In his book The Creative Class, Richard Florida provides a synopsis for what creatives value. Creatives generally understand they are driven by elements other than financial, although money is certainly important. Here is what Florida describes as the top ten list of values for creatives:
1. Challenge and responsibility-being able to contribute and have impact; knowing that one’s work makes a difference.
2. Flexibility-a flexible schedule and a flexible work environment; the ability to shape one’s work to some degree.
3. A stable work environment and a relatively secure job-notlifetime security with mind-numbing sameness, but not a daily diet of chaos and uncertainty either.
4. Compensation-especially base pay and core benefits: money you can count on.
5. Professional development-the chance to learn and grow, to expand one’s horizon for the future.
6.Peer recognition-the chance to win the esteem and recognition of others in the know.
7. Stimulating colleagues and managers-creative people like to be around other creative people, and they prefer leaders who neither micromanage nor ignore them.
8. Exciting job content-the chance to work on projects and technologies that break new ground or pose interesting intellectual problems.
9. Organizational culture-an elusive term that can include some factors already mentioned, plus more; perhaps best put for now as simply a culture in which the person feels at home, valued and supported.
10. Location and community-a big factor
Seeing the people in the various Creative Farms affirms what Florida has to say. With the cultural shift going more toward a creative class, and with the current economic conditions and trends adding fuel to the fire, the small, independent creatives in the Creative Farm and everywhere else are forming the nucleus of a new way of doing business. This goes beyond doing business, and permeates a shift toward people leading more fulfilling and meaningful lives by acknowledging their values. This is shown not only in their hobbies and personal lives, but how they choose to work as well.