Study, get a job, work your way up. In the creative industry that usually means junior, mid, senior, creative director, and often moving further and further away from the work you actually wanted to do.

In this episode we sit down with Alice Katter, founder of Out of Office Network and we get into why the traditional creative career ladder is outdated, what a non-linear career actually looks like in practice, and why going fully freelance isn't the only way out.

Guest links:
Website: https://www.alicekatter.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alicekatter

We scroll past hundreds of images every day. Most of them are well lit, well composed, perfectly optimized. Anna Baros is a Vienna-based architectural photographer who spent years inside the influencer world and the agency world, and came out the other side with a very clear opinion on how we got here.

We get into how algorithms fueled by patriarchy have flattened visual culture in ways that started long before the algorithm existed.

Guest links:
Website: https://anabarros.studio
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ANASBARROS/

Design used to mean something. Now it's a $5 Fiverr logo and an AI prompt away. So what the hell happened?

In this episode, we're getting into the uncomfortable truth about how digitalization and globalization were just the beginning of what we are seeing today with AI.

We're talking about how design went from a specialized craft to a commodity, why platforms like Fiverr and 99designs accelerated the race to the bottom.

We also get into the ethics of it all: the outsourcing, the exploitation, the "exposure" economy, and what it means for creatives trying to build a real business today.

Can you believe we've been doing this for a whole year? Neither can we! It's our birthday episode and this is how it's been and where it will be going.

In this episode, we look back at our year as a studio and talk honestly about what happened behind the scenes. We share why our monthly recaps quietly stopped, how guest interviews took over our schedule, and how 2025 became the year of internal projects. We also talk about highs and lows, hiring our first assistant, and building community through Discord and events.

In this episode, we look at the feminist history of design and how the industry we know today was shaped by decisions, structures, and narratives that left many women out of the story. We explore how early design movements pushed women into “craft” while men defined what counted as “design,” why credit was unevenly distributed, and how these patterns still show up in creative work today. A conversation about recognition, visibility, and understanding the systems we inherit as creatives.

In this episode, we reflect on how our approach to design has evolved – from obsessing over aesthetics to focusing on clarity, requirements, and real-world use. We talk about what pushed this shift, why functionality matters more than ever, and how letting go of “making it pretty” actually led to better work (and happier clients).

In this solo episode, we reflect on what it’s been like having guests on the podcast so far; what surprised us, what challenged us, and what we’ve learned. We also share a behind-the-scenes look at our newest side project: a pricing calculator for creative work in collaboration with Daniel Gremme, which we’ve started building in public. Plus, we hosted our first ever event with Ladies Wine & Design at the studio to have a conversation about pricing here’s how it went.

Links

Daniel Gremme: https://danielgremme.com

Faktor: https://www.faktor.so

We are starting a network built on transparency! Our discord will be a place for self-employed creatives to exchange tips, resources, referrals, a place to vent, a place to feel connected when you are often all alone in running your business.

Links:

Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/FEpGKY9aT5

Happy Pride Month! This is a more serious episode where we discuss the implications of rainbow washing and what companies really need to be doing to support the LGBTQIA+ community.

In this new series of episodes we will be doing a monthly update on how the past month went at Same Same. We talk about what projects we've been working on and more day to day insights into our lives managing the company.

"If I can't have it no one should", "I could have done it better and for less money"

In this episode we unpack some statements we see quite a lot online from creative people. We also discuss how your pricing shouldn't be the only thing that sets you apart from your competitors.

Starting a business is tough, and it's easy to feel like things aren’t working fast enough. But the truth is, most success comes from sticking it out, even when it gets hard. In this episode we talk about the most common things that contribute to failure in creative business.

It's a common experience as a creative to lose out on a project to someone not as good. If we feel like our work is good, why isn't that enough? We kind of assume that if someone is the best option it should just be obvious. But clearly that's not how it works. A conversation on positioning and how communication can change everything.

Guest links:
Website: https://fromblandtobrand.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamara-from-bland-to-brand/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromblandtobrand/

Photo credit:
© Arnela Kameric

Starting a business for the first time is always going to be a lot of learning by doing, and we sure made some mistakes when started our design studio. In this episode we explore how we would go about starting a creative business today and how it would be different to what we did four years ago.

