The Best of the Decade
an eZine retrospective

Can you believe it? The Creative Group eZine is celebrating its 10th anniversary! Through the years, we've had some pretty unique conversations with folks in the creative industry who were interviewed for our online magazine.

And while some of the advice is now passé, we were surprised to find that much of it is still relevant to today's work world. Following, we've captured some of the most memorable quotes expressed by designers, creative and art directors, authors, marketing managers, and gurus we've interviewed over the past decade.

Thank you to everyone who has shared their insights with us! We look forward to continuing the dialogue – and passing on our learnings to you!

Career cues: Timeless tips to help progress your career

• "If you think about it, the fundamental principle for finding a job has always been the same: Find the person with the power to hire you. Then, figure out the best way to sell yourself and your skills to that individual in order to get hired." – Brian Barton
• "Don't assume that there are dream jobs. All the good work you see in magazines and award annuals has been achieved by hard graft and the utilization of more skills other than just pure graphic design skills. Read Stefan Sagmeister's book, Made You Look, if you think big name designers glide from one triumph to the next. No one does." – Adrian Shaughnessy
• "If there's any place you can judge a book by its cover, it's in a designer's resume." – David Langton
• "[Creating a resume] is not much different from designing a great web page or an effective set of instructions. Design with the reader (or user) in mind and you will certainly communicate better." – Gregg Berryman
• "In a 'down' economy, when companies are trimming staff, get good at everything and emphasize how you can play many roles. In an 'up' economy that supports a lot of specialization, develop a niche and be the best in that niche." – Derek Powazek
• "Build your business with as little debt as you can. Think big, but start small by making do with what you have and renting, borrowing or bartering for what you don't." – Lee Silber
• "Being humble and receptive to constructive criticism are important for professional growth . . . No designer knows it all. In fact, a designer's education truly begins after leaving the academic world." – Jeff Fisher
• "One thing you can never underestimate the value of is integrity since everything is based on trust. We all make mistakes in order to achieve success, but by acting with integrity, good things will come about." – Spencer E. Ante
• "I think to be successful [as a freelancer] you have to love what you do. You also need to have a strong business sense and be open, knowing that you'll have things to do that you don't like (accounting and marketing, for example). If you love what you do, you'll excel at your work. But you can't just rely on your craft – you have to be able to get projects in and you'll need to have some business development and sales skills to do that." – Kristen Fischer
• "As tools become more sophisticated, technical and amazing, designers who are confident enough to let their aesthetic and problem-solving skills – and not their technical knowledge or lack thereof – drive their design, will thrive. They are going to be the ones we revere the most because ultimately, it is within people and not software from which brilliance and innovation flow." – David-Michel Davies
• "Social media tools are just that: tools. The genius is how they're used creatively to allow people to do something of value. While social media technologies continue to evolve, they always need to be rooted to basic human needs to share, learn, laugh, be entertained and feel a sense of belonging. If professionals can creatively use social media tools to truly connect with their audience, their work will be more meaningful professionally and personally." – Gary Moneysmith
• "There are always setbacks and disappointments in design – great work can be rejected, you can lose dream jobs and miss out on opportunities. But learning not to be crushed by these setbacks is important. Don't internalize disappointments – talk about them. Try to work out what went wrong and look for ways to benefit from the experience." – Adrian Shaughnessy
• "I always learn a lot more from the really horrible situations, where my devotion was taken for granted or actively held against me. The main lesson has always been that it's up to me to say 'Enough.' It's easy to forget you have a choice." – Stefan Bucher
• "Keep in mind that it's OK to make compromises sometimes. One of the things I've learned is not to be so hard on yourself. We can judge ourselves for taking risks, and judge ourselves for not taking risks." – John Izzo, Ph.D.
• "The most unhappy I have ever been is when I reached a point when I felt like I was being asked to hold back on what I knew was right and good in the name of someone simply pulling rank on me. I knew that as long as I worked for someone else, I could never follow my true voice and instincts. It wasn't about being the boss or making more money – it was truly about having a say and being respected for what I truly did know." – Steven Gordon Jr.
• "Be nice, treat others well and help people when they need it. I've been able to meet some pretty cool people just because I go out of my way and try to help others at times even when they can't afford to pay me. Life is too short to be a temperamental artist." – Von Glitschka
• "Have passion for your work, because if you don't, no one else will." – Glenn John Arnowitz

A few notes on design . . .

• "You'll often hear it's bad to live vicariously through others . . . But the truth is, I love learning about others' adventures and everyday lives . . . Their experiences expand my knowledge and take me to places I may never be able to go myself. They stay with me and influence what and how I create." – Pash
• "If you have a clear vision of who the intended user is, you'll have a better idea of how to create for them. By attempting to please everyone, you run the risk of having a very bland design and not achieving the product's goals." – Lisa Baggerman
• "Good design results when all the parts – art, copy, type, message and media – combine to best position the product or service. Be patient. Know in advance that clients will drive you nuts. You will rarely hear, 'Well, you're the expert. We'll do whatever you say.' In-house or agency, clients will get involved, and sometimes it gets messy. But it's usually because the client cares about the project." – Tony Frewen
• "Designers can get into the heart and soul of a product by looking at things from the inside out. Too often we rely on the outside indicators like the market for direction. We forget to get in touch with our own desires and emotions. Design needs to be as much about feelings as it is about things. Designers need to be encouraged to listen to their instincts and their intuition." – Robyn Waters
• "I love learning and my design process always involves obsessive research – as if I were a museum curator. My belief is that the best creative directors behave more like curators than managers. How can one design something without knowing what happened before." – Matt Mattus

Some final musings . . .

• "The gift that creative people bring is more than just visual; it's the soul of the entire experience. We develop the master story arc, the master visual expressions, and basically define and drive the total consumer experience." – Matt Mattus
• "It's hard to stop a creative person from coming up with new ideas. I keep a pen and paper next to my bed and a night doesn't go by that I don't wake up and scribble something. Maybe it's just 'don't forget to buy milk,' but many times it may be an idea for a new product or one-liner." – Carol Gardner
• "We can't study to be creative any more than we can study to love." – Sam Harrison