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Stay ahead of the curve with the Artisan Creative a.blog, where the future of work and creativity converge.
Artist or Artisan
Are you an artist or an artisan? Many people are very emotional about how their work is referred to and there are aspects of both for the talent we place at Artisan Creative. As a craftsperson as well as a creative myself, I have thought about it from both points of view. An “artisan” is traditionally known as someone who…
Freelancing in 2014
Whether you are already enjoying the benefits of freelancing or still thinking about taking the plunge, 2014 is a terrific year to break free of office life and go it on your own. Experience Think about when you learned the most on your last job. Probably in the first three to six months. If you’re a fan of lifelong learning,…
Exchange Your Goals for Some That Fit
It’s Boxing Day (or the day after Christmas, if you prefer) and traditionally the day for us to take gifts back and exchange them for things that are a better fit. It’s also the time of year when we look back at what we accomplished–or didn’t–and what we would like to accomplish in the year to come. Did you achieve…
En Garde! Artisan Founder Jamie Douraghy on Fencing and Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurs POV: The inspiration for entrepreneurship can come from a variety of places. For Jamie Douraghy, a Los Angeles entrepreneur and champion fencer, the sport of fencing has given him the tools he needs to excel in business. Here are three ways fencing has helped Jamie become a better entrepreneur. When I was 17, I joined the fencing club at…
Gift Ideas for the Creatives on Your List
Santa is not the only one making a list and checking it twice–we at Artisan have been finding some great gift ideas for the creatives in our lives all over. Wonderful design and clever ideas come together to make some really cool gifts this year: You never know when or where your friend might get a brilliant idea, but if…
Reflections: Perfection
Are you a perfectionist? There are certainly areas of my life where I would like to be perfect, but I’m comfortable knowing that I cannot achieve it in everything all the time. The quest for perfection can be motivating or it can stop us from ever feeling a sense of accomplishment. Not everything requires perfection all the time and taking…
Staying Productive During the Holidays
If you’re like everyone I know, this is your busiest time of the year. Not only are we all doing our year-end assessments and strategy sessions for 2014, we are spending time outside of work preparing for celebrations, houseguests and gift-giving. You might feel like you have something filling up every waking moment already, but unless you are functioning at…
Gifting to Your Network: LinkedIn Recommendations
Wondering what to get your favorite colleague for a holiday gift? How about an amazing LinkedIn Recommendation! Hard to request and rather intimidating to write, a polished LinkedIn recommendation on your LinkedIn Profile can be a lot more valuable than bath oil beads to a rock star member of your network. Here are some tips on writing something your friend…
5 Tips for a Great Office Holiday Party
The holidays have arrived and office parties are looming on our calendars. Artisan’s annual holiday luncheon is today, as a matter of fact. As much as we want everyone to have a great time at these festive events, we all know someone who has embarrassed themselves by making some unfortunate choices. Instead of sending a wish list to Santa this…
From Our Table to Yours…
Happy Thanksgiving!
Imagine: 50 Years of Giving
Our Founder Jamie Douraghy gave this short interview for Entrepreneurs Organization about entrepreneurship and giving back and we wanted to share it with you this Thanksgiving week. Transcript follows. Jamie Douraghy: The reason I got involved because I was asked to be the Philanthropy Chair. And of course the big theme of this whole conference was the ability to give…
Time Off from a New Job
With the short Thanksgiving work week coming up, we have some advice about what to do when you want to take some time off from your a new job. If you have been on the job less than 3 months, you are still getting settled and might not want to ask for any time off, but you might need a little…
Being Your Own Mentor
At Artisan Creative, we are big fans of mentorship. Artisan Founder Jamie Douraghy is passionate about mentoring and being mentored. There are times, however, when we find ourselves without a mentor for a situation we are trying to navigate. Can you be your own mentor? Yes! We went back and took a look at our interview with Jamie to see…
How to Get the Best out of Your Recruiter
For some job seekers, recruiters are a necessity in their job search. If you’re working full-time, new to a city, or generally unsure of how to approach prospective employers, a recruiter can turn what could be a long and daunting process into a pain-free and simple one. But how do you get the best out of your recruiter and how…
Revise Your Resume Now
How long has it been since you read your own resume? A month? Three months? Since you got your current job? Unless you have revised your resume since the end of the summer, you have waited long enough. Why revise your resume if you’re not looking for a new job? Here are some of our reasons for spending time tweaking…
Bilbo Baggins, Entrepreneur
We recently came across an article about how starting a business is like The Hunger Games. We hope that is not the experience most people have. That book is pretty brutal. At Artisan Creative, we think a lot about entrepreneurship and we think starting a business is more like The Hobbit. At least when it works. Further in and further…
Sincerely Yours: Cover Letter Closers
You’ve introduced yourself and told the hiring manager why you are a great fit for her job opening. You have used keywords from the job description so that computer screeners will flag you for further review. You have been personable and professional–and brief. Now to tie it all up with a bow. Some people will say that cover letters are…
Scary Social Media Advice
Ever find yourself frightened by something you see on the internet? We all do on occasion, especially at this time of year. Regrettable Facebook status updates, terrible typos, inadvertently offensive language or other content can affect people both personally and professionally. But scariest of all is really bad “expert advice.” There are people out there who aren’t really social media…
The Savant
Whether you’re a hiring manager, a recruiter or simply tasked with hiring new talent, there are various conclusions that we draw in order to determine if someone should be hired for a particular position. Do they have the relevant qualifications? Are they the right cultural fit? Can they lead a team or take direction from a higher authority? It’s important…
Messy Desk? Congratulations!
I have a confession to make. Clutter does not bother me. Which is a good thing, considering I share my workspace with 2 teenagers, 2 dogs, a cat and a spouse. Luckily, dogs take naps, teens go to school and my spouse goes to work elsewhere, but they do leave behind enough clutter to drive anyone else crazy. A recent…
Forge! 2013 by The Skool
At Artisan Creative, we love to get involved with local events and network, especially when they’re targeted at women in business, so when we were invited to be on a panel of speakers at Forge! 2013, we jumped at the chance to attend. Held at WeWork in Hollywood, Forge! is a conference aiming to coach budding female entrepreneurs in business,…
6 Tips for Better Employee Engagement
I once had a boss who was the most enthusiastic person you’ll ever meet. She was always high energy, always excited, always fully present, and working hard. During an important and urgent project she could be heard asking everyone, “Isn’t this fun!? All the time. Her enthusiasm was definitely infectious and did inspire her team–mostly volunteers–to heights of creativity that…
Time: More Than Money
The old saying goes, “Time is money.” Benjamin Franklin was supposed to have made up this aphorism. The provenance is not clear, but the sentiment has lasted centuries. Is it true? Let’s look at what time really is. An Investment–When we put time into learning new things so that we can grow in skill and ability, we make an investment…