Getting Experience With Creative Businesses

For many of us the idea of escaping the rat race for a creative endeavor is a pipe dream as we simply don’t know where to start. We see others doing it and wonder how they made it possible.

The solution can be a lot easier than taking a flying leap into the unknown, it can be by taking small steps along the way to test ideas and develop skills.

One method for exploring a creative endeavor is to work with a creative business. We all have skills that can be transferred, enhanced, altered so they can be useful in different fields. Most of us have previously made industry changes using the skills we already have and developing new ones for the role. The same is possible for leaving a field of employment that is boring to you and moving into a new field, a new industry that makes you buzz with excitement.

Working in an industry that is your passion makes the mundane tasks much easier to cope with and the challenging ones far more rewarding. Once you’re in an industry it’s much easier to move around, build a network, let people see what’s you’re capable of and make the shift into the role you’ve always wanted.

Take for example an accountant who wants her own photography agency. By taking on creative clients for accountancy or bookkeeping as a part time role she’d be able to learn more about what it is like to run a photography agency, the costs and hours involved, what other skills she’d need to develop and create a network of peers to help her grow the new business. By making an income from what she already knows it’s possible to get involved and learn what else is needed make a dream into a real life. This also has the advantage of safely finding out that maybe it isn’t really what’s wanted, maybe being an accountant with creative clients gives the enjoyment of having a foot in both worlds.

It is by giving things a go, being prepared to learn and make things happen that the first difficult steps are made.

Here are 5 ideas to help you find your own path for change:

1. Pick up some part time work in the field you’re interested in using the skills you already have.

2. Volunteer with an organisation in the field or a related field to develop new skills and/or build a network to help you move over.

3. Find some businesses that you like how they operate and could learn from and apply for roles with them and learn from the inside.

4. Work experience is always an interesting way to test out different fields, learn from others and develop new skills. Small businesses are usually fine with having someone offer to do work experience with them with the trade off being mentoring for help.

5. Start your own part time business in the field. This can be as easy as starting a blog to build a profile while researching and sharing information, experience and knowledge. Just make sure you have a budget figured out beforehand and be ready to learn.

The best thing you can do to change your career from one of mundane routines to making a living from what you love is to take the first step. Make something happen, look after your income and you’ll be the ones others look at in wonder for having escaped the rat race.