#05 Being a (Good) Loser

Apr 21, 2023

I write this newsletter to structure my experiences and ideas around creativity. It’s mainly a personal exercise in writing, but I’m sure there is something for you as well.

My name is Juho Vesanen and I’m a co-founder of Veli Studio. I’m also editing the studio’s annual passion project Attraction Magazine – a printed and online exploration dedicated to the appreciation of visual curiosity.

#05 Being a (Good) Loser

Working in an industry where you have to pitch and compete against others to get a job can be hard sometimes. Especially as you’re sending, often quite intimate and fragile, creative ideas to battle. You also have to constantly assure people how good your idea is and why it’s the best.

By the end of this process you’re often very attached to your precious idea and it can feel like a personal insult towards you if you don’t win. This is a good and a bad sensation. Good, because if you feel this way it means that you really liked the idea and care about it. Bad, because it’s not the end of the world. It’s also easy to think that you’re the only one losing while everyone else is constantly creating the best work of their lives and being handed opportunitites from left and right.

One of my early (and current) idols within the industry is Salomon Ligthelm. When I was starting out, I saw him posting great work constantly and I thought he was invincible. Then Musicbed released a documentary (about 7 years ago), which followed a bunch of artists, Salomon being one of them, and I remember watching him struggle with being rejected and denied time after time. I was like, whoah ok. It’s universal.

I had the pleasure of meeting Salomon in 2021 when he was shooting a short film in Kiev, Ukraine. I interviewed him for Attraction Magazine and when we talked around this topic he confirmed that it’s the same kind of hustle for him as it is for me – with a slightly different scope of course. He also said, that in those rare times when you’re being approached with opportunitites that sound tempting, but which you know that you’re not ready to take on (yet), it’s important to be able to say no.

Opening spread of the article I wrote about Salomon.

So the sacrifice is to go and establish your voice first, to make sure that you’re ready. And look, you’re never ready. No one’s ever ready. But you can be ready enough. And then you’ll know when to take on those opportunities.

Ok circling back to losing. I’ve written some of my best treatments lately and all of those are still sitting in my drawer. And it’s ok. I’ve learned a lot from writing them and felt a great sense of inspiration.

Creating something that you are proud of is amazing, even if the public never sees it. Just remember that everything in life is cyclical.

You can’t win if you’ve never lost.

CURRENT INSPIRATION

Helsinki Curious

We just won (yes not a loser!) a gold award at the annual Vuoden Huiput competition yesterday (20.4.2023) with a precious project that we did for the city of Helsinki. Special thanks to everyone involved, especially Miltton and Mikko Hakkarainen who brought us along for the ride. A truly special project that took us to Berlin, London and Tokyo with great people. All three mini-docs can be found here: https://www.myhelsinki.fi/en/helsinki-curious