Over the past year I’ve seen a tremendous increase in the number of design blogs and PSD galleries. The great part here is web designers and graphic designers are becoming more interested in sharing their ideas and works with the Internet, and this great attitude gave birth to several premium quality design freebies from all around the world!
Many graphic designers and creatives work in environments that can benefit from mobile access to tools of their trade. If not full-time, many work at least part-time in a freelance manner too.
There hasn’t been a better time than the present for mobile workforces, and one device in particular has pushed mobile utilities to the edge of what’s currently possible. More
It takes a tremendous amount of creativity, innovation, and dedication to build your own company, even if it’s a small one. Creative Village wants to showcase how individuals went through the process of beginning their own businesses and perhaps inspire you to do the same.
We talked with Joe Scola of ABID Technology, an interactive tool that lets you click on things that interest you while you’re watching videos online. It’s a very neat idea — check it out on their site!
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Tell us a bit about ABID and what prompted you to start a company like it? Every entrepreneur wants to change the world, and ABID is our way of trying to do so. Our goal is to transform the way viewers will interact with their video content for years to come. We believe people are in constant search of accessing information, and we’re aiming to deliver that experience through an added layer in video content. We see this as one small piece in the future of information exchange. We’re still a young company, and although we’re very pleased with the goals we have accomplished, there is still a long list of milestones in front of us. But that’s the exciting part.
Can you describe your past positions and how they led up to the creation of ABID? I’ve always been attracted to the visual arts, this led me to a BS in Film and Video at Drexel University. After Drexel, I fell into a sales and marketing position with a fortune 100 company. This experience had opened me up to a brand new side of myself. I wound up building new skills and excelling in the industry, but the limitations of working for a large corporation had slowly started to rub me the wrong way. I had ideas, so did my colleagues, none of which were being heard. It was during this experience I had met my future business partner, and we decided it was time to take action.
“If we couldn’t make change through the company we were working for, then we would create our own. Six months later, ABID was born.”
What’s one golden piece of advice you’d offer a young company? I would say, be prepared to work harder than you imagine. Success is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration. Be passionate about whatever it is you’re aiming to create, building a company comes with many ups and downs, you’ll need that passion to get you through the challenges that lie ahead.
How do you imagine ABID Technology and Creative Village could work together? Creative Village has some incredible resources, I especially love their blogs and the inspiration they provide. It would be wonderful to attend some of the networking opportunities and exciting events they’ll be hosting. They’re a company that seems to have a deep understanding of entrepreneurship, startups, and they’re providing new tools for guidance in those arenas, and that’s something close to home for me. I would also imagine that when it’s time to expand ABID, our recruitment process would be made much easier working together with Creative Village.
What’s next for ABID? We’re currently wrapping up an incredible internship program we created and hosted in Philadelphia, and we’re extremely proud of all the students who participated. In the next couple months we’re planning a soft launch with release-1 of our product. The product is something we’ve kept tightly under wraps, and we’re very excited to begin testing it with partners.
If you knew you were about to eat your last meal, what would you have and where would you have it? I would start with some grilled calamari salad, followed by homemade manicotti with my Great Aunt Elda’s famous sauce. After the main course, a Saint Joe’s cake would be my dessert of choice, and would of course be accompanied by a double espresso. A light digestive of sambuca in a snifter glass with 3 coffee beans would polish off the perfect meal. I would enjoy this final palatable goodness overlooking the Mediterranean from the town of Aquavella in Salerno, Italy. It’s where my grandfather was born, a place of humble beginnings and true beauty.
Thanks to Joe and ABID Technology for giving us a peek into the life of an entrepreneur! Keep checking back for more interviews like this and find out the different paths there are in starting a business.
In this new technology era, everyone is busy and complains they don’t have enough time. We all wish that there were 48 hours a day. However, time cannot be changed. Time never stops or even slows. We can only change ourselves — to form good habits to make the best use of our time. Time is precious. We should know how to use it wisely and carefully.
Make a Daily Plan
The foremost thing to do is to make a detailed plan. Having a plan in mind helps you manage your time efficiently. Break your ultimate goal into pieces and integrate them into your daily plan. Make the plan feasible and devote the same amount of time everyday to it. Once the work becomes a routine, you will find yourself making progress easily and will eventually reach your goal.
Do Not Overthinking the Past
We all have that moment. If we did something wrong or would have done it better in a different way, we will keep thinking about it, consciously or unconsciously. However, think about how much time we can have to spend focusing on the past everyday? The past is past, and nothing can be changed. If you can’t do anything about it, let it go, and focus on now. Don’t waste your current time on the past. Live in the present.
Do Not Work on One Task for a Long Time
If you work on one single project for too long, it might decrease your productivity. You might end up spending more time than you should. Say, you may take four hours to finish a task that can be normally done in just two hours. If you feel that you can’t focus or you become less productive, take a break. Go exercise or work on other projects. Remember that time passes quickly. You need to concentrate and use the time efficiently.
Use the Fragment of Time Smartly
It is easy to find some pieces of time here and there everyday. It could be a 10-minute coffee break, a 15-minute gap between meetings or a 30-minute ride on the commute. Do not overlook those little chunks of time. Use it wisely and you will make a big difference. Some recommendations include reading a book, clearing your mind, following up the news, or even networking. Do not waste it.
Sacrifice Leisure Time for the Good
After a hard day’s work, we all want to watch TV and relax for the rest of the day. However, if you have your own goal and wish to achieve it, you’d better give up your leisure time. We surely need to rest once in awhile, but you have to push yourself if you want to do something more. Time is limited, so use it for the most important things. This is not easy, because you have to constantly challenge yourself. But if you make it, you will find yourself in a better life.
Finally, a quote I want to share with all of you:
“Dost thou love life? Then waste not time; for time is the stuff that life is made of.” – Benjamin Franklin
We are undoubtedly smack-dab in the middle of a tech revolution — a statement that can be defended by the hundreds, if not thousands, of tech start-ups popping up each week. In New York City alone, there are so many start-up companies that the city developed a digital map of them all, including the company website, location, and whether or not they’re currently hiring.
So many current students and fresh grads would do anything to win a position at a start-up, but has it becoming a mindless desire molded by hype from our peers and media outlets? They’ve almost become this sort of mythical, romanticized ideal we millennial creatures put on a pedestal and drool over, but do we really know why it’s great to work at a start-up?
Currently interning at a young start-up, RentShare, and even at a small company like Creative Village/Creative Interns, I wanted to share the benefits I’ve personally experienced by going into the office every week (thus, it by no means is a checklist for all companies you may encounter):
Remember, these are only what I’ve personally seen first hand after working at a start-up. If you disagree or have something else to add, I’d love to hear it in the comments section!
Have you ever wondered why you like certain products more than others? Watch this interesting video I found on TEDEducation. It is an educational yet fun-to-watch video showing how media uses the hidden code to manipulate our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. The video is only 6 minutes long, but it fully explains the intricate system of symbols in our everyday life and how those codes are applied through advertising messages, TV shows, magazines, Internet, and other media channels. For instance, color, image, sound and writing in media are all appealing factors that influence and shape the way we see the world. The authors did a good job in making this complicated theory easy to understand.
I hope you enjoy the video, and let me know what you think about it.
Think about what type of mentor you want. Do you want a senior experienced person or a young leader? After all, you are seeking someone you can have a great conversation with. Don’t just go with the big names. Industry gurus might be good mentor candidates, but they might not be the best one for you. Look for someone who shares your values and is compatible with you in terms of personality, communication style or interest.
Step 2: Search for a mentor
After identifying your goal and the type of mentor you want, it’s time to look for the right person. Start with your current company. Some companies have their own mentoring programs. You can also choose someone in your company that you admire and contact them on your own.
Many industry associations offer free mentor-mentee programs for their members, such as International Association of Business Communicators and Public Relations Society of America. At professional conferences or networking events where a large number of industry practitioners are present, there is also a great chance to find people to be your mentor.
