Never Not Creative – Details, episodes & analysis

Rachel and Andy are discussing the topic of how to deal with bad behaviour from colleagues, managers and even clients.

It's a topic that has been frequently asked in our Asking For A Friend events and so we've brought the learnings and discussions into our latest episode.

Our hosts discuss the excellent advice shared on questions like:

• How do I approach a manager who has been taking credit for my work?
• How can I change the toxic culture in an organisation?
• How do I deal with a micro-manager?
• How do I deal with clients who are being a bully?

We reference excellent advice and opinion from:

• Regina Stroombergen (Thinkerbell)
• Tarra Van Amerongen (Atlassian)
• Tara Hurster (The T.A.R.A. Clinic)
• Nicky Bryson (Brand Momentum)
• Sharon Draper (Psychologist)
• Jess Lilley (The Open Arms)
• Martine Beaumont (Select Wellness)
• Dr Aileen Alegado (Mindset Consulting)

Thanks to our supporter, Streamtime – Project management software for happier, healthier creative businesses. Also to our editor Linley Lai and Community Manager Fong Yu. And to our friends at Paper Moose, who were very kind to share their studio and resources!

Andy and Rachel are back with the still, rather awkward question – How is your mental health?

We delve into questions like, how should we talk about mental health at work, as a leader, as a colleague?

How do we bring up a subject that can sometimes lead to fear of judgement?

Well, fear not, the stigma relating to mental health is improving by the day and we share advice on all of these questions and more by referencing some fantastic Asking For A Friend episodes.

How do I let my team know that I'm stressed or not coping?

How do I deal with a manager that has no empathy?

How do I build up the courage to talk about my mental health with someone at work?

Thanks to Nicky Bryson, Martine Beaumont, Sharon Draper, Kristen Highett and Nick Hunter who all contributed to this episode.

Editing by Linley Lai.

Hosts, Andy Wright and Rachel Zhang.

And thanks to our sponsor Streamtime - project management software for happier, healthier creative businesses.

The final episode of our Creativity and Football mini-series rounds out with The Hallway's ECD Simon Lee. Simon has lived experience with the ups and downs of mental health, but has also been working closely with mental health charity, Gotcha4Life for the last 3 years. The result of this work is the quite excellent Boys Do Cry campaign – a clever take on The Cure's "Boys Don't Cry" from 1979. It's a powerful piece bringing together 30 men from all walks of life to unite in tackling the stigma of mental health – especially relating to men.

Andy and Simon discuss the rules of masculinity, the stiff upper lip and the power and relief that comes from opening up. 

You can find out more about the campaign at: Boys Do Cry. 

Thanks to Endel.io for background music. Check them out for one month free.

Support from Streamtime always appreciated and for joining us on the fight for a healthier creative industry.

Check out what's happening at Never Not Creative and last chance to take the empathy survey.

In the 4th episode of our Creativity & Football mini-series we head to Switzerland with renowned lettering artist Stefan Kunz.

Stefan is an internet phenomenon, entrepreneur and educator who is passionate about sharing his gift to inspire others.

But his quest for excellence and always doing how best isn’t free from the challenges of struggling to get out of bed, becoming bereft of ideas on how to excel further and everything in between.

Stefan shares his coping mechanisms and how his willingness to be realistic about what his ‘best’ is on any particular day, helps him through.

Find out more about Stefan and sign up for his courses at https://stefankunz.com.

Thanks to Endel for their support… Focus, relax, and sleep through the power of sound. The Endel app creates AI-powered sounds designed to support your everyday life. Backed by science, and enjoyed by millions worldwide. Endel is powered by its patented core AI technology. It takes inputs like location, environment, and heart rate, to create the optimal personalized soundscape. This happens on the fly and allows Endel to reconnect your state with your natural circadian rhythm.

Get a free 1-month subscription for the NNC Community here 

And Streamtime… always on the mission of creating healthier creative businesses and helping create a healthier creative industry. Find out more at Streamtime.net.

It's the 3rd episode of our Creativity & Football mini-series. Craig Elimeliah is an award-winning ECD at VMLY&R in New York. A native New-Yorker he gets his football analogies from the oval shaped ball rather than the circular one. A couple of months ago, Craig wrote a brave post on Linkedin sharing his experiences with many years of mental heath ups and downs. It's not easy to suddenly go from zero to a hundred in the transparency and vulnerability stakes, but Craig has taken it in his stride and now understands his own mental health in order to pull the right levers at the right time. He's also excited by the change our industry is destined to make with a new generation of talent and leaders who won't stand for the toxicity and culture of the past that has burnt out far too many of us.

