Looking to Expand my Connection with Others
Reframing the idea of soulless networking into something more valuable and fulfilling as a young illustrator, or someone starting their creative career
“I’m looking to expand my network.” Blehhh. Seeing that phrase during my time in school made me feel sucked of joy. It evokes a robotic feeling. I picture meeting people and saying (in a robot voice), “Hello! I’m April, do you want to talk about base-level topics related to our field of work with the hopes that you help me succeed with my career goals, beep boop.” If you’re a young illustrator navigating the world of networking, I understand the soulless feelings it can bring. I think that if the idea of networking were changed to something with more curiosity and enjoyment, like simply connecting, people’s views around meeting others in their industry would be more fulfilling.
I think as a student, or someone early in their career, you want to seem knowledgeable and put together when in a situation where “networking” is taking place. I am only speaking from my experience starting in a graphic design field, but when I learned what networking meant, I was trying to prove myself to someone who had more experience than me. “Hey! Thank you for being open to listening to anything I have to say. I hope I am worthy enough for you to remember me for possible future opportunities.” I wanted to say the right thing; anything for a crumb of respect from someone I admired in my field.
Connection Through Creativity
Once it clicked, that it’s more likely I remember people and conversations when I am truly connecting with the person, it made meeting people in my field much less nerve-wracking and more exciting! Most of us know the feeling of meeting someone who has similar interests and values. Already checking off the box of having a similar creative career makes these connections even easier. We both value creativity. This is the sweetest and truest form of connection to me, and if we can remember that, it makes meeting people so much more enjoyable.
Learn to love and cherish each other’s joy for creativity, and being able to uniquely connect with someone because of it. This is most important when it comes to your creative peers. I want to connect with people who enjoy doing what I do! You may not connect with artists you admire by merely commenting on their posts. Try chatting about why you admire a certain project. Maybe compliment a certain technique the artist uses, or how you’ve noticed their style evolve. Maybe the project connects with a personal experience you had, or an interest you share with the artist. Chatting about these topics creates a unique connection, even if only for a moment.
Finding Balance
Once I started sprinkling my voice into emails, and sharing my interests with even those more experienced than me, it has created more genuine connection. Communicating more authentically can make everyone feel more human, rather than a business transaction. While being professional and concise is important, I feel it is just as important to be yourself, and let others see you where you are. I am professional, and confident in myself as a young freelancer and creative, but I don’t hide behind an overly formal mask. I am 23 and I love to make playful illustrations; I like to share that side of me as well.
It makes sense for networking to be a formal way of meeting others, and I agree it should be taught that way to avoid young creatives being too informal. Art Directors, professionals, and clients are busy and it is important to respect their time! So making sure your communication is clear and concise is just as important! When it comes to reaching out to art directors, share how you admire specific work they’ve done, and how you’d be excited to work on a similar project. Similarly, if you enjoyed creating a client project, tell the client that! Maybe the project is related to something meaningful to you personally; you should share that with them. You’re not just an artwork-making machine!
I think as you get your footing, it would be valuable to learn the balance between professionalism and connection with others. It is all about feeling out a situation. Some people may not like a sprinkle of personality; wanting to stay strictly professional, and that is ay-okay. However, I think if it seems like a fairly open conversation with a peer, a light email back-and-forth, or even someone in your industry you don’t know much about, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to try making the creative journey a little more light-hearted and pleasant along the way.
I encourage anyone reading to reach out to an artist you admire and tell them what you love about a specific piece of theirs, or how you may admire what they’re doing in their creative journey!