Are you out of the honeymoon stage at your new job? Remember when you had that feeling of excitement, fulfillment and curiosity all wrapped into one? If you are not feeling that way anymore, then you may need to make a few small changes that can bring you back to that feeling you had on day one. The next time you find yourself unmotivated, try out some of the tips below to ensure you get back on track.

Stay away from Negative Nancy.

Is your negative attitude the result of a disgruntled coworker? Nothing is worse than someone walking over to your desk every single morning complaining about the job. What’s even worse is when you come in ready to put in a solid day’s work and your coworker wrecks your positive outlook.
Staying away from negative people is vital. The next time they come over, make sure you are too busy to engage in the regular negative conversation. Try surrounding yourself with positive and motivated coworkers. Once the Negative Nancy’s see your new positive vibe, they will get the hint that you don’t have time to engage in negative conversations. Even if they don’t at first, they will eventually get the hint.

Good communication with management.

Open and continuous dialogue with your manager can go a long way. Nothing wreaks more havoc on your week than a problem arising due to miscommunication with management or fear to take suggestions to your boss. With continuous dialogue comes good rapport – which leads to trust. Once you’ve established a sense of trust with management, your workplace becomes a whole new world.

Remember your purpose and goals.

The workplace is constantly evolving, and with changes, you can sometimes forget your purpose for taking the job in the first place. Stay focused on why you are there and what your goal is no matter how much change comes. One tip is to find inspiration with motivational quotes. Keep the quotes fresh and change them out depending on what aspect in your life you need to kick into gear. If you can wear ear phones at your desk while you work, listen to your favorite music that puts you in a good mood. You can even find some motivational speakers on YouTube to listen to when you need that extra motivation.

Check out for a minute and smell the fresh air.

Working hard and going the extra mile always yields positive outcomes, but we all need a break for some personal time. If you are inside all day staring at a computer screen, then go outside and walk around to get some fresh air. Take your mind off what you have been working on for the past several hours. Checking out for 10-15 minutes and getting some fresh air will recharge your mind.

Take care of your health.

I think we can all agree that a clear mind is an important piece for performing at our highest level in the workplace, but sometimes we forget about our health. A good diet and regular exercise can keep your positive attitude constant. If you are truly sick, make sure you use a sick day and take the time you need to get yourself feeling better. Trying to work through a seasonal bug can make you feel sluggish, and it may take your body even longer to recover. In addition, people around you don’t appreciate you coming into work if you are spreading germs. If you are taking care of your body and your mind, then you are ready to perform at the highest level possible.

The next time you are feeling yourself falling into a funk at work, try out some of the above tips to turn things around. You’d be surprised how a slight tweak in your daily habits can improve your attitude. Don’t let yourself turn into the Negative Nancy others don’t have time for in the workplace!

Krista is a Creative Circle candidate, creative writer and content creator in Los Angeles. Her background includes news, marketing, copywriting and editing. If you are interested in working with Krista, please contact Creative Circle LA.

Work is just like life: you encounter different personalities, dispositions, and temperaments.

But work is different. You can’t simply walk away and disengage with someone who has opinions and values that don’t align with your own. You can spend as much as a third of your life at work, so it’s important to make the most of it; learning the skills to cope with many different personality types can help you navigate challenging situations that may arise.

Personal conflicts in the workplace can be even more common during presidential election years (a recent survey found 42% of U.S. workers have had political disagreements at work), so keeping these top tips top-of-mind can help avoid workplace strife before it arises.

1. Don’t take everything personally.

Right now, your coworkers are likely dealing with their own issues, and their actions may be a reflection of something they’re going through either at work or in their personal lives. If others are being negative or unpleasant to be around, remember, not every negative or uncomfortable encounter is directed at you. Take a few minutes to step back and assess the situation fully; maybe they are worried about something going on at home or stressed about a big project. The best skill you can have is to just offer help and rather than contributing to a hostile environment, even if someone else is.

At times, others’ actions can feel like personal attacks, but ask yourself, “Am I telling myself a story?” Perhaps someone’s email response was curt. Ask yourself: Did this person intend to upset me, or are they just in a rush between meetings? This mindset can help you talk yourself off of proverbial ledges — and can help keep the peace.

