! Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship
Student Number: 33472894
Module Code and Title: IC71122A Project/ Portfolio. Essay Question or Description of Coursework: An ethnographical study into how a creative portfolio career can affect mental health
Word Count: 6160
An ethnographical study into how a creative portfolio career can affect mental health
Katy Pickles
Word Count: 6160
My research is underpinned by the UK based, government supported 5 Ways To Wellbeing. The 5 Ways To Wellbeing are guidelines focused upon improving the nation's mental wellbeing, published in 2008 as a result of the evidence-based recommendations generated by the New Economics Foundation (NEF). The UK government's Mental Capital and Wellbeing project, overseen by the Government Office for Science, have since championed the guidelines. The guidelines have also been praised by several organisations including leading mental health charity, Mind. The reason I have decided to use these guidelines as an underpinning factor of my research is to determine the capability of those who occupy a creative portfolio career utilising the relevant support systems in place.
There are three main approaches to my research into how a creative portfolio career can affect mental health. The first approach is that of auto-ethnography. The reason I will be using this approach is to create a sense of transparency within my findings. It is clear that many creative individuals, particularly those whose careers exist within the public eye, are hesitant to speak openly about their mental health to a greater extent than I had originally hoped. Therefore, I will be using my own experiences of managing an original, creative piece of work, in an attempt to thoroughly highlight the reality of creative portfolio careers and creative project management. I hope to monitor and learn from how I personally interact with maintaining a creative portfolio career, and in turn, how it affects my mental health. The second approach will be ethnographical, analysing primary findings extracted from a survey, simply titled (and referenced throughout this document) as Stage 1 Survey (see appendices Item 1), distributed to 24 creative professionals similar to myself. The third approach requires me to compare my observations to the research of well-recognised sociologists, all of whom have developed their own conversational perspectives on the creative economy, and those professionals who occupy it.
As aforementioned, I shall be using my own experiences to enhance my research. I currently occupy a creative portfolio career encompassing musical composition, musical performance, event hosting, participation in mental health research and conducting my own research whilst working towards gaining a masters degree, as well as working 20-25 hours a week as a barista. For the purposes of cohesion, I have decided to focus upon my behaviour surrounding one particular segment of my career; the management of a 'passion project' titled Behind The Mask. The reason I have chosen this particular project is because it required me to collaborate with other creative professionals, explore skills outside of my comfort zone and manage the project from conception to end. Moreover, the return I would receive for this project was predicted to be minimal. As with many creative projects, Behind The Mask magazine (see additional1) can be labelled as a 'passion project' which I simply found joy in executing. 'Passionate work' is a recurrent theme within my research, thus supporting the use of Behind The Mask magazine as a conductor of my research further.
The aim of Behind The Mask magazine was to provoke honest conversation within the music industry by self-releasing a series of interviews with music professionals as a fullyillustrated publication. The magazine explores the life and career of six individuals who work within the music industry, highlighting how their mental health may have been affected by their career choices. Behind The Mask magazine was first conceptualised through a desire to expose the music industry mental health crisis after having had first hand experience as a musician with ill-mental health affected by the industry, coinciding with the release of Help Musicians UK research Can Music Make You Sick?.
1 'Additional' refers to the supporting project work of this study, Behind The Mask magazine
'Connect... With the people around you. With family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. At home, work, school or in your local community. Think of these as the cornerstones of your life and invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day. ' (New Economics Foundation, 2008)
Fruitful Collaboration In order to successfully manage the majority of my creative work, I am required to connect with other creative professionals. As a result, I have become increasingly familiar and comfortable with creative collaboration. The first collection of creative professionals that I was required to reach out to for the creation of Behind The Mask magazine were the interviewees featured within the articles of the magazine. It was of great importance for me to fully understand how I could communicate their opinions appropriately and so I met with each of them to perform the interview in person. The conversations that I shared with these individuals deepened our connection with one another. Sharing our opinions, concerning a topic I am extremely passionate about, helped to solidify the beliefs I held about the way my music career had affected my mental health, reassuring me that when I feel isolated within my music career, I am in fact not alone. Each time I conducted an interview, I left feeling supported and understood. Here, I would like to challenge Dr George Musgrave (Musgrave, 2017), who suggests in his paper Collaborating To Compete: The Role of Cultural Intermediaries in Hypercompetition, that creative collaboration is undertaken primarily to boost ones own profile as a result of the increased competitiveness of the music industry. Although Musgrave's argument pays respect to many aspects of creative collaboration with which I can agree, I found the motivation of the interviewees to be the very opposite of the motives that
Musgrave suggests drive creative collaboration. Perhaps this is due to the fact that I was reaching out to the interviewees for work outside of my own musical practice and instead for the increased publicity of their careers, which Musgrave suggests is vital to a successful career within the music industry. Regardless, and this could be explored further, connecting with other creative professionals in this way proved to be extremely fruitful and fulfilling.
