Everyone strives to be successful in their career, for some people, this may mean working 5 days a week in an office, making a good, reliable income. But for others, the thought of sitting in an office all day is the opposite of successful! Maybe you want to be out videoing for clients, or in a studio designing your latest piece, or working through the night on your next animation…

If you enjoy creative subjects and feel this is an area you’d like to focus your career planning on then here are some of the top things you may want to consider:

Not everyone will get your work - the beautiful thing about art is that it is your expression on a particular subject or topic. Like with everything in the world, not everyone is going to understand this. Get used to being ok with people’s opinions and accepting that they won’t always be the same as yours.

University offers more than just a degree... No, really, they do. You may feel you have the creative talent to be successful, but what about all of the extra things that university will offer? This includes; work experience opportunities, internships, working abroad, and importantly, industry connections! It’s definitely worth looking at university options for your chosen specialism.

Keeping your day job does not mean you aren’t committed to your creative career. The bills have to be paid and it’s very rare that you will become an overnight success after your first project. Keep your day job until it is financially viable for you to make your creative role your full time occupation.

Be patient. All great things in life take time, including pursuing a creative career. Put in the work, love the process and work with the right people to ensure your success.

Learning business and marketing skills is important. You could be making the most amazing art in the world, but if you don’t know how to sell it or market it to buyers, it will only ever hang on one wall… Yours! Invest in your knowledge and skills by taking part in business, marketing and sales courses.

See the value in failures. You will quickly learn that not everything you touch will be an instant success, the creative process is all part of the journey and you need to be able to see the learnings and value in failing every now and then. Of course, it won’t feel great at first but you will learn and your next piece will be even better.

For more information on employers within the creative space, check out the provider profiles on NGTU.