July Retrospective: Back in July 2014, I wrote a daily series exploring the realities of navigating the creative economy. Twelve years later, looking back at these entries (and my original awful hand-drawn illustrations!), I’m struck by how the core truths of a creative career remain completely timeless. Each day this month, I’m opening up the archive to share these foundational lessons—with a few modern reflections layered in.
If you’re a new creative graduate looking to find your footing in the creative economy, a Gen X looking to pivot into a creative business, a side-hustler or someone who just wants to up their creative business game, there’s something for you in this series. Just don’t judge my drawings 😉
Build a Team
John Dunne famously said:
No man is an island, Entire of itself, Every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.
I think over the last 29 days you’ve got an idea of some of the steps that are involved in managing a creative career. There’s a lot of work to be done.
I want to discourage you from trying to do it all on your own.
Not only is this lonely, but it’s inefficient.
As you work more on your business you will understand the areas where you can add real value and the areas where you are best served to use someone else who is better than you.
I am okay with managing my own accounts – but I still hire an accountant to do my annual tax return. To me that is money well spent to have a professional do all the calculations, to advise me on how to structure things and to answer any of my tax questions.
Could I do it myself?
Probably. I did it for years. I also constantly lived in fear of being audited since I was never sure I did it properly.
For me, the peace of mind of knowing that it has been handled by an accountant more than offsets her annual fee.
Why work with a team? Frankly, other people make you better.
Other people up your game.
Other people bring fresh energy into your business.
Look for support when you need it and when you can get it.
But I can’t afford it!, you say.
This may be true. But in certain cases you can’t afford NOT to.
Learn to identify tasks that someone else can do more quickly and with greater ease than you can. You should know the tasks where you create the most impact on your business. That’s where the bulk of your time should be spent. The other things you should try to outsource.
You can look for opportunities to barter so that it doesn’t have to cost you money. Can you offer your goods or services to someone else in exchange for them working for you?
Also, don’t overlook the power of interns. There are endless degree and diploma programmes where students are encouraged or required to do an internship.
I am not encouraging anyone to take advantage of interns as a cheap labour source – you should follow the guidelines of covering expenses and probably paying a minimum wage, but don’t underestimate the contribution you will make to their education by offering them the opportunity to work with you and learn from you. Not only will you be getting an extra pair of often highly skilled hands to help you out, but you will be providing a future artist with practical hands-on industry knowledge and experience. The exchange is beneficial in both directions.
Action – Who can you add to your team? What skills are you missing and where can you get them from? What support do you need? You these questions (and more) to assemble a team to support your creative business.
Longevity in a creative career isn’t accidental—it’s built on strategy.
While the landscape shifts, the core principles of thriving as a creative freelancer haven’t changed. For deeper, modern frameworks on building a sustainable creative practice:
- Read the Book: Looking for a step-by-step field guide to building a resilient career in the creative economy? Pick up my recent book The Thriving Creative: Successful Freelancing in the Creative Economy available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and from my publisher Routledge.
- Stay Connected: Join my community and to receive the complete 31-day hand-drawn playbook as a single PDF at the end of the month. Sign up below.
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