Shifting Language, Behaviour and Routine The increased competitiveness of the creative industries has been recognised by many. As a result of hyper-competition, Angela McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016) states that a new language is required of creative professionals to correctly engage with a broad range of collaborators, particularly larger businesses. This language, for which fluency was never required by creative professionals, is now reflected across the creative industries to create a uniformity of work engagement, previously and exclusively occupied by corporate business. Working on a project-by-project basis means that those with whom I collaborate can drastically vary, requiring me to professionally engage with a wide range of people. This can include other creative professionals, small communities and even corporate businesses. As McRobbie suggests, I frequently have to adopt a language appropriate to the collaborator. This can be mentally exhausting as I must adapt my behaviour several times within the space of one working day. I have found that the creative industries typically engage in a far more casual approach to collaboration than neighbouring industries, meaning that I must appear friendly rather than formal. The grey areas between the two can become frustrating to distinguish when attempting to project manage. Having to adapt my behaviour throughout the creation of Behind The Mask magazine, in order to acquire from the collaborators of the project what I was in need of, has had a fatiguing
affect on my mental wellbeing. In addition to the adaptation of language, McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016) suggests that the language and behaviour required of creative workers must 'self-present in a cheerful if not exuberant fashion, there is a hard-edged incentive to keep going and maintain a professional stance'. Unfortunately, I cannot not stress how relevant this opinion has been throughout the creation of Behind The Mask magazine, and my broader career thus far.
Richard Florida (Florida, 2012) suggests that, alongside language and behaviour adaptation to suit the needs of collaborators and clients, changes in routine can also 'exacerbate' creative professionals.
'...errands scattered across different times and places – required many transitions...I think the stress is exacerbated if, like many creative workers, you spend much of the day working at a self-dictated pace and then suddenly have to switch to a mode dictated by the clock.'
Broadly speaking, most of the respondents from the Stage 1 Survey (see appendices Item 1) occupy a very similar working routine to myself, where no two days are ever the same and reflects 'the ongoing tension between creativity and organisation' (Florida, 2012). One respondent elaborated on the way he/she connects with others through their work. They emphasise how taxing this is upon their emotional wellbeing.
'My work is incredibly social. I work alone in the respect that I'm the only employee but I make portraits of others so I am always in company... It's a strange one as I will be with total strangers for a few hours and be on and performing making pictures and very sociable and chatty but then will be back in the studio sometimes
alone and that's a very strange come down...those times being back in the studio alone can be a bit of a disappointment.' (see appendices item 1.1)
Robert Putnam (Putnam, 2000) in Bowling Alone asserts that social capital can shift depending on the context of social structure, suggesting that as a society we variably focus our socialising between more formal environments, such as our work place, and more informal environments, such as dining with friends on the weekend or spending time away with family. However, I argue that creative careers occupy both formal and informal environments, thus the social capital of creative professionals in turn becomes a part of their professional tool kit, used to boost reputation amongst those that they work with through more informal relationships. This merging of social circles can impact the fulfilment that one takes from any given relationship, impacting the positive effects that fulfilling relationships typically have on wellbeing.
Meaningful Relationships Project-based work, which characterises much of my workload, can become a fulfilling way to work for any creative freelancer. If the project is successful, short-term work can bring the freelancer together with other creative professionals who are willing to exchange skills and networks for future work. Short-term work can also make the career of a creative freelancer varied and therefore somewhat more exciting. However, the increase in projectbased and short-term labour has come at a price. McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016) sums up the predicament in her writing, 'Be Creative'.
