{"id":61735,"date":"2025-10-10T15:01:24","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T15:01:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/?p=61735"},"modified":"2025-11-19T12:55:21","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T12:55:21","slug":"how-zealous-started","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/insights\/how-zealous-started\/","title":{"rendered":"How Zealous Started"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<iframe data-testid=\"embed-iframe\" style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"about:blank\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/4VJs2Pi14T6sGB7UkUVcHo?utm_source=generator&#038;theme=0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right has-medium-font-size\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\">Soundbites to those late nights building Zealous<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">In late 2010, I was sitting in a cupcake shop in Cairo asking myself \u201cWhat am I good at?\u201d and \u201cWhat do I love\u201d \u2013 two questions masking a bigger intent \u201cWhat next?\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">I had just sold my stake in the first company I&#8217;d founded back to my cofounder. This incredible four-year adventure had uprooted me from London to Cairo, where we&#8217;d built the business from shisha bars across the city to a little windowless room, finally into a vibrant agency serving some of the world&#8217;s biggest brands (Google, Porsche\u2026).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">My cofounder and I lived and breathed a single mission &#8211; we shared pretty much everything (even slept in the same room for a whole year). But over time, as we progressed, we started to want to build different futures. He wanted to build the next Accenture; I wanted fewer, more impactful projects. Instead of settling on a middle ground, I felt it was time to move on to a project I could invest the rest of my life in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">What I was good at was easier to answer &#8211; people had paid me to code and simplify processes, a skill I\u2019d honed at the London Stock Exchange and throughout my professional life. What I loved was more nuanced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">The answer came into focus with time to think. Creating has always been core to my happiness, yet I had never considered a creative career \u2013 society had brainwashed me into thinking that \u2018wasn\u2019t a proper job.\u2019 Still, I filled my spare time with a wide variety of creative projects (if you ever need to bridge Shakespearean acting with crafting levels for Quake 3 \u2013 I\u2019m the answer).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-base-2-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color wp-elements-515c3f106323f79451d2306e7d591c2e has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-34d7f7af wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:8px;background:linear-gradient(143deg,rgba(127,219,202,0.61) 21%,rgba(255,107,107,0.45) 74%);margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-contrast-color has-base-2-background-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color wp-elements-a010d6200a7e32bad37e80b21d4e1c95 has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-32abe225 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"border-radius:8px;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center cta_text content_mid_cta has-link-color has-large-font-size wp-elements-b167b480f0a97ca07872b7020eb348f6\">Want more articles like this?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Give this one a like<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-a763ec69 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wpulike wpulike-animated-heart  wpulike-is-pro\" ><div class=\"wp_ulike_general_class wp_ulike_is_restricted\"><button type=\"button\"\n\t\t\t\t\taria-label=\"Like Button\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-id=\"61735\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-nonce=\"4be5ed4c5e\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-type=\"post\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-template=\"wpulike-animated-heart\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-display-likers=\"\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-likers-style=\"popover\"\n\t\t\t\t\tdata-ulike-append=\"&lt;svg class=&quot;wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-pop one&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 32 29.6&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=&quot;M23.6,0c-3.4,0-6.3,2.7-7.6,5.6C14.7,2.7,11.8,0,8.4,0C3.8,0,0,3.8,0,8.4c0,9.4,9.5,11.9,16,21.2c6.1-9.3,16-12.1,16-21.2C32,3.8,28.2,0,23.6,0z&quot;\/&gt;&lt;\/svg&gt;&lt;svg class=&quot;wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-pop two&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 32 29.6&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=&quot;M23.6,0c-3.4,0-6.3,2.7-7.6,5.6C14.7,2.7,11.8,0,8.4,0C3.8,0,0,3.8,0,8.4c0,9.4,9.5,11.9,16,21.2c6.1-9.3,16-12.1,16-21.2C32,3.8,28.2,0,23.6,0z&quot;\/&gt;&lt;\/svg&gt;&lt;svg class=&quot;wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-pop three&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 32 29.6&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=&quot;M23.6,0c-3.4,0-6.3,2.7-7.6,5.6C14.7,2.7,11.8,0,8.4,0C3.8,0,0,3.8,0,8.4c0,9.4,9.5,11.9,16,21.2c6.1-9.3,16-12.1,16-21.2C32,3.8,28.2,0,23.6,0z&quot;\/&gt;&lt;\/svg&gt;&lt;svg class=&quot;wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-pop four&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 32 29.6&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=&quot;M23.6,0c-3.4,0-6.3,2.7-7.6,5.6C14.7,2.7,11.8,0,8.4,0C3.8,0,0,3.8,0,8.4c0,9.4,9.5,11.9,16,21.2c6.1-9.3,16-12.1,16-21.2C32,3.8,28.2,0,23.6,0z&quot;\/&gt;&lt;\/svg&gt;&lt;svg class=&quot;wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-pop five&quot; 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viewBox=&quot;0 0 32 29.6&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=&quot;M23.6,0c-3.4,0-6.3,2.7-7.6,5.6C14.7,2.7,11.8,0,8.4,0C3.8,0,0,3.8,0,8.4c0,9.4,9.5,11.9,16,21.2c6.1-9.3,16-12.1,16-21.2C32,3.8,28.2,0,23.6,0z&quot;\/&gt;&lt;\/svg&gt;\"\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"wp_ulike_btn