Corporate for creative
It can’t be surprising that after years of 9 to 5s, annual holidays, office politics and tedious commutes, many people are opting for careers that they feel as though they have kept on the back burner and are now letting their passions drive them in creative directions.
Whilst it has been a long time coming, we can not ignore the pandemic’s role in allowing us to question what our intentions and purpose is with the work we do. Those years were a time that many used to work on themselves, whether that be physically, mentally or spiritually and so, in turn, it did spark a discussion on whether people’s jobs were something that really benefited them or whether the corporate dream was yet another capitalist scam.
Since then, this dialogue has only grown from strength to strength; Especially online. Rama is a registered therapist and uses anticapitalism to help give understanding to many issues that he feels people today, his most watched TikTok has 3.9 million views. Within this video he makes humorous digs at how work-based value is destroying our wellbeing, saying that “with capitalism, my self-worth is directly tied to my productivity and so I have transcended from just a human being to a human ‘doing’.” Through the added discourse in the comments sections of his videos, it is clear to see that a huge number of people are drained by the traditional working life that is fixated on revenue and work. Capitalism is now being seen as something far greater than a political system, but rather a lifestyle that is no longer worth serving.
Much of this is tied to burnout.
.The term ‘burnout’ was first brought to light after the World Health Organisation declared it a disease in 2019 but the impacts of a work-driven existence had been brewing well before then. The term captures feelings of physical and emotional exhaustion from the workplace and year after year the number of people feeling this way increases. 2020 hit an all time high as 43% of people from across 100 countries claimed to be feeling burned out, an almost 10% increase from the year before. Many companies and organisations have recognised these issues amongst their employees and have recently begun to put emphasis on improving ‘workplace wellness’. These tactics can involve a work from home agreement, team building days or some even offering free therapy but for many, it is simply not enough.
However, both burnout and this hustle culture that exists under capitalism has pushed many people to consider what really fulfils them. Fulfilment is certainly not tied to career or accolade, but passion does play a role; So for as long as soaring living costs and mortgages exist, many people have found a middle ground in leaving their corporate jobs for their creative passion projects.
One of those people is Zak Khan. Zak spoke to us from the set of his first job as an assistant stylist after leaving his previous corporate workplace of 4 years. The 25-year-old worked in Luxury bathroom PR and sales up until January of this year when he had decided that he had saved enough money to take the leap of faith into something he had only kept as a side hustle up until then. “I had thought about it on and off for about two-ish years but the truth is that I was making good money in my previous job so having the weekends to do any styling work was convenient.” Thus, it is common for many creatives to have multiple courses of income to facilitate what they are interested in, as a lot of work in the arts is unpaid when starting out.
“It was only when I was then getting offered gigs during the week where I would be frantically calling my boss the night before begging for the day off, did I really have to sit myself down and reprioritise”
“But the real deciding moment was when I was asked to style for a major musician’s music video and had to say no as I wasn’t able to take the time off my day job and did have to say no a potential day’s pay that was more than what I would have earned working a whole month in PR – even though it was never really about the money, it gave me confidence that I could make this more than a side thing”
Only weeks later Zak had secured his first creative job, since quitting, for one of the top retailers in the world. “It was crazy because it was coming up to almost one month since I had left my last job and, in truth, I was stressing. I felt a lot of pressure to make this work because of course there were doubts from my friends and family who couldn’t understand why I would leave something that was good.”
“But I was very lucky that a friend I had met through my styling work during the weekends was asked to work on this week-long shoot and she knew I was looking for work so put my name forward to the production team and somehow it worked out”
To some degree, all work is dependent on who you know and if you are at the right place at the right time, but perhaps more so in the creative world, as demand for these roles is much for exclusive and not advertised in traditional ways, but rather reputation and acquaintanceship acts as a currency.