Need help with your mental health?

Find out more about Craig.

Craig's interview with David Sable for New York Festivals.

Thanks to Endel.io - the AI-powered wellness app that helps you focus, relax, and sleep better through the power of sound. Created by artists, proved by science.

And thanks to Streamtime. Project management software for healthier creative businesses.

More at Nevernotcreative.org

Dr Zac Seidler knows a thing or two about football. Whilst he's scored many a goal from all over the pitch, his ultimate goal is to reduce the staggering rate of male suicide. In this second episode of our Creativity & Football mini series (psst, yeah the one on men's mental health in the creative industry) Andy and Zac discuss everything from mental health to masculinity and the one secret that just may give men the courage to speak up.

Find out more about Zac at https://www.zacseidler.com/ and of course support the global Movember phenomenon at https://movember.com where Zac is Director of Mental Health Training. 

More from NNC at https://nevernotcreative.org 

Thanks as always to https://Streamtime.net

Welcome to a Never Not Creative podcast mini-series. Creativity and Football. We're talking to men about creativity, football and... who are we kidding? This is an essential listen. A mini-series dedicated to the topic of men's mental health in our industry. We kick-off our first episode with Pete Brennan. Co-founder of Heaps Normal, Electric & Analog and lucky for us, sharer of stories and experiences about his own journey with mental health.

We're publishing this series because its almost guaranteed that whenever we run something around mental health – we'll see max 10% of males as part of the audience. It's time to chat fellas (and everyone of course, but especially the men). The more open you are, the more honest you are and the more you realise that more than half of this world is feeling something similar, the more we can all help each other.

Thank you to Pete for sharing, talking and helping others realise it's good to talk and get to know yourself.

Find out more about Pete, Heaps Normal and Electric and Analog below.

Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterbrennan/?originalSubdomain=au
Heaps Normal - https://heapsnormal.com/
Electric & Analog - https://www.eanda.cc/

Thanks to Streamtime - https://streamtime.net

Asher Oliver didn’t take the traditional ‘qualified’ pathway into the creative industry.

After graduation from university with a Business Management degree in 2009, he moved back home and encountered a huge struggle in regards to finding employment.

Like many graduates having to rely on casual work meant Asher became a waiter in an Italian restaurant, but he never gave up what had become a passion on the side for animation.

While researching opportunities, Asher came across Gary Vaynerchuk and his mantras of:

HUSTLE - HARD WORK - FOCUS - NO EXCUSES

When Asher reached out to Gary himself, opportunities appeared. The collaboration opened many doors and he now works full time at Food Fight Studios.

Thanks to Streamtime for all their support.

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Blair Enns (author of Win Without Pitching and Pricing Creativity) joins Andy to discuss the challenges that creatives have when it comes to business. How our emotional attachment to work can hinder financial success and why we shy away from the grown-up stuff. We also discuss the pro's and con's of unpaid internships and whether mental health issues are naturally more present in creatives. 

Links:
Rocket Fuel book

Win without pitching

Mentally-Healthy research

Never Not Creative

Thank to Streamtime for all their support – project management software for healthier creative businesses.

Andy and Sarah are back with another episode on a Never Not International Women’s Day talk with Tom Tapper.  

Tom is the co-founder and CEO of B-Corp certified agency, Nice and Serious. In 2008, he co-founded Nice and Serious with a clear purpose: to make creative work the world needs. Since then, he’s exclusively worked with pioneering charities and brands to make creative work that amplifies social and environmental causes. From international brands like IKEA, Unilever, Innocent and Ben & Jerrys, to pioneering charities like Greenpeace, WWF, Rainforest Alliance and Parkrun.  

Constantly aware of being in the privileged position of the white male founder of a successful branding business, Tom is interviewed by Ve on the extra efforts to ensure that Nice and Serious delivers on being a business that strives for equality.  

Listen to the full podcast ep or watch the talk at https://nniwd.nevernotcreative.org/. 

The Moral Compass - https://moralcompass.app/ 

Nice and Equal - https://niceandserious.com/journal/nice-and-equal/

More at https://nevernotcreative.org/

Big thanks to Streamtime - https://streamtime.net/