Nodes of Design#88: Creative Entrepreneurship by Kristen Shenk

<p>Kristen is the Founder + Creative Director of <a href="https://mltinyc.com/" target="_blank">MLTI NYC</a>, a multi-disciplinary boutique creative agency based in New York City — specializing in Campaigns, Branding, Art Direction, Graphic + Motion Design, Photography, Brand Films, &amp; More for Fortune 500 Companies and Start-Ups.</p> <p>Shockingly, only 0.1% of creative agencies are founded by women. After designing and leading teams at Nike and PepsiCo for ten years, Kristen created <a href="https://mltinyc.com/" target="_blank">MLTI NYC</a> to tell compelling visual stories and powerfully bring brands to life to build brand love — all from a diverse, global, and female-led perspective.</p> <p>MLTI NYC is a team of visionary thinkers and relentless craftspeople with great taste and a modern aesthetic. We strive to consistently deliver aspirational, culturally relevant results and pack a bold (and sometimes playful!) punch. MLTI NYC clients include PepsiCo, FootLocker, Nike, and Amazon, as well as a series of funded Start-Ups. Aside from MLTI NYC, Kristen also recently launched a women's running apparel brand, <a href="//www.dwntwn.run" target="_blank">DWNTWN Run Co</a>., which merges function and style for modern female runners.&nbsp;</p> <p>In this episode, Kristen shared her journey into creative entrepreneurship and spoke about her challenges as a creative entrepreneur. We then discussed how she balances her work's creative and business parts and what techniques she employs to maintain her commitment to her artistic vision while establishing a prosperous business. Later she shared insights on how she stays on top of industry trends and advancements and what strategies she uses to ensure your work remains relevant and innovative.</p> <p>Takeaways - Journey of a creative entrepreneur, How to stay relevant and innovative, How to balance personal and business life being a creative entrepreneur</p> <p>Books recommended by Kristen</p> <p>A New Earth and The Power of Now — Eckhart Tolle</p> <p>The War of Art — S