'A team comes together, on a temporary basis, undertakes a social project, along the same lines as would be the case for a film or TV documentary, and when it is finished, the team dissolves and people go their separate ways...The money that
flows into the not-for-profit organisation is not enough to cover the costs of staff 'between projects', and without this continuity expertise and social relationships are lost.'
As defined by the 5 Ways To Wellbeing, one must '...invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day.' (New Economics Foundation, 2008). What I have experienced myself, and is reflected within McRobbie's writing, appears to be a lack of fulfilling relationships and instead short-term interactions, dependent upon the length of the collaborative work. What is suggested is that those who occupy a creative portfolio career are presented with little opportunity to build meaningful relationships within their working life, which occupies the majority their time.
Young Workers – 'Never Not Working' I moved into Omega Works, a creative warehouse unit in North East London, shy of 6 months into creating Behind The Mask magazine. The unit is filled with young, hard working, intensely social and creative individuals. Their jobs range from furniture maker, disk jockey (DJ), painter to potter, with most undertaking multiple creative jobs at one time. Some, like myself, hold down 'day jobs' such as bartender, barista or sales person, though many are shy to admit. The Office for National Statistics reported that 16-24 year olds were 'less likely to feel they have someone to rely on or a sense of belonging in their neighbourhood' than older generations (New Economics Foundation, 2008). Although I recognise this as an issue within some creative communities, I believe that, based on my time spent within the warehouse community, this group of young creative professionals are bound together by a sharing of experiences concerning austerity, to which they are subjected to due to the changes in employment rates, government, business and economy.
There is an argument set out by Richard Florida (Florida, 2012) labelled as 'front-loading', where young workers work incredibly hard during the early stages of their career in the hope that they can later reap the benefits. In favour, McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016) states that the creative industries are abundant with young workers because it is creative careers alone that demand so much of the individual. The increased competitiveness of the creative industries 'raises the inevitable questions about who can take such risks', risks which have been romanticised in order to generate a generation who choose to seek out 'passionate work'. As aforementioned, most of those living within the warehouse community hold down several jobs or projects at one time. My observations almost directly reflect that of McRobbie's.
'those who can somehow afford to live in London who have the cultural capital and the time to access its sense creative networks. Those who are healthy and energetic enough to undertake a Master's while also doing an internship while working nights in a cocktail bar. In my observations this portfolio of weekly activities is quite normal'
Over the course of a few weeks, I had begun to notice that the socialising that was taking place within the warehouse community was primarily work based, casually proposing skill swapping and creative collaboration during leisure time. Although most find pleasure in socialising within the community, what is apparent is that there is a clear crossover between socialising and business networking. This is much like the crossover I have witnessed within my musical career, the difference being that acceptance into the network is granted by default of one's home address. However, the problem is that my work is now inescapable. I struggle to find any time for leisure in between my various jobs and the time
that I do find is often spent socialising with others conversing about my creative practice. Moreover, the majority of respondents of the Stage 1 Survey claimed that they would never turn their communications off, even when they were away from their work environment (see appendices Item 1.1). This could suggest that the encroaching narrative of work life during leisure time might be the influence of continual preoccupation with thoughts concerning work, in turn affecting overall wellbeing.
'Be active... Go for a walk or run. Step outside. Cycle. Play a game. Garden. Dance. Exercising makes you feel good. Most importantly, discover a physical activity you enjoy and that suits your level of mobility and fitness.' (New Economics Foundation, 2008)
Sedentary Work Unfortunately, as with with most of my creative work and practice, I am required to sit at a computer screen either composing emails or music. However, for the creation of Behind The Mask magazine I decided to commute via foot to as many meetings as I could. Previous to working on this particular project, I hadn't been required to commute great distances, mainly working from my home studio and rarely leaving the house. The interviewees and the creative professionals who helped me create the magazine were based all over the city, meaning I was able to make the most of getting myself from A to B. However, I felt the activity required from me to commute to and from meetings didn't engage my body in any intense physical activity such as running, swimming, cycling or team sports. Unfortunately, between my music, my studies, my part time barista work and the creation of Behind The Mask magazine I was unable to make time for the type of physical activity recommended to boost mental wellbeing.