Have you thought about social media? LinkedIn, for instance, is a perfect social platform to find potential mentors. Since you can see a person’s professional experience and work history on the LinkedIn profile, it becomes easier to identify someone you like.
Look to your network and search from the people you have known. It could be your childhood friend, college classmate, or even your older family member or your neighbor.
Step 3: Secure a mentor
When you find an ideal person to be your mentor, ask smartly. Don’t just open up with the “will you be my mentor?” invitation. Be sincere and first explain why you want a mentor and why that person is the perfect fit, as well as what you expect out of the mentorship.
It’s also a good idea to begin with some casual conversations or meet up a few times until you feel comfortable with the person. Once you build a closer relationship, it would be easier to bring up your request on the mentorship.
If you get rejected by a potential mentor, don’t take it personally. It might be they are just too busy. Thank them for their time and move on to the next one.
Step 4: Start a mentorship
Once you secure a mentor, you and mentor can sit together and make a concrete mentoring plan. Make sure to set a mutual goal of the mentorship, and discuss in details of how the mentorship work. Scheduling a regular meeting time. Also, keep in mind that mentoring can take a variety of forms, including a monthly formal meeting, weekly phone call, or lunch meetings, etc. Talk with your mentor to find the best way that works for both of you.
Once the mentorship starts, be truthful and show your appreciation of any advice your mentor offers. Also, be open-minded and don’t be afraid to give feedbacks if you feel anything needs be improved. Maintain a positive attitude and a healthy relationship with your mentor throughout the mentorship will surely benefit you and your career life in the long run.
A fresh, young female graduage, it’s not at all shocking that I fell headfirst into the Pinterest epidemic. If you’re not familiar, Pinterest is a site that allows you to keep track of links you like by letting you “pin” them onto “boards,” or categories. Some of the more common boards you see are DIY boards, fashion inspiration boards, and recipe boards – that’s only skimming the surface.
Sites like Pinterest are a good way for people – not just women – to stay in touch with their creative side and at the same time build a visual portfolio that is representative of who they are.
Just like any writer has a portfolio of their clips, a person in the visually creative field – photography, graphic design, stylist – could turn their Pinterest page into boards of their work along with other pins that could help define who they are as a professional. Imagine it as a visual portfolio that you can keep updating as your ideas change.
Here is a great guide by Onward Search on building the perfect Pinterest portfolio. Good luck!
Photographer Nathan Spott has been creating impossible worlds from composite photos, with stunning results. He studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and his work has been showing and published by multiple art and design magazines, books, and galleries. Today, I picked up some of his latest unrealistic scenes. Do any of these help you use your imagination to create fabricated reality? More
Whether you work as a freelancer or part of a blogger studio, redesigning your portfolio is key to long-term success.
Once you’ve created a stunning website or online portfolio to showcase your work and skills, you need to make it easy for people to find you. Which is where your social network comes in. More
Want to gain users for your next big product or service? First, you’ll have to understand how the human mind works.
Watch Nir Eyal — start-up founder, lecturer, entrepreneur — explain his theory on How to Manufacture Desire. In his video (which is based off an article he wrote explaining the topic) Eyal discusses how big companies like Facebook and Twitter gained so many users through creating a habit-forming product.
If you’re trying to build something that will get people hooked, take a look for valuable information.
One of the great things about the App Store is that it inspires so much creativity from designers, it seems like there’s great new ideas for interfaces and interactions every week that delights the design community. More
I hope you guys enjoyed the wonderful inspiring part 1 of 3D typography. Now, here’s part 2 that I hope it will inspire you even more. Don’t be shy and tell me which one or ones is your favorite. See you next time with more inspirations. More
Imagine an artwork without type – you can only make assumptions what the graphics are trying to deliver. Type enhance and ensure you get whatever message the campaign is delivering. More
With the advancement of social media and expansion of the data on the internet….. there’s a fine line now between our business image and our personal image. There was a time not too long ago where we could separate different aspects of our lives. We didn’t have to be too concerned with cutting loose with our friends on the weekends because moments we’d soon wish to forget becomes memories and just old stories of the past. Our professional image could stay intact because nobody really cared what you did Sat. night as long as you produced during your working hours.