2. Remember: It’s okay to disagree.

Being a team player is one of the most common phrases in job descriptions, and it’s a soft skill that can have a large impact on your team dynamic, promotion potential, and more. It’s natural to feel frustrated with a coworker in the face personal or professional disagreements — but try not to let this frustration get in the way of your own productivity. Don’t be afraid to sit down with this coworker (if you feel comfortable doing so) and explain your frustrations; if you can focus the conversation on facts and events rather than emotions, it’s easier to engage in a rational discussion.

And if you cannot come to a consensus, it’s okay to disagree. Disagreement in moderation is healthy in any relationship, as long as it doesn’t get in the way of your mental health and overall working relationship. At the end of the day, everyone on your team is (or should be) working toward the same goal and outcomes.

3. Learn to handle egos.

He got a big ego? It’s not uncommon to encounter coworkers with large egos, and the tension egos can cause is often a source of conflict — particularly when egos clash. People may go out of their way to prop themselves up and stand out by positioning their coworkers as lesser than them in quality of work and stature. To avoid an ego-driven conflict, it’s important to remind yourself that this isn’t personal. Like it or not, you only have control over your own response to others’ personalities. If you’re frustrated by a coworker who puts others down, try to find ways to level-set with an honest conversation, based in facts rather than emotions. Your coworker may not even realize that their behaviors are negatively impacting you. (Of course, if someone’s ego turns into bullying you or others, it’s best go down the proper channels with your manager or with HR.)

4. Keep gossip positive.

No matter the office or industry or team, gossip has a way of festering in a work environment. Gossip is a slippery slope and can often increase interpersonal conflict and decrease morale — while simultaneously straining relationships and decreasing productivity. The best way to avoid gossip is by identifying “gossip triggers,” so you can find ways to work around them. Sometimes, gossip is unavoidable, particularly if you’re part of a group conversation. If you’re able, try to tactfully redirect the conversation to something positive, or disengage.

As with any work environment, there will be frustrations and the desire to vent — but tread lightly. A certain level of venting is okay, as long as you can trust this person 100%. If you have a “work best friend” (a recent Gallup poll finds that you should!), try to confide in them and keep the conversation between the two of you, in order to avoid any inadvertent gossip and conflicts down the line.

Remember, your priority is doing great work. Try to maintain a non-judgmental attitude and know that at the end of the day, it’s all about how you react.

Krista is a Creative Circle candidate, creative writer and content creator in Los Angeles. Her background includes news, marketing, copywriting and editing.

In college, design schooling outlines the basic requirements for career preparedness, and instructors try to give as much real-world training as they can in such a short amount of time. Not everything you need to know in preparation for your design career can be taught in four years, and instructors know that not every concept can be realized or practiced.

We asked design educators from some of the top design programs in the nation to share the number one fundamental area of typography that their students have a hard time grasping. Think of these answers as recommendations on typography areas to brush up on to help excel past your peers.

Mindset of the Craft

“Type learners only get into technical (historical, analog, digital) and aesthetic detail when they see how they need to be invested in the craft as part of learning and eventually working as typographers, in addition to being visual artists; not illustrators, Photoshoppers, game designers or other fields or technology they might first be exposed to as young artists and designers in high school, community college, or foundation classes.”
— Joseph Coates, Lecturer at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA)

“Negative space and relatedly, scale.”
— Margaret Urban, Associate Professor of Graphic Design at the State University of New York at Fredonia

“The proportion of type size to page and everything in between: margins to column widths to type size to leading. They keep looking at the type itself, not at the type and how it’s connected to the page holistically. Everything’s connected proportionally.”
— Michael Stinson, Adjunct Faculty at Laguna College of Art + Design (LCAD)

Personality

“That type has a specific voice that comes along with it. I try to get my students to actually find photos of people that match type.”
— Andrew Hochradel, Design & Photography Educator, California Baptist University, Riverside

“Choosing an appropriate typeface for a project.”
—Victoria Pickett, Lecturer of Visual Communication, Northern Arizona University

Don’t Leave It to the Software

“I think most students fail to understand that they do not have to use the default settings that come in a font. Type is scalable and the type designer optimized the internal metrics of a font for a particular size. Once a student starts changing the size and setting, adjustments to the letter space and word space must be made, and that is where they generally go wrong. I would also add that I think there is too much emphasis on ‘experimental’ or ‘conceptual’ typography in design schools. Most students cannot set a proper paragraph justified, rag right, rag left or centered. And most still cannot find the correct quote marks. But it shouldn’t surprise me, most working designers cannot do it either.”
– James Montalbano, Assistant Professor at Parsons School of Design

