OPINION: So, You Want to be a "Creative?"
It doesn’t happen every week, but I do get questions about my work from would-be young designers, filmmakers, photographers—creatives looking to do this professionally. I’ve been blessed with a fun and successful creative media career helping clients worldwide working professionally with people and creative content for 20 years. So it’s neat offering young creatives pro tips that come my way. After all, that’s how I got here. This will be the first “class” in my curriculum, so here are the ground rules guys: prickly advice and personal experiences from a real-life creative media pro. That simple. If we’re cool with those risks, read on!
Let’s begin start with an arms crossed question. What qualifies me to offer advice anyway? My nutshell resume:
Nonprofit creative director (2004-2013).
Content studio founder: designer, brand strategist, writer (2013-present)
Film producer: helicopter & drone cinematography (2018-present)
Who I work with every week: Hollywood directors, stunt coordinators, aviation operations, professional/college/youth sports, Inc 500s & Inc 5000s
Recent movies my heli & drone units have filmed: Pirates of the Caribbean, Thor, Dunkirk, Star Wars Ep. 9, 007 No Time to Die
Career fun fact: 13 of my former nonprofit creative team volunteers went on to lead or start their own creative companies
Lesson #1
So, our first lesson in how to break into this industry and thrive as a designer, filmmaker, writer, photographer—whatever your creative talent—is this: become a great communicator.
I chose the Seattle Pike Place Market image in this post because it highlights the deeper point to my lesson. That is, become a great, intentional, communicator before you take your creative talents into the public market. I’m mostly talking to you high school and college students. Good communication in this sense is not the TED Talk stuff. Not exactly, although a public stage presence certainly will help you. I’m emphasizing the day-to-day communication habits, generated in and practiced in your obscurity that develop true value to prospective clients. The emotional intelligence stuff. But so many aspiring creatives sabotage yourselves. Here’s where you’re doing it:
How you email
How your website looks
How you talk on the phone
Your social media voice
Your personal brand
Your likeability
Your ability to read a person, read a room, and read in between the lines
“But I just want to design; I want to make movies; I want to run ad campaigns; I want to be a YouTuber.”
No one cares. NO. ONE. Here are ten real examples of actual communication behaviors I’ve seen that will disqualify your public creative media career at the starting line:
If you misspell my name or get my name wrong in your introductory email (if I’m a potential client or boss), you’re done before I’ve read your first sentence. If you forget my name in person, you’re worse than done. My name is Troy. Not Tony. Not Tory. Not Todd. Not Ty.
If your intro email or voicemail to me is canned, robotic, or otherwise impersonal, you’re out.
If your website doesn’t clearly and instantly show me, within 10 seconds, what you do, who you are, and why you’re awesome, you’re out.
If your personal brand (including your profile photo and blurb) is boring, you’re out. If it’s boring, you probably are.
If your social media “voice” pattern is critical, rude, disrespectful, misinformed, conspiracy-driven, etc, etc...you’re out. The same goes if you have little or no social media presence at all. Nowadays, in this line of work, if you aren’t willing to publicly comment on the times, on your work, on your personal life...you aren’t hirable as a communicator.
If you can’t keep our phone/meeting conversation moving, fun, and on track, you’re out. I need someone I want to be around. Likewise, if you’re a chatty kitty who dominates our conversation, not aware of my time, you’re out.
If you’re one of my contractors working on a live project for me and you don’t respond to my text/email/call within the hour, we probably won’t work together again. The same applies if I need a quote from you for a project and you’re slow to respond.
If your portfolio is full of random things you think are cool that have no clear objective, client, or reason for being created, you’re out.
If you appear to be a lone wolf, not connected with the greater creative industry, you’re out.
If you don’t have at least some professional references, Google reviews, testimonials—something—that shows other people and companies can verify a good working experience with you, you’re out. Without at least some client buzz, you’re a risky hire.
“So harsh Troy. I mean, I’m a pretty big deal. I think I can do this.”
Talent is as common as rocks. I learned this the hard way after my nonprofit career where I emerged with an impressive portfolio of work into the for-profit creative market...then couldn’t get hired. Turns out, there are some really good artists out here? Hello, like, scary good—way better than I ever will be. The public market is oversaturated with epic designers, photographers, etc. If you think you’re hot stuff, just spend 30 seconds on Instagram or Behance for a skills reality check. The world does not need any more creative skills! But the world does need creative leadership. No one cares about your chops quite yet? Then go develop something more meaningful that powers your creative, establishing you over time as a sought after resource.
Let’s wrap this.
Learn to communicate well now, before you hit the market. Good communication practices now will train your interactions to solve brand and business challenges, activating that talent of yours. That combo will embed a trust reputation into your brand. Creative careers trend with trust. In other words, money follows trust. Here’s my formula to leave on: