What do creatives value in themselves?

We’re asking established industry experts and upcoming talent from all over the world to define what they value in themselves – in the hope that it can be encouraging or provide the spark to look inward, into the practices of those who may read. This series will last throughout 2022.

After talking to 27 different creatives, we’ve reached the end of Creative Values for 2022! Our final three are exceptionally talented within their fields and we’re excited to share what they value in themselves. We’ve received a ton of support for this series, so thank you for reading! To the 27 creatives we’ve featured, thank you for participating and sharing your thoughts with everyone.

Our final line-up starts with the very talented, Ya’Qub Mir. Currently, Ya’Qub’s a designer at SUN Design in Greater Manchester, continually working with a diverse range of clientele as well as podcasting over at Tiny Hands. Yo Hosoyamada is our second creative – a brilliant illustrator who’s worked with the likes of WIRED UK, Harvard Business Review, ELLE Magazine and Tokyo University. Yo’s work always tell a story wherever you look, featuring ever-present cityscapes and landscape illustration for editorial. Finally, we have Sargam Gupta. Sargam is a NY-based art director, brand designer and illustrator. She’s previously been featured on our magazine waaaay back when and has worked with Apple, Uber and more within her 11+ years of experience as a creative.

Ya’Qub Saleem Mir – Manchester, England – Designer at SUN

Follow Ya’Qub: yaqubdesigns.com • @yaqubmir

“This is a really tough, but really important question to answer.

What I love about this series and the responses given from creatives is that it instigates a lot of positive self-reflection, not just for the individual directly answering the question, but for the reader who may feel inspired to do the same.

There was something that was said to me a lot, earlier on in my life has always stuck with me. It was something that was originally meant to be used for work but I always thought it was important to relate it to life also. It was:

“Learn to become interested in as many things as possible. It will make for better work as you’re more likely to create better work, when you enjoy the subject matter”.

So I guess something that I value in my self is a general sense of curiosity and intrigue.

When it comes to creativity and my job, we tend to work with a range of clients, from a variety of different sectors, and learning about what they do, how they do it, and most importantly why they do it, is all part of the job.

I believe It’s the same principle in life. We get the chance to meet people from all different walks of life and I’ve always valued hearing and learning from variety of perspectives, on a variety of topics.

I think it’s important to hear and learn, as much as possible as it makes both work and life in a lot more fascinating.”

Yo Hosoyamada – London, England – Illustrator

Follow Yo: yo-hoso.com • @heyitsyoyo_

“My ability to accept that mistakes are part of the process. You NEED to create bad work to make good work!

Whether it be about making art, sharing my art, or navigating the complexities of a freelance career, mistakes are all part of the process. As a long-time perfectionist, this was a hard one to get over. But there was something freeing when I realised that creating bad work and making mistakes is not only allowed, but necessary. In a world where social media is everybody's highlight reel of achievements, it can be scary to make mistakes or to even try. But every piece of work that you make is one step forward in your career, so make as much as you can, and keep creating.

Getting it wrong isn't embarrassing - it's a sign of courage and determination that you are going for it”

Sargam Gupta – New York City, New York – Art Director, Brand Designer, Illustrator

Follow Sargam: sargamgupta.com • @stopthisgupta

“I value my ability to continue to find new ways to move forward, even when things seemingly hit a dead end. This value continues to surprise and delight me by revealing itself in the way I create my work or handle everyday situations.”

This is the end of Creative Values for 2022, thank you so much reading this far and thank you for the support on the series this year!

If you’d like to collaborate with Fuse in the future (or just want to say hey), our email is fusedirectory@gmail.com – get in touch!