The respondents of the Stage 1 Survey claim claim they are sedentary for most of their working day (see appendices Item 1.2). I have found that this is typical of the majority of creative practice and is comparable to my own career. However, most of the respondents stated that they partake in physical activities outside of their working life (see appendices Item 1.2). Moreover, almost all of the respondents claim to attempt to spend time outdoors whilst away from work (see appendices item 1.2). Richard Florida (Florida, 2012) explores this further, suggesting that the nature of
sedentary creative work provokes creative workers to spend the time they have away from work moving their body.
'Members of the traditional Working Class spend the day engaged in physical labor and are thus inclined to relax during their time off. But if you spend your workday in front of a computer screen or an artist's canvas, you are probably not eager to spend your leisure time in front of a TV screen.'
What is deserving of further research is exactly what the respondents of the Stage 1 Survey motives behind partaking in physical activity outside of work were. Richard Florida (Florida, 2012) explores the concept of physical activity in his book The Rise Of The Creative Class, suggesting that partaking in physical activity could signal a more wellrounded lifestyle to others.
Part Of The Creative Process Talking Heads front man, David Byrne (Byrne, 2009), is well known for his love of cycling. Author of Bicycle Diaries, he advocates the use of physical activity to remove oneself from the consciousness of everyday life.
'...it [cycling] distracts and occupies the conscious mind, or at least part of it...It facilitates a state of mind that allows some but not too much of the unconsciousness to bubble up.'
Byrne has praised the sport for supporting his mental health as well as his creative process.
'As someone who believes that much of the source of his work and creativity is to be gleaned from those bubbles, its a reliable place to find that connection'.
Similarly, three out of the six interviews that I conducted for Behind The Mask magazine mentioned physical activity as a way of supporting their creative processes as well as mental wellbeing. In contrast, Florida argues that if physical activity is adopted in order to aid the creative process then the physical activity itself can be deemed as work. The same could be argued for my own use of physical activity as a way of commuting to and from work, however I would argue otherwise.
'Take notice... Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the unusual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are walking to work, eating lunch or talking to friends. Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.'
(New Economics Foundation, 2008)
Preoccupied Thoughts 'Take Notice', the third 'way' of the Five Ways To Wellbeing, suggests that one ought to challenge themselves by learning new skills, take in their surroundings and environment and be aware of those around them. In order to review whether this was being fulfilled by those currently occupying a creative portfolio career, I asked how often respondents of the Stage 1 Survey took breaks from their working day and how preoccupied their minds were with thoughts concerning their work. It was no surprise to me, a creative professional in my own right, that the majority of participants answered between 7 and 10 when asked 'On a scale of 0 to 10 (where 0 is never preoccupied and 10 is always preoccupied), how often do you find your mind preoccupied with thoughts about your work?' (see appendices Item 1.3). This preoccupation with work does not allow for healthy breaks away from, generally speaking, highly demanding work. Richard Florida (Florida, 2012) states that time is rated at a higher value than any other return. The problem is then raised – and has been raised by many – that with the advancement in technology and the ever expanding world of consumerism, time, unfortunately, does not expand correspondingly. Florida quotes Paul Romer (Romer, 2000) who in his article, Time: It Really Is Money, concludes;
'Our children will have more of almost everything, with one glaring exception: They
won't have more time in the day...the cost of time will continue to grow and so will the sense that time is scarce and that life proceeds at a faster pace than in the past'.
When I asked the survey respondents how preoccupied their minds were with work, it was approached in the context of leisure time. What was most concerning to me, was to find that the majority of respondents felt overwhelmed by thoughts concerning their work.
In 2017, The New Internationalist reported that 75% of millennials work more than 40 hours a week with 25% of them working two or more paid jobs worldwide. This article was published with the title Never Not Working, implying that the younger generations of today are intensely overworked with little personal time left to enjoy (The New Internationalist, 2018). I previously touched upon how over worked the young, creative sector have become with the overgrowth of incumbents and increased competition. This, conversely, relates to Florida's (Florida, 2012) exploration of time as a fixed capital in an ever expanding economy. If we presume that an increase in competitiveness, an overcrowded market place and an advancement in technology are to be held responsible for the quickening of the pace of life and a lack of time to 'take notice', as Florida and Romer suggest, then we can presume that this hasn't always been the case for creative professionals. Nineteenth century France would be an example of protest to this argument, as proven by Jacques Ranciere (Ranciere, 2012). Ranciere reported upon the lives of the working class in 19 th century France. Going above and beyond the limitations of sociology at the time, Ranciere pulled together poems, diary extracts and interviews with workers who aspired to use their creativity above becoming submissive to the day-to-day of the labour workforce.
