3 answers
Sarah
Student
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
1
Question
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Changing Careers to Creative
I'm looking to make a career change back into the creative space with the goal of being a Creative Director. Any advice on how to make this switch?
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3 answers
Christa Semko
Chief of Staff and Director, Strategy & Operations at Dell
14
Answers
Round Rock, Texas
Updated
Christa’s Answer
If your current role isn't able to provide you with projects or opportunities that help to showcase or hone your creative skills, I'd recommend finding an organization locally that you can volunteer with and provide this support. Many non-profits are often looking for support and this can be a way that you can practice and hone your creative skills in a visible way that can help have an impact in your local community. And, in doing so, you'll be able to build a portfolio of examples that you can point to and reference as you look for creative roles. You may need to start small with this type of work and then take a role that's more directly in the creative space and build your experience further to assume a Creative Director role. You could also take courses to gain certifications in various creative tools or practices that give you the specific and current skills that various creative roles may be asking for in the job postings. These courses may also have projects that enable you to showcase your creative and design skills to build a portfolio of examples. Best of luck on your journey!
Jessica Gegner
Change Partner Senior
75
Answers
San Antonio, Texas
Updated
Jessica’s Answer
Hi Sarah!
Could you provide some more context regarding what your current career is? I, too, am an aspiring Creative Director and have been slowly moving my way up the ladder for the past nine years. My background and degree are in graphic design and have worked in Marketing, Communications, and Change Management offices/teams throughout my career. To become a Creative Director, it's important to first establish a good foundation and your fundamentals in art and design. Throughout your career, you should also look for opportunities to lead and direct people and teams and to be mentored by Directors who can teach you the soft skills required to lead a team and other aspects of the job as a Director. Outside of that, most Creative Director job openings I've seen require at least 10+ years of experience in a creative field (such as design, advertising, branding, or marketing) with at least 3+ of those years leading others, so keep working toward what you want and know that you'll need to commit and dedicate many years to get to that spot, but it's totally doable!
Good luck!
Could you provide some more context regarding what your current career is? I, too, am an aspiring Creative Director and have been slowly moving my way up the ladder for the past nine years. My background and degree are in graphic design and have worked in Marketing, Communications, and Change Management offices/teams throughout my career. To become a Creative Director, it's important to first establish a good foundation and your fundamentals in art and design. Throughout your career, you should also look for opportunities to lead and direct people and teams and to be mentored by Directors who can teach you the soft skills required to lead a team and other aspects of the job as a Director. Outside of that, most Creative Director job openings I've seen require at least 10+ years of experience in a creative field (such as design, advertising, branding, or marketing) with at least 3+ of those years leading others, so keep working toward what you want and know that you'll need to commit and dedicate many years to get to that spot, but it's totally doable!
Good luck!
Lucila Ayaso Parada
Social Media Lead
5
Answers
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Updated
Lucila’s Answer
Hi Sarah,
I don't know really what your current job is but this reminded me of myself. I did a sort of opposite change: went from a Creative career to a Corporate Comms job.
I'd say what worked for me to make that change was, of course, first of all, going for and finding those roles I wanted.
Then, i started focusing on the specific skills from my creative past and how would that serve in my new role: maybe the actual designing part wasn't something useful anymore in a way but the eye for design served me well when approving and requesting materials for my job now.
Project leadership, entrepreneur mindset, creativity, good writing: those were skills I gained that work for me now. And those helped me sell myself better for the current role.
I really hope this helped.
Good luck!
I don't know really what your current job is but this reminded me of myself. I did a sort of opposite change: went from a Creative career to a Corporate Comms job.
I'd say what worked for me to make that change was, of course, first of all, going for and finding those roles I wanted.
Then, i started focusing on the specific skills from my creative past and how would that serve in my new role: maybe the actual designing part wasn't something useful anymore in a way but the eye for design served me well when approving and requesting materials for my job now.
Project leadership, entrepreneur mindset, creativity, good writing: those were skills I gained that work for me now. And those helped me sell myself better for the current role.
I really hope this helped.
Good luck!