wp_ulike_put_image wp_post_btn_61735\"><svg class=\"wpulike-svg-heart wpulike-svg-heart-icon\" viewBox=\"0 -28 512.00002 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path\n\t\t\t\t\t\td=\"m471.382812 44.578125c-26.503906-28.746094-62.871093-44.578125-102.410156-44.578125-29.554687 0-56.621094 9.34375-80.449218 27.769531-12.023438 9.300781-22.917969 20.679688-32.523438 33.960938-9.601562-13.277344-20.5-24.660157-32.527344-33.960938-23.824218-18.425781-50.890625-27.769531-80.445312-27.769531-39.539063 0-75.910156 15.832031-102.414063 44.578125-26.1875 28.410156-40.613281 67.222656-40.613281 109.292969 0 43.300781 16.136719 82.9375 50.78125 124.742187 30.992188 37.394531 75.535156 75.355469 127.117188 119.3125 17.613281 15.011719 37.578124 32.027344 58.308593 50.152344 5.476563 4.796875 12.503907 7.4375 19.792969 7.4375 7.285156 0 14.316406-2.640625 19.785156-7.429687 20.730469-18.128907 40.707032-35.152344 58.328125-50.171876 51.574219-43.949218 96.117188-81.90625 127.109375-119.304687 34.644532-41.800781 50.777344-81.4375 50.777344-124.742187 0-42.066407-14.425781-80.878907-40.617188-109.289063zm0 0\" \/><\/svg><\/button><span class=\"count-box wp_ulike_counter_up\" data-ulike-counter-value=\"+3\"><\/span>\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n\t\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">Although I didn&#8217;t have the courage to become a creative myself, I could do something else: use what I was good at to support those who did. If I couldn&#8217;t be a creator, maybe I could build something that helped them succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">As I moved back to London in 2011, I threw myself into the creative scene. I started featuring 4 creators a day across social media (a brand new shiny tool at the time) and on my website. Zealous had just been born. This gave me a front row seat to the creative process \u2013 getting invited to feedback sessions for plays in the process of being written, doing behind the scenes photography for film, helping artists take pictures of their work and even being an extra in a horror film (for anyone wondering: I&#8217;m not a good actor).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">I identified a problem. The industry was fragmented and heavily siloed. Whether you were in art, film, or photography, you depended on other crafts to succeed. Artists needed models, models might be actors, film and performance both depended heavily on finding different talent to make projects succeed. But there wasn\u2019t really a place to find collaborators across the industry. The industry ran on word of mouth and little black books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">The seed was planted. I spent the next year building Zealous into a website where creative professionals could find collaborators. It gave users features to upload their portfolios, tag collaborators in their work, and seek out the best talent for future projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1006\" height=\"894\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61795 lazyload\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1006px) 100vw, 1006px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Screenshot_13-10-2025_101843_.jpeg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Screenshot_13-10-2025_101843_.jpeg 1006w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Screenshot_13-10-2025_101843_-768x682.jpeg 768w\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">My initial designs for user profiles [ignore the test image, I&#8217;ve never been much of a smoker] (2012)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">It was a slow failure (even if I got an award for it!). A thousand people joined, created portfolios, and disappeared. I had built something nobody wanted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">This forced me to rethink everything. I asked the users who had registered what they needed. The answer was clear (and obvious now!): money, space, and opportunities to build their careers. I&#8217;d been thinking too far up Maslow&#8217;s hierarchy of needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">The question now was &#8216;how could I create more opportunities for the creative sector?&#8217; (a question that still drives us today). I didn&#8217;t have the resources to create enough opportunities to make a meaningful impact. I realised I had to shift from trying to directly help creators, to helping the organisations providing opportunities for them. Our clients were no longer the people we aimed to help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">There was a distinct pattern in how opportunities were run. Programs would open to submissions, then filter entries to select the right candidates. This held true for all programs: residencies, exhibitions, grants, awards\u2026 It was a heavily administrative process for organisations, judges and candidates. If I could save everyone time, I could unlock our impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">What better way to learn the pains of others than to run one ourselves! (I wasn&#8217;t going to fix a problem no one was facing again!). In December 2013, we filled a building on the Southbank with 100 creators from across film, music, photography, and art &#8211; the culmination of an open call judged across multiple rounds by our community. It was raw, rewarding, and exhausting. It gave us a very clear understanding of the problems at hand whilst celebrating some amazing creators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-carousel-v2 cb-carousel-block cb-single-slide\" data-cb-slides-per-view=\"1\" data-cb-slides-per-group=\"1\" data-cb-space-between=\"15\" data-cb-speed=\"300\" data-cb-navigation=\"true\" data-cb-loop=\"true\" data-cb-autoplay=\"true\" data-cb-autoplay-speed=\"3000\" data-cb-breakpoints=\"{&quot;768&quot;:{&quot;slidesPerView&quot;:1,&quot;slidesPerGroup&quot;:1}}\"><div class=\"swiper\"><div class=\"cb-wrapper swiper-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61746 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/DSC_9032.jpg\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"797\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33316 lazyload\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2021\/05\/ZealousX_Christine-16-of-193.