When asked whether he would recommend the leap to others who feel trapped in their 9 to 5s he said “I would tell anyone to consider it but have the right stuff in place for incase in goes wrong. I had to save enough so that even if things didn’t go my way I was prepared. Also just being brave. This sort of thing you have to do with your whole chest, you can’t do it half heartedly, it takes a lot but so far it’s been worth it. I’ll let you know in 6 months.”
Zak’s concerns about finances are valid considering current economic conditions and the rising living costs, both of which are national issues; But that’s before the government’s disdain for the arts is even considered. Perhaps their bias was most explicitly revealed after a campaign released during the peak of the lockdown where it read ‘Fatima’s next job could be in cyber (she just doesn’t know it yet)’, showing an image of a ballet dancer. This was then followed by the tagline ‘Rethink. Reskill. Reboot.’ This advert caused an uproar amongst many people after it was only the final straw after a string of beatings by the Conservative party upon the arts.
In 2021, the then Education secretary, Gavin Williamson announced a 50% cut to arts and design courses across higher education institutes across the UK, aiming to save approximately £20 million, all of which would be redirected towards funding for stem subjects. Simultaneously, he released a list of postgraduate training bursaries available – none of which included art subjects.
It is clear to see that the arts industry is one which is labelled to not benefit the economy. Instead, a sustainable career choice is seen as to be one that makes large and significant financial contributions to; One that freelance work, late invoices and ad-hoc, often does not accommodate for.
Despite this, in 2020, it was revealed that the UK’s creative industry was growing more than 5 times faster than the national economy and in fact, more than 70% of those who had graduated from creative arts courses were in employment. So for the government to be persistent in cutting funding and opportunities to those in the industry, it is inevitable that opportunities will also die out.
Michael Sabuni is one of those impacted by the cuts after he did leave his admin job for his creative passions.
Michael graduated from UAL in 2016 after his BA in Photography and to keep himself afloat in London he took up a receptionist job at a hair salon before he would hope to find a creative role. “I was only four months into the job when, whilst I was on shift, I got talking to a customer whose partner owned a photography studio and was looking for an assistant, after when I showed her my portfolio that I had built up over the years, we arranged a meeting and I got the job.”
“I worked at that studio for almost two years full time before eventually, my employer could not afford to keep me”
“It was a really stressful time because I didn’t know if I would be able to pay my next month’s rent and whilst I was taking on freelance jobs as a photographer, model and stylist, I did have to go back to that same salon years later to work weekends – just to make ends meet”
Today, Michael is still part of the admin team at the salon with the added responsibility of social media management, which hones his creativity, to some extent, and works as a freelance creative Monday to Friday.
“I would love to be able to one day not rely on my weekend job but for now it allows me to do what I love so I’m more than happy. I try to look at it as an investment.”
There are many stories like that of Michael’s and whilst the arrangement can appear unconventional, it brings a fulfilment that exceeds economic gain.
Despite the many obstacles that come between people leaving their corporate jobs for creative careers and the issues surrounding sustaining that decision, there are a growing number of organisations and individuals looking to open doors for those trying to get their foot into the door.
The Instagram account @kidcircus is run by photographer and DJ, Michael, who aside from showcasing his own portfolio, for the past two years has used his page as a jobs board. Whether it be a freelance, full-time, paid or collaborative job, those looking to fill roles will tag the page in any callouts and Michael reposts them all so that they are in one space.
He says “I first thought of the idea during covid times when obviously work was running dry and since then it’s become a space that I hope has opened doors to creative opportunities for people.”
“I have been in the industry for more than 25 years now and it was very different back then, now we have social media which is a great tool. There’s no point in gatekeeping.”
On a larger scale, there are platforms such as Diet Paratha or GUAP that offer mentorship, internships and spaces for creatives to highlight their arts in ways that elevate their craft from more than a ‘hobby’ but rather a career that has value.
These are just some of the names responsible for giving people the resources and confidence to pursue their interests but this does not diminish the overall courage and ‘safety net’ that many people find necessary to make the leap between corporate and creative, but in the name of personal fulfilment it is worth it.
Feature image sourced from Unsplash.
Leave a Reply