The Artisan Creative a.blog explores insights into creativity, the future of work, artificial intelligence (AI), and the art of culture building. Whether you’re a job seeker eager to elevate your career or an employer looking to inspire your team, our 500+ blogs offer resources for a variety of topics, including resume writing, interview preparation tips, hiring best practices, effective staffing and recruitment strategies, and the nuances of freelancing. leadership and entrepreneurship. Our content is crafted to support professionals looking for career advancement and for companies looking to grow and nurture their teams.
Dive into expert advice on boosting productivity, mastering the art of remote work, leading with confidence, expanding your professional network, fostering a positive company culture, establishing core values, and much more. Our articles are designed not just to inform but to transform the way you work and lead. Our articles are ideal for
- Job Seekers (for Freelance or Direct-Hire roles): Discover how to make your resume stand out, ace your interviews, and navigate the job market with confidence. Enhance your leadership skills, thrive in remote work settings, and create meaningful connections within your team.
- Employers: Learn to hire & interview better, write impactful job descriptions, build a motivated team, and foster an environment where culture, productivity, and belonging flourish.
Stay ahead of the curve with the Artisan Creative a.blog, where the future of work and creativity converge.
5 Free Online Courses for Creatives
Another long, hot summer is upon us! If your business takes on a slower pace and you’re planning to take some time off, we’d like to recommend taking this opportunity to build on your professional skills and enrich your creative awareness by taking free online courses. Coursera is one of several popular online platforms for massive open online classes (MOOCs)….
The Design History of The Flag
Wishing you a happy 4th of July! The contemporary “stars and stripes” design has its origins in the early days of the republic. The original version of the design was officially adopted by the Second Continental Congress in 1777. Francis Hopkinson took credit for its design, contradicting the legend propagated by the descendants of seamstress Betsy Ross that she created…
Setting Six-Month Resolutions
We celebrated the Summer Solstice on June 21st. The end of June marks the halfway point of the year and at such times of transition, it can be useful to pause, reflect, and consider where you’ve been, where you are and where you plan to go. By now, you may have kept some of your New Year’s resolutions, while others…
America’s Best Recruiting Firms 2018
We are delighted to have made the Forbes’ list of “America’s Best Recruiting Firms 2018.” At Artisan Creative, we believe that successful placements change lives. They provide our talent with opportunities for personal and professional growth, and our clients with the right team members to make a difference in their businesses. We have loved every minute of our 22+ years…
Making Time vs. Having Time
I realized I had been in a negative relationship with TIME, until now. I was always catching up, falling behind, stressed, and challenged with the ticking of the clock. Time was always running out, and I was always trying to slow it down. Time always had the upper hand, and I felt inferior. I have read many articles, and listened…
Creating Inspiring Presentations
In a good presentation, you are presenting useful and important ideas. In a great presentation, you are inviting your audience to join in, creating engagement and interaction. There are various techniques that will help you set the stage for a more effective presentation. In short, best practices are a) understand how human thought and behavior work, and b) take concrete…
Films that Inspire Creativity
Whatever your creative field may be, you can enrich your work when you lose yourself in a great film, be inspired and, uncover new ideas. If you want to broaden your own creative palate, or simply try on a different way of looking at the human condition, here are eleven films we recommend for creative inspiration. Our list is a…
Using Video to Impact Your Brand
Whether you’re a small business or an enterprise-level company, there’s one thing you can do that’s just as important as attracting new clients and customers, and that’s attracting top talent. Just as you can use the tools of the internet and social media to communicate your value proposition to potential buyers, you can use them just as well to showcase…
Working with Non-Millennials
In the last few decades technology has changed the world of business rapidly and profoundly. This rate of change continues to accelerate. To overcome the widening gap in knowledge and to be able to collaborate more effectively, it is essential for members of different generations to understand each other in a spirit of teamwork, empathy, and mutual respect. With their…
Maximizing Your LinkedIn Profile
If you are looking for work, considering a change, or have any interest in industry networking, we all know that a profile on LinkedIn, the top social media network for professionals is the place to go. Potential employers and recruiters may find it unusual if you aren’t on the site in today’s highly competitive job market. It only takes a…
Startups vs. Scaleups: Which is Right for You?
