Chris Murphy is the co-founder of Helio & Company, a digital creative agency. I had the chance to speak with Chris about art and business. More specifically, he shared his thoughts on the complementary nature of artistic passion and business education.

Helio works with brands like Vans, Leica, Red Bull, and GE to craft compelling stories. A film and photography major in college, Chris has played a principal role in creating a highly regarded and growing firm in little more than six years.

Chris touched upon several themes during the course of our conversation:

* Passion and commitment are foundational. At an early age, Chris knew that he was committed to making a living making films. Then it became a matter of creating the conditions under which that was possible.

* Adopt a growth mindset. Chris isn't an architect, but he designed his own home. He learned how, because he knew he could.

* You are going to make a lot of mistakes. Mistakes are an unavoidable byproduct of creating something new. Learn from them.

* Artists are problem solvers. Creative people are, by their nature, problem solvers. That's a source of business advantage and joy.

* Learn about business. Chris didn't learn how to "monetize his art" in film school. Learning how to do so is essential to supporting yourself and creating value through your art.

Passion combined with a growth mindset are necessary, but insufficient, conditions for success. Without heartfelt passion for your art and a commitment to learning what it takes to succeed, you're unlikely to persist long enough to succeed in an increasingly global marketplace. What's also necessary is the business acumen to understand how to find and solve valued problems within the scope of your passion. For Helio & Company, those valued problems lie in helping established brands dig deep to uncover and convey meaningful stories about the people who define them.