Creative minds are a bit different when it comes to work. We think differently, we work differently, our personalities can be a little—unique? Some of us are happiest when secluded, some of us thrive in a constantly changing environment, but we all work best in our own ways—and knowing your creative’s specific personality can really give you an upper hand when recruiting and retaining them. Not all creatives are equal, however, there are a few common things that we all appreciate at work. Here are 3 ways to attract creative talent but also keep them engaged and retain them longer:
Creative Freedom
First and foremost, don’t limit a creative’s mind. That is the reason you hired them, right? Because they can tell a story visually better than most can. Most creative minds by nature are against the rules and don’t like to be constricted—they like to explore, learn, research, figure out their own way, and channel these instincts into a final creative product that will blow your mind.
Not to say you can’t lead or guide them into the direction you want and share what your vision is, too, but once that is made clear, take a step back and let your creative work their magic. If you can do that, they’ll trust you more because you trust them to do what they do best. They’ll feel appreciated and like they can work with you to create something extraordinary. When trying to attract creative talent, make sure you share with those potential candidates on your careers site and in the job description that you allow this freedom and responsibility.
Challenges
As a creative pro myself, I can personally attest to easily getting bored and loving change. I like things to be interesting. I like to be kept on my toes. I love a good blindside to shake up a work rut of doing the same thing over and over and over (and over) again. Most of us are like this, and we can handle it. So give us challenges, new projects, reward us with opportunities to attend a conference and learn something new we can bring back to the office, trust us to figure things out.
Creatives are explorers, researchers, and problem solvers. It’s fun—like a game. If you can encourage these personality traits with work, your creative talent will stay excited and ready to tackle their next project. When hiring creatives, let them know there will be projects where you will need their expertise to figure out how to do something without a lot of guidance and you will trust them to find a solution. The little lightbulb floating on top of their head will light up in a second.
Flexibility
Again, creatives are not meant to be constrained. Rules and uptight work systems will limit their productivity and creative processes. Minds like ours also don’t always work 9-5 like clockwork—sometimes the best times to work or when an amazing solution pops in our mind is late at night or early in the morning. For me, I must squeeze out as much work as I can in a day earlier in the day, because once 3 pm rolls around, my mind shuts down every day right on schedule—so I always save more mundane tasks or simpler work for the last 2 hours of work.
Remote work, breaks during the day, the ability to work alone if desired, and a dress code that allows self-expression are a few ways to encourage innovative work and creativity. If you have an office where your team sits together in an open work environment, allow your empty side offices to be used for your creatives to retreat to. Don’t be surprised if you find your creative holed up in an office alone all day—sometimes it’s needed. If you have that “do you, boo boo” attitude with your creatives, they’ll hang on tight and be driven to explore challenges and ultimately get their best work done for you.
If you can embrace the creative freedom, challenges, and flexibility that creative desire, you’ll have no problem attracting and retaining them. Just make sure you share this on your careers site, social media, job descriptions, and during interviews to really hook the bait.