“That perception trumps mathematics. It’s developing a typographic sensitivity to know when to break the mathematical system in order to perceptually adhere to it. Like how an ‘O’ overhangs the baseline so it isn’t perceived as floating.”
— Ben Hannam, Associate Professor at Elon University

“All type needs to be adjusted once typed. Auto leading and kerning is not acceptable. Also stretching type and not “knowing” about the fonts they choose. For example, I say, “why did you choose Impact as the type for this project?” and they say ‘how did you know I used Impact?’ and ‘I don’t know, I like it.’”
— George Garrastegui Jr., Design Educator at New York City College of Technology

Final Details

“Have you ever had a client say they gave proofed copy to a designer and it came back with formatting errors? Students are not catching the basics. I tell my design students they should be known for caring about accuracy and quality. They don’t understand that typography is about communication and when they don’t run spell checks or understand the basics of grammar, they are doing themselves and their clients a disservice.”
— Rachelle Woo Chuang, Graphic Design Educator, Chapman University, Orange

“Restraint.”
— Nikki Juen, Design Faculty at Rhode Island School of Design and Vermont College of Fine Arts

Are you an educator who feels your students could improve their typography in a certain area? Let us know what they have a hard time grasping by tweeting at @TypeEd.

Rachel Elnar is the producer and co-founder at TypeEd, where she helps bring the craft of typography back to design education. Get more type in your inbox and sign up for more about TypeEd columns (and other announcements).

Lisa, a socially conscious handbag designer, found Barry through Instagram. Lisa was impressed with Barry’s work so much, that she wanted to hire him to work on her branding. She filled out the new client survey on his website and things took off from there. Of course, they came across some design differences but Lisa thought she was clear about her wishes. Things were going great until Lisa received the first proofs for her branding. She hated it! Was Barry not listening to her needs at all? Lisa reached out to Barry because she felt like he clearly didn’t understand her vision. She spent way too much money to end up with a product she did not ask for. Enter, conflict.

There will be times when you and your client will not see eye to eye. If perfect situations existed, everyone would be happy and conflict would not be an issue. Unfortunately, sometimes, situations between client and consultant, can become tense. Conflict isn’t a bad thing, though. Because we are all human with unique personalities and temperaments, we will disagree. In fact, if we really think about it, most conflict is purely based off of our misunderstandings. It’s not about having conflict, it’s about how we resolve conflict.

Clarity is the difference between your client being pissed off at you for not doing as you were told and them praising you for listening and making adjustments based off of those words.

What happens when client and freelancer do not have clarity? When conflict is left unresolved, the quality of work suffers. Unresolved conflict with a client leads to decreased productivity, stress, poor communication, overall unhappiness with the project, among a host of other things. How you deal with these moments of conflict make a world of difference.

The good news is, negative conflict can be resolved. If you are someone who hates conflict, whether good or bad, here are seven steps you should consider to resolve them when they arise.

1. Analyze the situation.

Is what you’re experiencing something that needs to be addressed or can it be let go? Sometimes an issue really isn’t an issue. Have a chat with yourself. Is it all in your head? Once you’ve confirmed that the issue does need to be addressed, you move forward.

2. Address the situation quickly.

Nothing sucks more than when both client and freelancer knows there’s an issue, but no one addresses the elephant in the room. After you’ve identified the problem, approach your client (preferably in person or over the phone) about the situation. The longer you wait to address an issue, the worse it will get.

3. Don’t speak when you’re angry.

When you and a client have come into conflict, emotions may come up that can prevent you from speaking rationally. If it helps, write out bullet points you want to address. Go a step further and write everything out in speech form. Have someone proofread it for offensiveness.

4. Seek to understand.

If you think you’re always right, you’re wrong. Have you considered the other party’s perspective? Put yourself in their shoes. Listen to them. Try to understand their frustration.

5. Ask questions.

If something is not crystal clear to you, speak up. Do not move forward with a project if you’re unsure about the scope of work. And along the way, they may find that their expectations aren’t being met. Find out why and what you can do to remedy the situation.

6. Show some respect.

Whether you agree with someone or not, the least you can do is respect their opinions. Everyone wants to be heard. No one wants to feel as though they do not have that simple right. You gain respect by being respectful. Keep it professional.

