The Social Secret to Creativity: Building Coalitions That Amplify Your Ideas

Behind every transformative idea lies a network of relationships, alliances, and coalitions. Building and maintaining these social bonds is crucial to turning originality into impact. Yet, coalition-building is complex and often fraught with internal conflicts.

Horizontal hostility—disagreements and rivalries among groups with similar goals—can fracture movements and dilute power. The women’s suffrage movement, for example, split into factions over tactics and ideology, slowing progress.

Successful coalitions often unite around shared tactics rather than shared values. Practical collaboration and tempered radicalism—softening radical ideas to appeal to broader audiences—help build bridges across differences. Trojan horse tactics, disguising novel intentions within familiar frameworks, also facilitate alliance-building.

Ambivalent relationships, or frenemies, pose challenges. Mixed feelings of support and conflict create instability. Sometimes, strategic alliances with former adversaries prove more effective than fraught frenemies. Trust, respect, and clear shared goals are the glue that hold coalitions together.

Mastering these social dynamics enables originals to recruit allies, manage conflicts, and amplify their creative impact. Coalitions provide the collective strength necessary to transform isolated ideas into movements.