Comparatively, and alarmingly, many of the creative workers featured within Ranciere's writing are also preoccupied with thoughts concerning their work. On several separate occasions throughout Ranciere's Proletarian Nights, he refers to the need that the creative workers in question have to fulfil their creative potential. I have witnessed the same burning need to fulfil a creative calling within myself and those creative professionals around me. One respondent of the Stage 1 Survey stated 'I wish I could switch off more, but when I am in the thick of a project it is impossible. Even overnight I find myself living the project constantly.' (see appendices Item 1.3). After undergoing a period of self monitoring I have noticed that, when working on projects that I am extremely passionate about, I feel consistently preoccupied by the project. I suggest that, regardless of the period of time in which one is working, the investment of hopes and dreams into a career that one is passionate about could threaten the preoccupation and dependency that one has on success within their field. If presumed to be a wider issue, this behaviour, when coupled with the harsh realities of modern day developments, could prove to place inordinate amounts of pressure upon the incumbents of the creative industries; what time is there left to 'take notice'?
Reflexivity Throughout the development of Behind The Mask magazine, I kept a physical log of any thoughts and feelings I had concerning the project. As this was the biggest project I had independently undertaken to date, I wanted to learn from my experiences by reflecting upon them.
'I received the final illustrations in preparation for sending the magazine to print, only to realise that I hadn't thoroughly thought about how minority groups were being portrayed throughout my work. I decided to amend the stereotypical gender
roles and expand the diversity of the interviewees.' (see appendices Item 3)
Here, I was able to understand and analyse my own feelings towards my work and how it relates to the wider community and their culture. This practice, labelled as 'reflexivity' by McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016), is something I hope to carry forward throughout my creative practice, as I believe I benefitted from simply 'taking notice'. McRobbie introduces the idea that reflexivity, that is self-monitoring and reflection of work, becoming an aspect of creative professionalism could reveal new ideas around how best to, not only support the creative economy, but also support those who occupy creative portfolio careers. Furthermore, I believe reflexivity could change the way in which society perceives the creative industries, deconstructing the romanticism of the 'struggling artist' and instead considering creative professionals as respected workers, economically and culturally enriching the UK workforce, and who are in need of a greater network of support.
'Keep learning... Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Sign up for that course.Take on a different responsibility at work. Fix a bike. Learn to play an instrument or how to cook your favourite food. Set a challenge you enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident as well as being fun.' (New Economics Foundation, 2008)
Passionate Work Most respondents of the Stage 1 Survey stated that their work was varied and challenging (see appendices Item 1.4). The respondents are engaged in a career about which they are passionate and so they are able to continually, and willingly, expand their skills and knowledge within their field. Contrastingly, this may not be the case for the work undertaken by those who do not enjoy their work.
'...when at the cafe, my work is never varied or challenging. If I'm at the studio, my method of working rarely varies, however the output/project will often vary' (see appendices Item 1.4)
Some respondents stated that they must undertake work outside of their creative practice in order to make enough money to live. Similarly, Ranciere (Ranciere, 2012) explored the same scenario within his sociological study, Proletarian Nights.
'...daily work is merely the forced labor of each day. And since he generally has no serious, lasting love for his work, he devotes to it only the least part of his intellectual worth. ...He works half-mast, so to speak.'