Nowadays our every moment is captured and documented for all the world to see. In essence, we may even feel more connected than ever before. Every morning when I check my Facebook feed, in 10 minutes I would know what Sally had for dinner, my cousins new girlfriend, a new apartment on the market and what my girlfriend living halfway around the world is having for breakfast. We get a peek into their lives and really, if you think about it, their minds and what values they have…… because what you choose to feed for others to see is a choice…. it’s the Image you put out.
No longer can we really separate our professional image and our personal image. So it may be time to evaluate who we really are and how we want the world to see us.
When asked what brought Creative Village members to Sweet Revenge to hear owner Marlo Scott speak about her journey in becoming a Restaurant & Cupcake, Beer & Wine Bar owner, one particular reason stood out with its sheer honesty:
“Well, I heard there were cupcakes and I heard there was wine.”
I hear you, sister! But aside from the promise of delectable cupcakes like the Malaysian Coconut and the signature Sweet Revenge cupcake (think Reese’s peanut butter cup in cake form and 20x better) paired with wines and beers ranging from Argentina to Germany, the group of about 15 also enjoyed the inspiring story of how Scott — owner of Sweet Revenge for four years — made her transition from the dog-eat-dog world of corporate to the cake-eating world of small business ownership.
Marlo Scott, owner of Sweet Revenge in the West Village.
“My goal was to just be happy and surround myself with good people,” said Scott, who was laid off from her corporate job in 2007. So, she made that the goal of her hidden West Village gem, working not just down in the office but also up on the floor, where she’d be able to meet and interact with her customers and employees. After the beginning stages of building her brand and earning regular customers from around the block, Scott has recently begun adding more food items to her menu in order to draw a larger crowd to her business.
After sampling some of Sweet Revenge’s most popular treats, the night ended with an informative Q&A with Scott, who offered advice and what to consider when trying to open your own small business. The sweet event attracted young professionals of all types of positions, including photography, talent recruitment, and copywriting.
Members concluded the night exchanging contact information for future cupcake outings and talking with Creative Village CEO & Founder Marc Scoleri and Co-Founder Shay Fu, who went behind the counter and helped dish out the goods (the pieces they didn’t sneak into their mouths, anyway).
Creative Village Founder, Marc Scoleri with Marlo Scott.
For information on Creative Village’s future MeetUp events and more photos from our Sweet Revenge event, check out http://www.meetup.com/Creative-Village-NYC/
Creative Village interviews JudyMae Chao with VYou technology. Click on any question to hear about Judy’s Ford Modeling days, career tips or about her involvement with Creative Village.
Got a question for Judy? Type your question in the field provided and Judy will respond via VYou…
This exclusive event includes dessert, beer and wine samplings from Sweet Revenge.
About the host: Sweet Revenge Owner Marlo Scott
How does a gal from southern Indiana who grew up on fried bologna and velveeta wind up with an artisan cupcake, beer & wine bar in the West Village, the star of Chase Bank’s national ad campaign for Ink (small business credit card), and the cover of Entrepreneur magazine?
Join us and find out! RSVP HERE
Event Format:
1. Event starts promptly at 6:30PM
2. Welcome from Creative Village
3. Marlo Scott shares Sweet Revenge’s Entrepreneurial Story
4. Sweet Revenge’s Marlo Scott gives an exclusive dessert, wine and beer pairing to 35 Creative Village members
5. Attendees are given sample dessert tastes and drink pairings
6. After 7:30PM enjoy Sweet Revenge’s bar at happy hour prices
Marlo has garnered press and accolades since she opened Sweet Revenge® in July 2008. Marlo has appeared on PBS Nightly Business Report, The TODAY Show, and inn MSN Business on Main’s feature profiling her brand in “The Race to Trademark Sweet Revenge®”. In 2011, Marlo was the April cover story of Entrepreneur magazine, showcasing her innovative concept in “A Refined Taste”. She appeared The TODAY Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda, MSN’s Business on Main, Fox & Friends, FoxBusiness.com and Fox 5. About.com awarded her wine bar “2011’s Best Cheap Date Spot in NYC”.
