2024 CAFECITO TAKEAWAYS

SEO as FOE: FOCUSING ON A MULTI-LAYERED NICHE

• WTF is "a creative?": Ditch the term "creative" - it's lost all meaning but don't box yourself in. I'm leaning towards visual innovators, practitioners & makers because they are more specific to skills while embracing interdisciplinary work. Let your practice define your title, not the other way around.

• There is a substantial shift in how we approach identity-based keywords: This marks the most significant shift from Cafecito's first takeaways. While we began by proudly claiming our identities, we've witnessed how DEI initiatives sometimes missed their mark - becoming performative rather than transformative. As these words get co-opted and weaponized (likely continuing into 2025), think strategically about how you want to tell your story.
  This isn't about silencing yourself or hiding who you are - it's about having agency in how you present yourself and your work, choosing when and how to tell your story on your own terms.

• Branch out of the oversaturated search in social media: Algorithms have made it harder to search and discover people. Find ways to market yourself beyond the traditional apps and be creative in this internet real estate. Build presence through podcasts, newsletters, soundbites, blogs, create more SEO findings for your work, and explore alternative social media opportunities (bring back Tumblr blogs, IMHO).

My take: Breathe, journal, make identity charts, take yourself on a date, reconnect, and reset. These will help you in figuring out how to redefine yourself and how you show up during these times.

As algorithms become more aggressive with Al, the bottleneck for certain apps will make it more challenging so be niche in how you build your content on social media platforms and redirect them to other sites outside of social.

THIRD SPACES OFFLINE PLACES

• Create spaces that serve multiple uses: Allow folks to exist. Create opportunities that can build prompts or agendas into programming/events for folks to find their ways to interact.

• Intimate programming over large groups: Focus on smaller, intentional gatherings-town halls, collective spaces, and in-person connections that transcend typical networking moments. Create places where people can be present and find genuine connections. Many visual practitioners feel that louder voices in forums/community pages make it hard to find a place, thus making people feel like they are viewing a community versus being a part of one.

• In-person debates and sit around to embrace the energy: Foster moderated conversations to allow folks to speak effectively with one another and hear alternative perspectives. Build workshops that help discover intimate connections and conversations that offer alternative perspectives on vulnerability.

My take: Visual collectives, wheat pasting, taking things offline, signal, in-person critiques, structured debates, listening. Next year, we must focus on building in-person spaces for energy conservation, collective strength, and a place of repose.

COLLABORATION OVER QUALITY

• Bigger shift in iterative vs quality: Quality hasn't lost its importance, but how we achieve it is evolving. As visual or image makers or innovators, we commit 200% to show our strenuous work efforts, but collaboration will be critical.

• Work on your negotiation skills, and take an emotional intelligence class. If you feel that talent will get you far in the next year, what comes is a rude awakening that those who are getting ahead are better at business communication than you think. The goal isn't to reduce quality, but to understand how to fight for it in an increasingly iterative space.

• The market's apparent loss of jobs: Photographers are finding it harder to compete with work; visual makers & innovators are seeing an evolution in their work and how to approach it. The most challenging conversation is how it impacts everyone- no one is safe. More jobs in visual design mean sharpening technical skills and considering secondary mediums.

• Multidisciplinary with a disciplined focus: In 2024, multi-hyphenates were rising to being more valued in the visual creative market. That skillset is still essential, however, with budgets tightening; companies will take fewer risks in 2025.

• If you choose to be multi-hyphenate, be intentional in your chosen projects and provide examples that verify your skillsets.

My take: Less creative directors, more visual designers/producers, programmers, creative technologists. Take business communication/negotiation classes course because networking is no.1. Everything next moves with intention. Ask more questions about others, build rapport, and build an A-team with the people you trust for your business.

Most important: Ask a lot of questions before giving people numbers to ensure you are not going in anything blind-remember we can always pause.

SELF-PRESERVING FOR SURVIVAL

• Community engagement at a crossroads: 2024 felt like some were actively engaging with community, finding sources of connection, and now saying, what's next? Participants talked about the visual creative industry by providing visibility without tangible solutions or being overtly aware but unsure how to move forward-It is a never-ending battle.

• Proclaiming rather than reclaiming: There was a beautiful transition in Cafecito this year - after 4 years of speaking with folks, there was a shift in understanding that we've spent the last few years reclaiming a space for ourselves. Now, we focus more on the proclamation of the now, what we want for the future. 2024 felt more like taking stock, and 2025 will be how we proclaim this and push through the noise.

• Build trust within community: Actively being present and understanding your worth but also ensuring that you build the people around you to build stronger ecosystems. Trust and open dialogue seems harsh, but it will push us forward.

• Silence as Strategic Power: This isn't about disconnecting but recognizing silence as an active tool rather than a passive withdrawal. Create space to hear yourself clearly before engaging with others. This will ultimately lead to more meaningful interactions that break through echo chambers.

My take: pauses, ear to the ground, Sunday cooking, movie nights, collective movement, introspection. Internal accountability protects your inner children.

THANK YOU

Thank you endlessly this year to our 2024 Cafecito participants for their openness. They signed up for guidance and safe spaces to talk about art, their work, and life, and the beauty of their ideas transcends into these takeaways.

I meant it when I said I felt that this past Cafecito was more for me as they saw me living through my life transitions.

This is what Cafecito is all about: making a safe space and seeing unexpected emotions come out—the ability to bring strangers together and form connections and alternative perspectives. Feedback is magical even when not intended.

You were all at the right place and time, and I hope you feel the same about Cafecito.