7. Don’t play the blame game.

No, the customer isn’t always right but there is a way to resolve a problem by including yourself in the solution. Maybe the misunderstanding was on their part, which led to you not creating the product they wanted. Instead of saying, “Well, you told me to do this,” try, “Here’s the problem and here’s how we’re going to solve it.”

Lisa was unhappy with the product she received, so Barry called her, apologized for the misunderstanding, listened to her needs and offered several solutions to resolve the problem. He remained professional and ended his project with a happy customer.

Conflict is inevitable. Finding ways to effectively communicate needs and meeting expectations in the relationship is vital. Not every situation results in a happy ending but if you make the effort to resolve conflict the right way, you’re sure to have better client relationships in the future.

Lucy is a former Creative Circle candidate in Atlanta. She is a freelance writer and visual storyteller. When she’s not writing, she’s most likely exploring new restaurants around town, traveling, taking pictures or reading blogs dedicated to SELF – awareness, development/discovery and expression. If you are interested in working with someone like Lucy, contact your nearest Creative Circle office.

Most people work with inches when designing their pages. Makes sense, right? We are used to working with inches when we start designing because that’s the physical measurement unit of the format, and where we typically start: the size of the flyer, brochure, box, etc.

But when we stay in inches, the type is not in harmony with the page. To rectify, we need to use the correct unit of measurement.

Our type is measured in points. For example, 9 – 12 point size for body copy is typical. So how do we build visual uniformity from the page to the type? Easy. Picas.

I think I just heard you groan out loud. Yeah, yeah, I hear you, designers don’t like math. Well guess what, this isn’t rocket science, it’s simple division. The units are so small using picas are easier than using inches because there’s little need for fractions and decimals.

our-notebook-picas

A pica is a unit of space that connects points to inches. There are 6 picas to an inch. See? Sooooo simple. It is a term from the 1580s, probably from pica, a name of a book of rules in the Church of England for determining holy days. I know, a little random.

A point is the unit we use to measure overall type size, and there are 12 of them in a pica. So, if there are 12 points in a pica and 6 picas to an inch, there is 72 points to an inch. That means, depending on the typeface, a header that’s 72-point type size, could be possibly an inch high. Easy, right?

our-notebook-picas-points

Next time you open up a fresh Adobe InDesign document, don’t immediately switch your measurement system to inches (um yes, points and picas are the default!).

Instead, try typing in your format size in an inch measurement (for example: 8 in), and InDesign will convert it automatically for you. Thanks, Adobe. Picas and points are the measurement system of the environment you’re working in for print. It’s not inches. It’s not pixels. It’s points and picas.

I use points and picas to create a visual relationship from the page to the type. It’s that intimate relationship that creates great looking copy on the page. Columns, alleys, gutters, margins; they all look better if set in a relative measure to the type size.

Develop a fondness with points and picas. Love them and they’ll love you back.

Do you use picas or inches? Tweet us at @TypeEd and let us know your preference.

Michael Stinson is a co-founder and instructor at TypeEd, where he helps designers implement better typography, efficiently. Get more typography in your inbox when you sign up for more updates about TypeEd.

Starbucks, Soho Works and WeWork coworking spaces are all contributors to and supporters of the boom in working remotely. The luxury of staying on the payroll whether you’re a freelancer, or have a flexible full-time job, while still being able to submit your fifth and final draft in your PJ’s sounds good to anyone, right?

My name is Connor and I am a college student and remote intern for Creative Circle. When given the opportunity to continue helping out on marketing projects while studying abroad in London, I immediately jumped on the opportunity. Getting paid to do work you love in a new city is a broke college kids’ dream, right? Yes… well, here’s what I’ve experienced:

Procrastination. It’s similar to when your English professor would assign a last-minute reflection essay your freshman year of college. You knew you had the whole weekend to complete it, but you still manage to hold off until post Sunday supper and into your Monday morning lecture to wrap it up. Bottom line: prepare for procrastination. I’m still in the phase of acclimating to remote work life and I am far from finding the cure to procrastination (just ask my supervisor), but I will say that having and keeping a detailed planner hugely helps.

