Creating something beautiful is not just producing eye-catching design work and putting it out there for everyone to see — it’s much more than that. For Lydia Neo, Director and Co-Founder of the creative design company Helios Media Design Pte. Ltd., this couldn’t ring any more true.

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Deeply passionate about design and business, she believes that the best approach to effective communication is a combination of creative and strategic thinking that are aligned synergistically with targeted business goals.

Get to know more about Lydia, as she takes over today’s spotlight and we delve into her work, her struggles, and her inspirations.

1. What does Helios Media Design do?

Helios Media Design or HMD is a full-service Creative and Business IT Company that provides fully integrated services at all phases of a project’s life cycle and at any point in between. From development and marketing to execution and analytics, HMD has service capabilities that cater to all industries with special attention to staying relevant and competitive in the rapidly progressing age of information.

2. What made you decide to start the company?

My greatest motivation to start this creative design business is knowing that I have the best co-founders that share a common vision with the tenacity for entrepreneurship which demands sacrifice, focus and trust for each other.

I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the creative field since I was thirteen years old. During my teenage, I took up additional courses to help myself understand my creative orientation and when I reached adulthood it seems the most logical and natural choice for me.

3. How does design mesh with business?

We view ourselves as a creative design agency that is able to deliver a cohesive solution to meet the objectives of the assignment. This requires knowledge and expertise in more than just graphic design and basic website development.

We spend many hours of research on refining our industry knowledge and methods to be in tuned with our clients’ business strategy and competitive environment. We also constantly innovate and develop new methods, products and services as the nature of business becomes increasingly intellectual and globalized.

4. Where do you draw your inspiration?

Personally, I believe that inspiration is a matter of gaining a new perspective, making new connections, solving challenges and even catching up with old friends provides me with a wealth of ideas and rejuvenates me every day.

5. What are the biggest challenges you have faced to date?

We started as a Sole Proprietorship in 2005 and we became a Private Limited company in 2006, so we are officially ten years old this year. Woohoo!

It wasn’t an easy journey and it still is a steep learning curve for us all even at our tenth year. Our biggest challenges are pretty common to most SMEs, which are the acquisition of resources and managing scalability. Right now, we are viewing this challenge as another hill to climb, which we have learnt to do so with greater efficiency — thanks to the past years of experience and support.

We have failed as many times as we have succeeded when trying something new, but each failure is a stepping stone and we have learnt to climb faster and further with each new year.

6. What is the one advice you would like to impart to budding entrepreneurs in the same field as you?

Be resolute in knowing that you will need to learn ceaselessly and to bend accordingly with the seasons of change. That way it will be very hard to break your spirit!

Visit the Helios Media Design page to find out more about Lydia’s work.

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