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2021\/05\/ZealousX_Christine-16-of-193.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2021\/05\/ZealousX_Christine-16-of-193-768x510.jpg 768w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2021\/05\/ZealousX_Christine-16-of-193-557x370.jpg 557w\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1703\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61778 lazyload\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-17-scaled.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-17-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-17-768x511.jpg 768w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-17-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-17-2048x1363.jpg 2048w\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61750 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/DSC_9106.jpg\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1703\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61771 lazyload\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X_2-10-scaled.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X_2-10-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X_2-10-768x511.jpg 768w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X_2-10-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X_2-10-2048x1363.jpg 2048w\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1703\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61762 lazyload\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-3-scaled.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-3-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-3-768x511.jpg 768w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-3-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/Zealous-X-3-2048x1363.jpg 2048w\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61748 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/10\/DSC_8852.jpg\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cb-slide-v2 cb-slide swiper-slide\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1703\" 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class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">Our prototype allowed our tiny team to manage hundreds of submissions and attract exciting judges to support the initiative by cutting down the time they needed to process entries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">That&#8217;s what Zealous became: a platform where anyone could run their own opportunity for the creative sector. A submissions management system built to make running programs as efficient and affordable as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">Since 2013, we&#8217;ve deployed over 300 versions based on feedback from our community. We&#8217;ve helped hundreds of organisations run programs that have supported hundreds of thousands of creators (from Saatchi, the British Library, Cass Arts to individuals creating their own initiatives). We&#8217;ve even expanded beyond the creative sector, bringing in resources we reinvest back into supporting the arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">We know that if we save you a minute submitting, you can reinvest it in your work. We know that simpler judging lets you focus on talent, not process. And we&#8217;re certain that if we can streamline your program, you can reinvest those savings into greater impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">Over the past 14 years, many people have contributed to our success (that includes you, our community who have reached out to us!) &#8211; each placing their own brick into the monument we are crafting. The vision has become far more than mine alone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.406), 1.2rem);\">So much has been achieved, but we&#8217;re not done yet. I can&#8217;t wait for the next 14 years &#8211; to do our part to deepen your impact and help craft a more creative world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:0\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Want us to write more content like this? 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X\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group au_row is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-527f440d wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-right:0;padding-bottom:0;padding-left:0\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized has-custom-border au_img\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-44104 lazyload\" style=\"border-radius:40px;object-fit:cover;width:80px;height:80px\" data-src=\"http:\/\/mused.co\/wpadmin2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2023\/11\/guy-armitage-zealous-1.webp\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group au_txt_block wp-container-content-9dbf05af has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-c4ee154b wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10)\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/team\/guyarmitage\/\" title=\"\">Guy Armitage<\/a> is the founder of <a href=\"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/?utm_source=guy_armitage&amp;utm_medium=blog_footer&amp;utm_campaign=founder_insight&amp;utm_id=founder_insight\" title=\"\">Zealous <\/a>and author of &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/everyoneiscreative.org\/?utm_source=guy_armitage&amp;utm_medium=blog_footer&amp;utm_campaign=founder_insight&amp;utm_id=founder_insight\" title=\"\">Everyone is Creative<\/a>&#8220;. He is on a mission to amplify the world&#8217;s creative potential.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I built a platform nobody wanted. Then I listened, pivoted, and created Zealous &#8211; now helping hundreds of orgs support 100,000+ creators.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":61828,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"wp-custom-template-post-org-insight","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[499],"tags":[891],"class_list":["post-61735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insights","tag-founder"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61735"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61735\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}