Don't you just hate it when someone tells you no? Well so do we, but only when we know that "no" doesn't have to be the answer. A lot of the times people will tell you something is not possible just to get out of having to do it. We cannot stand this attitude and we'll tell you why.

One of our biggest challenges at the end of 2023 was ensuring we had enough liquidity as a company. While many companies choose to take out loans to ensure liquidity, we didn't want to do this. We made some tough decisions last year and this episode we go into what we learned in terms of liquidity not just as a business but also in our private lives.

What is web design and how is it different to what we learned in school? Graphic design may include web design but just because someone studied graphic design doesn't automatically mean they have the knowledge to design a high quality website. In this episode we explain why it is important to understand the difference and distinguish between different fields within the graphic design profession.

Big fat disclaimer: we love apple and we love technology. Don't come at us for not wanting an Apple Vision Pro. In this episode we unpack the question: how productive do we really need to be?

What to post and what not to post? Do you really need to be posting every day? We talk frequency, message, content and how the packaging of the content is important. We also share insights of our Instagram followers and how that is affected by our content as well as effects our content.

How did Same Same Studio go from two Rebeccas to a full blown digital agency? We've talked about our background a little in previous episodes but here is the full story with all the details! Listen now to find out more about us and our studio.

In this episode we talk about our approach to making mistakes and solving problems. This episode was inspired by Rebecca R's trip to the nail salon. Jump in and learn about how we work and the obstacles we have faced when working with external teams.

Can anyone be a successful entrepreneur? In this episode we look at our personality and how it helped us be successful in a short amount of time. We also talk about what type of personality we think you need to be an entrepreneur long term.

Figuring out how to position your business can be challenging because there are so many factors at play. The things we struggled with most was attracting the types of clients we aspired to work with. We learned a lot about how cutting down on the number of services offered can benefit a business in the long run, and free up time to become an expert. Listen in for more on how we navigated our positioning.

Most people run their business around deadlines, clients, and expectations. The toxic "hustle culture" rhetoric online tends to glorify consistent high productivity and being busy. Why are we leaving out the fact that half the population experiences a menstrual cycle is it left out of the productivity conversation?

Guest links:

Website: https://www.femergency.at

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/femergency.at?igsh=MWhmdG5jemY0b25lZw%3D%3D

Photo credits:
© olivialaura.at 

Slavko Pejić founded mama said no, an independent, creative-led advertising agency. He joined us on the podcast to talk about his experiences going from being employed to self-employment, and what's next for his agency.

Guest links:

Website: https://www.mamasaidno.at

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mamasaid_no/

Everyone who has worked in the field of design probably knows the struggle of having to try many iterations of the same solution to make the client trust that the final result is the "right" one. Clients will hire designers, because they aren't a designer themselves, but at the same time will not always trust the designers decisions. Why do people not trust a designer's expertise?

How to find clients and also attract the kind of clients you want to work with is essential for your creative business to thrive. In this episode we talk about different ways to find leads and how we got to where we are now working with our dream clients.

Having confidence in yourself and your work is a big step towards continued success. Faking it until you make it can get you to step out of your comfort zone and eventually expand it which might open you up to criticism, but it also allows for praise which will ultimately lead to more confidence. Find out what we struggle with most and the tools that helped us overcome it.

2023 was in some ways less eventful than the previous years at our Studio. In this episode we discuss how we used the extra time we had. While there was less work to do we still found ways to keep busy and finally had time to get inspired again for some internal projects.

Doubts, comparing yourself to others and feeling unworthy of your own successes can all lead to imposter syndrome. When have we felt this way? How did we navigate it? Is it a good thing to have imposter syndrome? These are all things we discuss in this episode.

In this conversation, Sandra Reichl, co-founder of A Passion Thing, shares her journey from a young artist to a successful entrepreneur in the creative industry. She discusses her experiences as a freelancer, the challenges of building and managing a team, and the importance of mentorship and networking in the creative field. Sandra emphasizes the need for business skills alongside creativity and reflects on the personal growth that comes with navigating the complexities of the industry.

