The pressure to be "well-rounded" often overshadows the value of honing one's natural talents, pushing many towards an incessant pursuit of perfection across disciplines like copywriting, web design, and social media marketing. The journey to mastering brand creative strategy and visual storytelling, for instance, involves not just understanding the tools but truly grasping aesthetics and brand narratives. While it's essential to recognize and value innate abilities, there's a societal push to seek out diverse skills, which can lead to overlooking opportunities for genuine growth in areas where individuals naturally excel.

What I’m listening to, learning, loving, and hating in April 2023.

If you’ve played any kind of sport, learned an instrument, or any skill, really - you already know practice is essential to the process. If you miss a week at the gym, you absolutely feel it. As a freelancer, or business owner, it not only helps to hone your skills and techniques, but it also helps to build a strong portfolio and network of clients.

I’ve been working a lot. Don’t mistake this admission for a #humblebrag - it’s actually self-criticism.

In the process of becoming more efficient, yet also more in tune with myself as a creative, I realized in being freelance, I’m still holding onto a scarcity mindset and it’s making my work way harder than it has to be. James Clear suggests adopting a growth mindset instead, that it can lead to greater success and well-being in the long term, as it allows individuals to embrace challenges and setbacks as opportunities for learning and growth rather than as failures.

So, at the top of my resolutions for the new year is making changes to my work/life mindset, and I’m offering a few ways I’ll be using to make the change.

Our social media is filled with people documenting their 5-9s (that’s AM, folks) with workouts, healthy breakfasts, Amazon gadgets galore - but to what end? Is it a good start to good working habits for that work/life balance or a daily checklist that’s impossible to even near completion? I’m here for the ideas, I’m here to do the work, and I’m here to try what all those “highly successful people” are trying. I’m exploring different ways to dig into habits that work for me. This could all be a big marketing scheme by the stationery and planner industry, but if you’ve been habit-curious and want to see what’s out there, join me.

The FREE Creative Resources Guide for 2022 is available for download. Discover apps, communities, podcasts, and tools that will help you take your creativity to a new, competitive level.

Saying you’re booked or blocking time off your calendar for yourself, can feel like the hardest thing to do as a freelancer. It’s easy to fall into the panicked thinking that every day you’re not working is money left on the table. Or that opportunities, where you don’t make yourself available, will never come around again.

When you’re a professional or have professional ambitions, you need to be able to describe who you are and what you do quickly and easily. It sounds easy, but it can be a challenge. Use these tips as a framework to get you where you need to be.

Don’t get bogged down in thinking you’re late to the website and blogging game. You can optimize your website, tailor your social media and build a community on your own. These tips and resources will give you the advantage you need.