By far our most read career advice story in 2024 across our ArtsHub platforms, was The 10 best performance review questions to ask your manager. Clearly, we all feel the pressure of our roles, and sometime feel at a loss as to how to improve them.
Series that set you on a career path
ArtsHub journalist Rochelle Siemienowicz tried to reinstall some of that self-belief in a 12-week series of articles she wrote this year, The Artist’s Way, taking their cue from Julia Cameron a global publishing phenomenon of the same title.
It was not the only career advice-based series delivery by ArtsHub in 2024. We partnered with our friends across the ditch, The Big Idea in New Zealand, for the learning module, Networking and Mentoring and Media and Publicity, which tackled simple starters like writing a media release and bio to more complex topics like mentoring, using social media for networking and how to think like an American when selling yourself.
Critical knowledge for arts professionals
Along with our series, we also offered a number of articles across the year that delivered answers to your biggest career questions, such as, How to succeed when negotiating a new salary or a pay rise, and also understanding what confidentiality clauses in arts contracts mean.
Money has been tight this year right across the sector, so we also looked at advice and tips that helped creatives through the tough times, such as Freelance creatives struggling in cost of living crisis, Should I offer workshops to help the cash flow? 5 tips when applying for an arts grant, and Is a four-day work week viable in the arts?
Zeitgeist shifts in 2024 and advice to prepare for the trends and changes
While the pandemic turmoil seems to have settled in the workplace, the environment still feels unstable in many ways, with change continuing to shape our working environments and relationship.
We tried to tackle some of these topics head on this year, including disillusionment and diversifying. Among our well-read stories were:
- How to leave a job in the arts without burning bridges
- 4 things arts managers are noticing in their best workers right now
- How I manage my portfolio career in the arts (part 1)
- How I manage my portfolio career in the arts (part 2)
- My job in 2030
Burnout the big topic that continues to dominate career conversations
Each year ArtsHub writes more stories on how to manage burnout, and to assure arts workers that they are not alone in their feelings. Sadly, we can often brush it off as a subject that is all too familiar – one that we don’t have time to address!
But this collection of articles is a small step to taking on board some strategies for self-protection and self-care:
- Married to the job? How having a self-employed partner might be hurting your happiness
- Balancing act: six tips for managing multiple creative projects without burnout
- 7 signs of severe creative burnout
- Navigating depression: 5 essential tips for creative artists
- Setting boundaries: 3 essential strategies
- Unpacking ‘slow productivity’: how artists can combat burnout and enhance creativity
And perhaps the most lighthearted and loved story of 2024, was an unexpected one: Pets in the workplace – pros and cons, which was obviously linked to our search for wellbeing at work.