Where 'passionate work' is undertaken, better results occur and skills and knowledge are
continually expanded. This provides reason as to why 'passionate work' is a desire of the working class, putting their dreams first and their financial capital second to that in order to receive enjoyment from their working life. There is much at stake when working towards a dream of 'passionate work' due to the precariousness of creative employment, but the results of self-motivated work may, in turn, prove most beneficial to the wider economy. Similarly to some of the respondents to the Stage 1 Survey, I too must work as a barista in order to earn enough money to live. It is within my work at the cafe that I feel unengaged. I do not learn, nor do I want to learn, whilst working a job in which my dreams are not fulfilled. Baristas On Tap is an employment agency, founded by coffee specialists Milk, No Sugar, which aims to hire baristas for flexible work that pays the living wage. The initiative launched as a way to support those working as a barista within the service sector, providing an improved standard of living. Baristas On Tap encourage service sector employees to extend their skills and knowledge through an independently motivated and active interest, promoting a healthy approach to managing 'passionate work' outside of work that could help stabilise the financial income of those who occupy a creative portfolio career. McRobbie (McRobbie, 2016) explores the upgrading of service sector jobs, stating that baristas and bartenders are now 'acting as expert guides and connoisseurs' for culture, due to many occupying creative careers outside of their 'day job', rather than simply baseline level workers. I too have noticed this upgrading within my work as a barista over the past two years, witnessing an increase in creatively skilled co-workers. Moreover, coffee shops are now an environment suitable for creative networking, attracting small business owners, in addition to those keen to keep up with the trends of the creative sector. This provides those within the service sector a plethora of individuals who can extend their capacity for creative collaboration by default of their working environment.
The Flat White Economy (McWilliams, 2015) explores how this has also, in turn, contributed to the evolution of corporate business socialisation. As a business person, being seen socialising in a cafe rich with creative employees could signal a taste for culture as 'Coffee shops represent both a statement of lifestyle for the Flat Whiters and a focal point for creativity'. This meeting of worlds is deserving of a closer inspection, which is partially explored within Douglas McWilliams' The Flat White Economy and partially within my own research (see appendices Item 4).
Accomplishment The feeling of accomplishment in the gaining of skills and knowledge filled me with great joy when creating Behind The Mask magazine. The sense of pride I experienced with each milestone met allowed me to celebrate in my achievements. With this sense of pride I felt something in which I rarely experience in my music. As my music is so personal to me, it is challenging to gain the right perspective on the final product in order to create a correctly perspective judgement. With the Behind The Mask magazine I was able to step away from that personal space and fully appreciate what I had produced. However, with this realisation I acknowledge that many creative careers require an intense exertion of expression. With this expression, emotions can become invested in works that are then commercialised and judged subjectively. When speaking with an interviewee of Behind The Mask magazine, he summed up the effect that subjectivity can have on the creator.
'...nearly every element of it [the music industry] is subjective and that’s why mental health takes such a hit. It’s not an exact science where something is definitively right or wrong, instead, it revolves around creating something which resonates with enough people for them to emotionally and financially invest in it en mass.' (see
appendices Item 2).
The determining factors of the worth with which artists view their work to have may depend on the success of the artist's work commercially and so, in turn, emotions are then placed on the frontline. This can distort feelings of accomplishment and so learning is not acknowledged or solidified. This vulnerability is something which I hope to examine within my own creative practice as a musician.
'Give... Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger. Thank someone. Smile. Volunteer your time. Join a community group. Look out, as well as in. Seeing yourself, and your happiness, as linked to the wider community can be incredibly rewarding and creates connections with the people around you.'
(New Economics
Foundation, 2008)
Motivation In previous instances where I have executed a project with little to no financial reward, I have struggled to find motivation. However, with the nature of my opinions on the topics explored within Behind The Mask magazine, I felt a sustained sense of motivation. This act of 'passionate work' is one I have explored previously however, previous 'passionate work' has been undertaken independently. The collaboration between myself, the illustrator and the designer of Behind The Mask magazine drove me to feel obliged to deliver a project of worth, more so than if I had been working alone. Moreover, I felt it was my duty to give the message of the magazine back to the industry that I felt had affected my mental health so drastically. This act of giving to both my collaborators and the wider industry provided me with a great deal of joy.