Is the company you’re interviewing with a “startup,” or a “scaleup?” While some business writers may use the terms interchangeably, there are essential differences between startups and scaleups regarding structure, culture, and funding. Understanding these differences can help you decide which sort of company you want to work for, or to run. Startups: Move Fast, Try New Things, Wear Many…
Create Your Productive Week
Weekends are regarded days of rest, blocked off to recharge or catch up on obligations outside of work. However, there is a marked phenomenon of “Sunday blues,” a collective sense of frustration that comes from not getting as much satisfaction from our Sundays as we’d like. Fortunately, there are a few simple steps we can take to make our Sundays…
How to Find Your Ideal Candidate
In past posts, we’ve covered some of the important factors that separate effective job descriptions from others. One of the most important is effective SEO using language familiar to your prospects, setting expectations appropriately, and differentiating between strict requirements and “nice-to-haves.” Today, we’ll share a few pro-level tips that will really set your job descriptions apart and help you…
How to Build a Design Portfolio
“It’s easier to get a job when you have a job.” There is some ring of truth to this cliche. If you’re a designer starting out – perhaps you’re a fresh graduate, or you’re changing careers – this can seem frustrating and paradoxical. Most high-status job openings are available only to those with years of experience. If you must have…
Job Skills for the Future
The World Economic Forum recently released its report on “The Future of Jobs.” The results have important implications for job seekers, hiring managers, and anyone else who wants to build professional skills that will be relevant into the decade ahead. The section “10 Skills You Will Need to Thrive in 2020” is particularly relevant. People management, emotional intelligence, negotiation, and…
Body Language Speaks Volumes In An Interview
Body language plays a big part in our daily interactions—from interacting with clients and vendors to public speaking to conducting interviews—whether you are the interviewee OR the interviewer. I once interviewed a brilliant candidate, who was extremely skilled in his craft and (on paper), had all the qualifications our client was looking to hire. However, during our pre-qualification interview, the…
Best Practices For Writing Job Descriptions
Writing a concise, precise, and compelling job description is an essential skill for managers, recruiters, HR professionals, and anyone with similar responsibilities. A good job description should be widely visible, narrow down your applicant pool to the most qualified, and inspire those top-tier candidates to follow through with their applications. The best job descriptions do much of the hard…
Project Management Triangle
“Fast. Cheap. Good. Pick two.” This is a summation of the Project Management Triangle, a framework for project scoping and resource allocation that has been in use since the 1950s, and has long been embraced by freelance software developers in particular. The basic idea is that an emphasis on any one or two corners of the triangle requires constraints…
Networking Opportunities in March
As a freelancer, you may work independently, but that doesn’t mean you have to work alone. There are numerous networks and communities, both online and in real life, that can help you find connection, inspiration, and support. Despite its reputation for impersonal sprawl, Los Angeles boasts a particularly strong design community. LA designers gather at large, recurring events held by…
4 Tips for Being a Better Co-Worker
Whether you’re working on-site or remotely, as part of an agency or in-house team, it is increasingly important to work more respectfully and effectively with others. Good team players are in demand because they get results, are collaborative, and easy to work with. Moreover, maintaining a positive attitude toward those around you especially through challenging times will ripple out into…
14 Collaboration Apps We Love
If your team is still using the email inbox as an organizational tool and yelling over cubicles, it’s time for you to explore some of the brilliantly useful collaboration, chat, and project management apps that are available. Since the rise of Basecamp in the 2000s, an array of such apps has appeared, with different user interfaces, internal logic, pros, and…
CA-The State of Employment
According to a recent jobs report, the state of employment in California is robust and growing. California added 52,700 jobs in 2017, representing 36% of national growth. (“We should be, at our size, closer to 11%,” State Employment Department Director Michael S. Bernick told The Los Angeles Times.) Unemployment stands at 4.3%, down from 4.6% in November and 5.2% at…
3 Benefits of Working Remotely
Although some work challenges may seem best tackled by teams coming together in person, with each leap forward in virtual networking technology, colleagues in far-flung locations can come together just as productively in a virtual setting. The continuous rapid pace of improvement in this area makes it more efficient and more rewarding for creative professionals to do their work remotely….
Dos and Don’ts of Job Applications
An online job application is your first impression with potential employers. Being conscious and deliberate about this crucial first step can help target your job search process. As you strive to learn and make each application a bit better than the last, you may find that applying for jobs can be an exciting chance to move your life and work…
How to Build a Referral Business
As a freelancer, doing excellent work is only one part of your job – you have to make sure that potential customers know about it. According to survey results, freelance creative professionals rate referrals, (particularly traditional word-of-mouth referrals) as their single most important source of new business. It pays to be deliberate about getting as many referrals as possible. As…