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Why Do Creatives Undervalue Themselves?
Posted by on June 4, 2024 at 2:53 pm
Hence Journal contributor Gordy Megroz asked that question in a feature story recently.
Some of the answers he got were “imposter syndrome,” fear of being labeled a self promotor, and a general hesitancy by creatives to own all the skills they’ve acquired.
Here’s the filmmaker, photographer, director, producer, and dangerous places fixer (and more) Dirk Collins on that topic:
“On a lot of projects, you have to wear many different hats and so, instead of saying you’re a director on a project, you might simply call yourself a ‘filmmaker.’ Well, no, you’re a director, a producer, a talent and location scout, and more. It’s OK to own it.”
To me (this is HJ Editor-in-Chief Marc Peruzzi), underselling yourself is more generational than anything. Younger creatives and athletes started building their personal brands as teenagers on social media. Everyone else has been happy to let their work speak for itself.
Maybe that’s not the best way to promote yourself anymore? Discuss.
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16 Replies
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There is a built in fear as a freelancer, especially in the beginning of a career, to never say no to work. It gives the client all the power to dictate the budget (or so it seems). Pushing back is scary, and a lot of times you can end up losing out on a job to someone “hungrier” and willing to take unreasonable rates.
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I’d like to focus on the “personal brand” thing. I really struggle with this. It’s not that I undervalue myself, it’s more that this self-promotion component kills me. If I’m doing something cool, sure I’ll post some photos on IG. And I’m pretty avid about blogging/newslettering/whatever-the-kids-call-it-now-ing, but that’s all for pleasure, so it’s sporadic.
I don’t think it’s that younger generations are more narcissistic, it’s just that growing up with the internet has allowed even the introverted ones to throw themselves out there constantly and comfortably.
Do you all feel it’s necessary?
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I don’t know if its a generational thing, or a personality type. But it is difficult to both promote yourself and be authentic and transparent. I think having a clear idea what you’re trying to do with promotional posts vs. personal ones is one way to do it. Or having one area or platform that is totally dedicated to marketing/outreach, vs one that is just for personal stuff and friends.
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As an extroverted introvert, this is something I’ve talked about with my teams for years. As a creative, we prefer to let our work do the talking, but in the era of “personal brand” it is critical and required that we talk about what we’re doing and showcase it for all to see. Moreover, on the actual brand side, it is imperative you humanize your company to customers, employees and potentials with authentic promotion from your existing base of those same groups.
I do agree with the generational component here a bit: I always think about the generations before us, and they did great work but rarely talked about it. Now we’re just in a new era where that self-promotion is almost as critical as the work itself sometimes (I’ve often used the Hollywood analogy with actors and creators promoting a new film/project – they often despise those press tours but it’s sometimes as important as the studio marketing in getting more viewers interested).
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This reply was modified 1 month, 2 weeks ago by lou-dubois.
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This reply was modified 1 month, 2 weeks ago by
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I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that throughout my career, all the best creatives I’ve worked with have tipped the scales in favor of the introverts—not to an extreme degree, that’s a typecast misperception—but creatives are by nature a bit more introspective. The obvious extroverts all ended up on the business side of the ledger. I think introverted people have a harder time with self promotion. But I agree with Lou that we need to get over it. I have always stayed busy without doing much promotion. But I probably would have won more of the work I wanted if I’d promoted myself a bit more. Working on it.
I also agree that this is true for brands as well. The product-first companies often forget to talk about what it takes to make great products. Letting the product speak for itself is important, but we sometimes get so close to the products we make that we forget to tell the stories of how they came to be. We forget about this hierarchy: People make Companies, Companies make Products, and it takes all three to make a brand.
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When we started our first ad agency my partner and I were a young creative team (write/art director) with a lot of experience with creative development behind closed office doors. We had a good portfolio of work to show but no one knew who the hell we were. Since I leaned a bit more extravert, it became my role to go knock on doors. It was super hard emotionally to promote and sell our brand but it became immediately clear we needed work. That task never seemed to climb to the top of the to-do list! As the agency grew and we added employees I decided that at least 20% of my time (one day a week) had to be set aside for promoting and selling our work. As we became better known in the outdoor industry it became easier to open doors but it still required the constant effort.