Internal and External Donation Respondents of the Stage 1 Survey stated that if they were in need of assistance within their creative work (e.g. Skill swapping) then they were able to reach out to a colleague or friend for help (see appendices Item 1.5). The same question was asked of the individual and all respondents stated that they would be prepared to support their colleagues internal to the creative industries. I have found the creative industries to be very supportive of those working within the same field, actively sharing in skills and knowledge even when outside of the individual's own benefit. Here, I would like to reiterate my previous comment
on the sense of community that I had experienced within the warehouse community, where a sense of togetherness is felt through a sharing of experiences. I believe the shared struggle of working within the creative industries leads creative professionals to generously share their expertise, provoking a strong sense of community. In contrast, I argue that a lack of interaction with others within one's own creative day-today work – as previously visited – could impact the chances of creative professionals partaking in the act of giving externally to the creative industries. Robert Putnam (Putnam, 2000) states that those who have strong social ties with one definitive group of others (e.g. a social circle such as a well defined and sociable workplace) are more likely to give their time to volunteering or donate to charity. Although I did not question the respondents on whether they give their time or money to another cause outside of their own benefit, I did notice the lack of interaction that most respondents were having with significant others on a day-to-day basis. When I asked whether the respondents worked alone from home, all stated that they do, with the majority stating that they had feelings of loneliness whilst doing so. This isolation, coupled with a notorious low income which stains a large proportion of creative careers, could cause a decline in the act of giving amongst creative professionals and in return a decline in wellbeing.
Conclusion and Closing Thoughts After reviewing the capabilities of creative professionals maintaining all five of the Five Ways To Wellbeing, I conclude that industry pressures do not permit the time for creative professionals to fully engage in the act of self-monitoring their wellbeing. Time is a key factor here as work has clearly encroached on all other aspects of life. Furthermore, I believe a key factor to the happiness of many creative professionals is the maintaining of 'passionate work'. What I propose is missing for creative professionals is a sense of fulfilled potential, engaged interest and happiness at work. This satisfaction, I believe, can only be attained with a more relaxed pacing of working life and a higher income for those who occupy a creative portfolio career.
In 2017, Finland launched a radical initiative to give it's citizens $660 per month as a universal basic income (UBI) scheme. Vice (YouTube, 2017) interviewed Juha Jarvinen, parent of six and creative business owner, on how the Finnish UBI had benefitted him in which he responded 'I'm taking control of my life', which he states was previously dictated by the employment office. Now, he can pursue his creative ideas which earn him an income suitable to raise a family and, more importantly, provides him with fulfilled potential, engaged interest and happiness at work. This is just one way that I believe we could radically transform the wellbeing of creative professionals, providing them with a platform to pursue their creative potential.
The uncertainty concerning workplace etiquette within creative careers became clear to me once I had received the responses from the Stage 1 Survey (see appendices Item 1). As with most freelancers, working behaviour is dictated by the individual alone rather than an authorial body. With the adoption of 'passionate work', it can become tempting to exploit one's own skills and knowledge, particularly during the early stages of one's career. This
results in an unstable and wavering perception of the worth of the creative industries. The feeling of worth in one's own creation is vital to confidence in a wider business framework. However, if we radically transformed the creative industries by enforcing creative workers to devise an individualistic way of operating transactions between conception and consumerism of their creativity, then perhaps working practice could be tailored towards stabilising uncertainties around the worth of the creative industries and thus, the wellbeing of incumbents. Within this, I suggest that working practice, that is for creative professionals, should become an example of how we move forward into the future. I suggest that, as creative professionals, we ought to form ways of working that adhere to the catalysts of bettered mental wellbeing. In turn, I predict that this could contribute to a more relaxed pace of work, making time for one's own creative nurturing, a more stable framework in which creative professionals can formally engage in work and a code of practice across the creative industries, forming one cohesive language for incumbents to use.
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Romer, P. (2000). Time: It Really is Money. Information Week: September. The New Internationalist. (2018). What's Left For The Young?. [Issue: 509]. (January/February 2018). Oxford: The New Internationalist. YouTube. (2017). Finland Is Giving Citizens $660 A Month For Free As An Experiment (HBO). [online]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwjNrxVd-1E [Accessed on: 15th August 2018].
Appendices Item 1: (Online Survey available at: https://goo.gl/forms/9ei4FeGjB6iP9ST22) 'The aim of this particular survey is to assess how well government guidelines on how to maintain one's wellbeing apply to those who have a creative portfolio career. The guidelines state that there are ways in which wellbeing can be maintained including connect, be active, take notice, keep learning and give.'
Item 1.1:
Item 1.2:
Item 1.3:
Item 1.4:
Item 1.5:
Item 2 Behind The Mask magazine – James Carey interview
Item 3: Diary Extracts (mixed sample)
Item 4: (Online article available at: https://katypickles.tumblr.com/post/166530357236/aconstant-escape)