Written by Bonnie Halper, Founder of Startup One Stop
Once in a generation, a true visionary comes along and it is our privilege to witness genius. These people are brash, stubborn and because they march to the beat of their own drum with their eyes ever on the prize – a future or a product that we ourselves cannot envision – they are inevitably excoriated/vilified/ dismissed – the test of the hero – and they rise from the ashes, undeterred and undaunted, and maybe a bit humbled by the ordeal. And forward they go.
This is not Mark Zuckerberg. The Facebook IPO took place on Friday – which we personally refer to as Black (Eye) Friday – and we saw no great spike from the opening price. True, it didn’t end the day far from where it started, thanks to the many underwriters determined to keep the stock stable. Many reasons can be cited: the half hour delay; GM pulling its advertising; the economy at large; the decrease in company’s revenues from its previous quarter; concerns about the company’s future revenue model; the dog ate their homework. And yesterday saw no great rally. Au contraire (Inside Job: Facebook I.P.O. Shows the System Is Broken : http://nyr.kr/LeQUbb; 7 Reasons Why Facebook IPO Was A Bust:http://onforb.es/KD3jDx). Facebook does have an impressive 800+ million members, and Zuck now has shareholders to answer to, too. But wait! He’s still the majority shareholder (nearly 30% of the stock) so public company or not, it’s still more or less the Mark Zuckerberg show, and therein lies the problem. Credit where credit is due: he’s now the 29th wealthiest person on the planet – at 28. Brash and stubborn he is, but he does not possess that one quality that breeds loyalty to his product and that will carry him – and facebook – through whatever challenges and dark days may lie ahead: neither inspire passion. Facebook has not distinguished itself as a product we cannot live without. Yes, the stock will no doubt go up again at some point, but the fact remains: there is no ‘wow’ factor. That takes genius, and arrogance does not trump nor is it a substitute for vision. Are we breathlessly awaiting what the company will do next? If the answer is, ‘no,’ then you know why the stock price failed to go through the roof. For all we know, Facebook may still manage to astonish us but frankly, given their attitude towards privacy, we see them more in the Google mold: remember ‘do no evil?,’ a noble sentiment which GOOG abandoned long ago, along with the desire to innovate – but take heed, entrepreneurs. Money and power do not necessarily mean that you must compromise your principles, your vision, and your desire to do something that manages to push the human race forward. There are exceptions and that is the mark of true genius. If you want to know how to get there and stay there, while staying on the high road and still managing to inspire passion and keep your shareholders happy, it has been done. It can be done. We leave you with the words of someone who did it and who narrated this 1997 spot which never aired:http://youtu.be/8rwsuXHA7RA Listen and learn. Onward and forward.
In an interview with AGIA, Weiden + Kennedy Executive Creative Director and Partner, John C Jay shares some simple yet vital lessons to those starting out in the creative field.
10 Lessons For Young Designers
1: Be authentic. The most powerful asset you have is your individuality, what makes you unique. It’s time to stop listening to others on what you should do.
2: Work harder than anyone else and you will always benefit from the effort.
3: Get off the computer and connect with real people and culture. Life is visceral.
4: Constantly improve your craft. Make things with your hands. Innovation in thinking is not enough.
5: Travel as much as you can. It is a humbling and inspiring experience to learn just how much you don’t know.
6: Being original is still king, especially in this tech-driven, group-grope world.
7: Try not to work for stupid people or you’ll soon become one of them.
8: Instinct and intuition are all-powerful. Learn to trust them.
9: The Golden Rule actually works. Do good.
10: If all else fails, No. 2 is the greatest competitive advantage of any career.
While the title suggests these lessons are for “young designers”, Jay’s advice seems appropriate for all creatives, both fledgling and seasoned; perhaps even in ones own personal life.
Read the rest of AIGA’s piece on John C Jay here:
http://www.aiga.org/design-journeys-john-jay/