Guest links:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apassionthing

Agency: https://www.apassionthing.com

Magazine: https://apassionthingmagazine.com

Ever proposed a really cheap price for your services and then created a product worth ten times what you sold it for? Yeah we've been there more times than we're proud of. While it can make sense to do it, it can end in many uncomfortable discussions later down the road.

It's been a while sorry! We have been BUSY mostly on YouTube. In this episode we talk about what we were up to in February and how it compares to the start of the year.

Small, mid, large businesses all have different processes, some are easier to work with than others depending on what your priorities are. In this episode we look at these three business sizes and what our experience has been working with them. Listen in to learn more about our process.

Behind the Scope hosts honest & transparent discussions about the creative industry, pricing creative work and all things business.

Follow links:

Instagram

Threads
YouTube

In this episode we talk about what is was like for Rebecca R to hold down the fort while Rebecca B was away on holiday. Can ChatGPT replace us? Listen to find out!

Being self-employed sounds like a dream, and it can be don't get us wrong! The reality is often worse than an employment in many ways. In this episode we talk about some of the not so nice realities we have faced. Would we do it all again?

We all know those perfect Instagram feeds that almost look like a single image. While they are nice to look at, what value do they offer and are they authentic enough? In this episode we talk about the differences between Instagram and TikTok and aesthetic content vs. authentic content with personality.

We were recently fired by a client, and it wasn't the first time it has happened to us. Sometimes a business relationship is not compatible, requirements change or the client simply decides they want to work with someone else. And you know what? Thats OK. We have fired our fare share of clients over the years as well. In this episode we talk about our experiences with getting fired and firing.

It's our birthday! Same Same Studio turned 4 years old this month. It has been a wild ride up until now and while we are currently thriving (again), there were many times when we were barely surviving. In this episode we reflect on the highs and lows of the last four years.

Ever heard someone say "Those who can't do, teach"? In this episode we unpack that statement and how we don't agree with it. We also talk about what we have learned about teaching since working on our creative business course.

Links:

Course: behindthescope.gumroad.com/l/creative-business-essentials

As a business you always want to have liquidity and retainers are the best and fastest way to achieve that. It not only gives you peace of mind financially, but also builds a foundation for long-term partnerships. It removes the stress of having to take on every single project and client that comes your way.

Designers can be a judgemental and pretentious group which while it is kind of their job sometimes, it can also interfere with the process and the goals of a creative product. In this episode we unpack our thoughts on big egos in project work and expose our appreciation for comic sans.

We may have unintentionally triggered the AI vibe coders on Threads. We pointed out an obvious issue: many AI-generated websites look impressive at first, but fall apart once a real client needs to edit or maintain them. No proper content management, no flexibility, and no clear handover after launch. So we asked ourselves is this really the future or are we setting clients back decades while devaluing our industry further?

Some freelancers might know deep down that they should be charging more, but have they ever actually looked at their own numbers to confirm?

In this episode we talk about the psychology behind bad pricing decisions in the creative industry. Competition anxiety, fear of losing out on projects, and the discomfort of looking at your own financial reality. We explore why pricing stubbornness can be tied to identity and/or insecurity.

This week we’re joined by wedding stationery and branding designer Marina Brooks, who has spent years inside one of the most emotionally charged corners of the design industry. We talk about what really happens when design stops being a business decision and becomes identity, taste, pressure, and expectations all at once.

We also get into the stories. Unrealistic requests, disagreements between partners… and one project that sadly didn't end in a wedding. This episode is less about weddings and more about what happens when design becomes a deeply personal product.

Guest links:

Website: https://vonschoenstein.at

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vonschoenstein

Imitation, conceptual thinking, aesthetics and non-visual sources of inspiration are all things we talk about in this episode. Jump in now and listen to our thoughts on inspiration and how it affects our work processes and final results.

Unsolicited advice vs. constructive feedback, we've navigated it all. In this episode we talk about our experiences with criticism and how we receive it. Negative feedback is never easy to receive but there are ways to soften the blow. Context and wording matter!

Ever heard someone use the term "unprofessional"? Of course there is a time and place when it is appropriate to describe something or someone as unprofessional, but how often does it really occur? There are a lot of customs, socially and professionally that we as a society have decided are professional and in this episode we unpack those.