It’s pretty basic. Start with a list of dream clients (5/10/25) and find out who the decision makers are. Hence is a great community of creative people dedicated to authentic outdoor content so reach out to the roster for connections and introductions. Then start contacting people. Go on a road trip to where they are and get an appointment to show them your work. Consistently send them e-mails of work you’re stoked about. Go to trade shows to check in with them. Post your work on social. Connect on LinkedIn. Over time, you’ll begin to build relationships with them. If your work is solid you will be successful at landing great projects.
Above all else, start today.
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Love the list of dream clients idea. A writer I know who has had a lot of success recently talks about “manifesting” the career she wanted. Similar deal. Put your head on the block.
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This is solid advice, Fred. I’d like to add an element to that networking that a mentor taught me. During that outreach, use a “You, me, you” approach. That is to say, ask them about what they’re doing and make a point of listening. Then, tell them about what you’re doing. Finally, tell them about how what you’re doing can help them.
It takes a bit of focus, but it tends to work well.
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Parts of all of these responses resonate with me. In hindsight building a creative career was emotionally quite difficult. I had a plan like Fred. Once I fleshed out my portfolio I created a list of companies I wanted to work with and went after those. That was in the mid 2000s, between the digital revolution and social media. I didn’t try to please everyone. I created my own style. I think style is super important and quite often overlooked.
Like music, what’s your sound and who are you playing for? I know for me, I don’t play pop music in arenas. Don’t want to. I know I can make a good living playing what I love. And it’s not for everyone.
But this is where it gets emotionally taxing. Because we see others, I see others, on social media with millions of followers and think that’s what success looks like. But really success comes in many different forms. Social media can send mixed messages. In one way it’s cool to have lots of followers. But what effect does gathering followers have on your work? And in your psyche? Of course social media is important but how much is enough? And how much energy is worth spending on it?Instead of worrying about all that just decide what type of clients you want and see if you can create a style that matches their needs. Focus on what makes you an individual, make art for yourself and a few of your friends and see who else shows up.
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Yeah, I’m trying to do that, Boone, but it can be rough. I’m used to working on projects that thousands of people see. They may not know I personally created the article/book/report/post, but they see it and, I hope, benefit. That’s very satisfying.
I’m at a stage now where I want to work on my own projects in my personal space. I don’t mind the drop in income so much, but when hundreds (or even dozens on a bad day) are reading my writing instead of thousands, it’s a real reality check!
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I keep thinking about Denis’ post and others dread of “self-promoting” (as well as my own). I wrestled with this quite a bit and learned through the wisdom of others who were really good at developing business relationships, that part of the challenge was that I was framing it as “selling myself” vs thinking “how might I share something I know/did/saw that those FEW people on my list might be struggling with right now?” The answer puts you in the position of being a solution to challenges YOUR PEOPLE face vs being a salesperson. And in my case, it dramatically lessened the pressure to be active on social media as the best way for me to share wasn’t through that channel.
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Good point, Carrie. If I understand you correctly, it really goes to the core of being an artist versus a craftsperson. I’ve spent my career creating content always thinking, “what’s in it for the person reading this?” That’s how a craftsperson should think.
But what about the artist? Sure, artists create things for social commentary to impact emotion in the viewer, but that’s kind of esoteric and, ultimately, they’re much more about self expression.
I suppose what I’m trying to get at is that I’m trying to transition to a bit more of an artistic phase in my career but trying to figure out how outreach works there.
What do you folks do to balance the artist in you with the craftsperson? And do you carry if your artist part gets recognition?
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“Balance”—an overused word, yet an underutilized practice. We all crave the freedom to create without the pressures of social validation or market tastes, to simply say, “I made this for me.”
Yet, for most of us, creativity must coexist with financial and client-driven demands. This is where personal branding comes into play. Whether consciously aware of it or not, we all leave a signature on our work—whether in visible credits, a creative stamp, or the team we contribute to under a larger brand.
This signature is your personal value. There is an art not just in the work itself, but in navigating the less glamorous aspects of creation. Finding balance and fulfillment within these realities is the true artistry.
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100% Travis.
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Carry, I agree and you said it well. It’s not about appealing to many. It’s about appealing to the few, with real, analog relationships and long lasting collaborative partnerships. You only need a few really solid relationships to had a great career. Let’s not let social media bait us to take our eye off the ball.
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Spot on Boone.
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