Finding a workplace. Everyone loves the “hipster” neighborhood cafés and posting a Snapchat of your MacBook next to your latte – that has a design more intricate than that company logo you were supposed to be working on. When mapping out which café to set up camp at make sure of a few things:

  • First, there must be Wi-Fi, good Wi-Fi. How is one expected to complete any project without Internet access (or internet access that feels slower than Monday morning)? Bottom line: find good Wi-Fi. Although Irving Farm has some of the best coffee in New York City, they don’t have Wi-Fi – yes, Starbucks is always a conventional option, but safe bet.
  • Second, make sure the environment is right. Working in a café with an obscenely loud espresso machine makes focusing impossible. Furthermore, make sure the café has windows… an inspiring environment is key.
  • Lastly, although uncommon, make sure your café doesn’t have a time limit. There’s nothing worse than really being in the zone when working on a project and having the barista ask you to leave because “you ordered one cup of coffee four hours ago.”

Communication. Although you will come to find that you’re wrapping up a project at 11:25 p.m. on a Tuesday night (see Procrastination) try your best to keep your supervisor up to date on how things are going. When working remotely, keeping in touch with your employer is essential. As a remote employee, you’re out of sight, but you should never be out of mind! Try to get into the habit of sending a brief email to your supervisor each time you work remotely. Not sure what to include in the email? Keep it simple. Include the projects you are working on or just let your supervisor know how things are going in general. Working remotely is a huge privilege so the least you could do is keep your employer in the know!

I am far from mastering the art of working remotely, but I still hope that my experience will provide some insight to those struggling or just getting started in working remotely. Buy a planner, find a workplace (with good Wi-Fi), keep in contact and always live creative!

Connor is a Creative Circle intern and college senior. Based in New York, Connor is working toward a public relations and advertising major with a minor in real estate and a dream of starting his own travel company. Outside of the classroom, he can be found trying out new restaurants or checking out a current art exhibit.

Interviewing is tricky business. Interviewing creative candidates, such as designers and copywriters, now that’s an art form. It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that judging a creative candidate by their portfolio alone is sufficient. Well, it isn’t.

Below we’ve outlined a handful of reasons why it is necessary to go beyond the book when interviewing creative candidates, as well as a few example interview questions that can help you dig deeper to ensure you are finding the perfect match.

Why go beyond the book?

  1. Without asking additional questions about a candidate’s portfolio, it can be impossible to tell what is truly their work vs. collaboration with a larger team. Many creative teams work cohesively, so the final product is often a combination of efforts.
  2. As important as quality work is, gaining insight into the candidate’s creative process is just as important.
  3. The candidate’s creative process can also give you insight into future opportunities for the individual. Do they present well? Imagine the candidate as a future art/creative director pitching clients… Now was that frightening or promising?
  4. When you ask pointed questions about a candidate’s portfolio, you will also be able to gather valuable insight into their personality and how they may react in your environment. Do they seem ego driven or more open to feedback?
  5. Because “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”, meaning you are interviewing not just a designer, copywriter or marketer, but a human being! Not digging in and asking additional questions means you are missing out on some of the variables that make the greats, well, GREAT.

How can I do this?

Below are a few example interview questions that will allow you to dive deeper into a candidate’s potential:

What portion of this work did you complete and what was collaboration?

  • Pay attention to how they answer this, as it will give you insight into how they talk about their team as well as their level of pride/ego in their work. Perhaps challenge them – if merited – with a compliment on the creative piece of work; do they eagerly accept all accolades as their own, or give credit where credit is due?

Walk me through your creative process here, A to Z.

  • This is used to both see how self-aware (and detailed) they are, as well as how well they can describe processes.

What challenges did you encounter while working on this project/campaign?

  • How do they talk about their team? Or the creative process within the organization? Do they speak directly to people, product or process challenges?

What technologies/programs did you use here and how did you use them?

  • This is a seemingly basic question, but listening to how well they speak to the tools of their craft, as well as how much detail they go into, can be telling.

What project/campaign would you consider your greatest career accomplishment?

  • This let’s you know a bit about their focus i.e. business, brand, conceptual, team focused, etc.

What do you like about OUR branding/content/marketing, and what would you change?

  • This question puts the candidate on the spot a bit, which is why we love it! Listen to how they share their ideas, how they approach the brand and on a basic level how much research they have done!

How do you stay up to date on industry changes?

  • This is again to see how passionate and serious they are about the industry, as well as how motivated they are to grow and evolve.

Now this is just a short list of questions to get you thinking outside of the book. What other questions do you ask when interviewing creative candidates?

Nick is a former Creative Circle Account Executive. His background is in recruiting, sales, PR and marketing.