your brain roll around in the mud sometimes. You’ll be shocked what blooms.
In Closing: Keep Asking "What About..."
If I could give one piece of advice to anyone working in a creative space, it’s this: don’t throw out the idea that seems hard to get approved. Ask how we could get it approved. Ask who needs to see it. Ask what version of it might survive.
Keep asking “what about…” even when the idea seems out of scope, or over budget, or too big. That’s where the real stuff lives. And the people who ask those questions again and again? They’re the ones who change the work—and the industry.
ℹ️ See more about Contrary Collective or connect with Marianne
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