High Five #19 - The bright side ☀️
[3 min] Tips on overcoming creative block, freelancing, and more.
Hey, everyone!
It's week 38 of 2023, and this is my high five:
It's now been almost a year and a half since I started freelancing again. I had my ups and downs. But I've been all set when it comes to finding new projects (which is one of the most discussed topics among freelancers). I didn't have to reach out for new work (yet), and it feels like the years I've "invested" before into my brand are paying off. Most new opportunities come in organically or through referrals, and it is a great reminder I wanted to share today: Share your work (in progress). You never know who is watching.
On that note, I'm close to finally publishing some more recent work, too (mentioned in the High-Five #16). The tricky part is that a lot of stuff I've done in the past is still under NDA. I got the social media previews ready, and the only part left is to make sure it is okay to put it out there. I'll start with smaller pieces before moving on to the bigger ones.
I've started a new daily habit of writing down positive things (or small accomplishments) that happened to me throughout the day. I call it daily "Check-in". I noticed I often don't celebrate small wins or progress and instead think of myself negatively, which influences my mindset. I always have this feeling of not doing enough, missing something, or underdelivering what I promised myself to do. This daily check-in will help me to stop for a minute and appreciate the effort I put in before I move on to the next day. Over time, this habit could help with confidence and self-esteem.
Creative block or not knowing where to start. The evergreen topic (and an issue) we all face in our creative process. You probably saw a ton of opinions on it, but I've recently found a great video that made me think. It's from a Zane Lowe interview with John Mayer, who says. "You just keep going 'til you get something," Mayer says/sings. "You gotta keep forcing it, forcing it, forcing it…it doesn't matter [what comes out…]". Following this advice, I tried to apply this to my process. Every time I'm stuck, I start to create anything. Even when it looks like crap. I keep forcing it until, eventually, something better emerges, and the rest of the path unfolds.
If you follow my Substack (or IG) for a while, you already know I started playing drums some time ago. At this point, I'm really into it and was thinking about why I enjoy it so much. The thing is that it reminds me of the early days of my design career. I was discovering and learning new things almost daily, which filled my motivation and drive to improve. It's the same with drums right now.
Have a great week, and see you again soon!
A.
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[This post was written by a human.]
Links & inspiration
Stuff I'm currently digging:
🎦 Video - Procreate Dreams - I'm not sure if this is a product release video or an epic cinematic trailer. Whoever edited this needs a raise.
🧩 Plugin - Logo Layout (Figma) - Optically scale and distribute logos in a grid. I can't even remember how many times I've done this manually.
🔤 Fonts - Colophon Foundry - I found this foundry through their Aperçu font recently. They've got quite a font collection! #RIPyourwallet
💻 Website - AC3 - Fresh and clean studio website. Interesting take on the "Works" page, typography, and smooth scrolling.
🗂️ Resources - Overrrides (Framer) - A new customizable component library for Framer.