There were so many golden nuggets in your post Elin that I had to restrain myself from jumping up and down at the café I'm sitting at. Frolicking over every word 🤩🤩
Having a day job that frees you up for creative projects and in that way fund them, it is totally undervalued in my opinion.
Hahaha that's excellent praise, thank you 😄 Yes yes yes, the freedom to pursue your own projects however you want without financial pressure is 100% underrated. I love it!
It's so interesting to read about your shift away from building your creative business full-time. While a lot of people strive for this, I think few take a step back to consider if this is what they really want. It's a great reminder to constantly reflect on what you really want, and if you're actually moving towards that goal. Thank you.
Yes! It's difficult to re-evalute a dream, especially one that ties in with identity so much. But important! Running a business requires so much, it needs to be really right to be worth it. 🙂
This is so interesting thank you! I’m heavy in the business building stage, not yet seeing any progress and I’m beginning to wonder if I’m doing the right thing with my life. I crave freedom and stability all at once, and I do not want to go back to my old day jobs at all. So there’s my dilemma, but reading your perspective has been helpful 👍🏻 and I love the word frolic, and bullet journals, and Notion 😀😀
I know that feeling of craving both freedom and stability! I wouldn't have wanted to go back to my old job either - for me the key was a new job, with a new role, that incorporated what I loved about running my own business, but also gave me the stability of a job. Building a business is beautiful work, and hard, and it teaches you so much about yourself. 💛
I love your shift to sub stack! It feels more personal and I find it interesting to follow your creative journey. I’m a writer too and I rewrote my first novel 5 times before moving on. It was so hard to let go of that project! After writing another novel (that was brief and messy), I found the novel idea that challenged me and yet liberated me. It’s been my favorite project to work on! I leave you with one of my favorite quotes: “Reading is like breathing in, and writing is like breathing out.” (Pam Allyn)
Glad you love the move to Substack too! It feels more personal for me too. Aaah your novel writing journey sounds so similar to mine - I hope your story foreshadows mine of finding a liberating novel idea. I really hope I do! Love love love the quote 🙏
I loved reading and connecting to the journey this post shares. I resonate with the process of coming into and building the Substack space as it feels more free-ing and brings me back to my roots of blogging. Making shifts can create bits of friction in the spirit but gently giving into the pull feels most powerful, letting ourselves dance and mingle with that pull we feel called toward in transition. Thanks for sharing freely :)
Ooh, this resonated. Really enjoyed this glimpse into your behind-the-scenes - thank you for sharing so candidly. I'm 18 years into self-employed life and am feeling the pull towards dipping my toes back into employed waters for the first time since leaving journalism. Lots to reflect on.
Oh that's interesting! 18 years is a looong time, congrats on doing it for so long. Employment can be terrible and it can be great - I'm really glad I gave it another go 😊
I love this! It’s so rare to hear of someone making a shift back to a full time job and embracing a hobbyist mindset towards their creativity. It really does free so much mind space and amps up the fun that you can have with your art!
2023 was such an year of change for you, but as you write it it feels like you’ve made all the right decisions - and I especially admire how you took the time before making a final decision on things. It’s something I really need to start learning myself, taking time to think and reflect before making a decision.
I've been following your Substack for a bit now, Elin, and found it very interesting to read about your experience of moving away from self-employment to employment, because I have been in a similar situation. I started a photography business and I thought that's what I wanted but it turned out that it wasn't. In the past decade, running an own business has become super popular and so glorified. I felt like it was the new ideal and strived for it, too. And yes in a way it was great but in other ways it really wasn't. Constant overthinking, not being able to think about anything else, it took up most of my life. I neglected myself, my hobbies, my wellbeing and the people I love. Owning a business is definitely a lifestyle you have to choose. And I realised I wasn't passionate about it enough to endure the hard times. I'm so glad I let it go and got a part-time job. It was such a relief. My life has been so much more balanced ever since. I do the things I enjoy doing, I try out new things and most importantly I feel at peace which I wasn't self-employed. I go home after work and do not have to think about it anymore. Though, I've not given up on self-employment entirely, I'm enjoying what my life looks like right now.
Hi Elin, I stumbled across your blog via the Explore feed (Substack algorithm wins again), and I can so relate to starting out as a blogger - trying to make a creative business work - and then going back to the fun of blogging. This is sort of where I'm at at the moment, too. Your seasonal planner also looks great! I'm in need of a physical planner that works for me (my to-do list is too simple, and others have been too complicated), without having to resort to a digital solution! 🍂
There were so many golden nuggets in your post Elin that I had to restrain myself from jumping up and down at the café I'm sitting at. Frolicking over every word 🤩🤩
Having a day job that frees you up for creative projects and in that way fund them, it is totally undervalued in my opinion.
Hahaha that's excellent praise, thank you 😄 Yes yes yes, the freedom to pursue your own projects however you want without financial pressure is 100% underrated. I love it!
It's so interesting to read about your shift away from building your creative business full-time. While a lot of people strive for this, I think few take a step back to consider if this is what they really want. It's a great reminder to constantly reflect on what you really want, and if you're actually moving towards that goal. Thank you.
Yes! It's difficult to re-evalute a dream, especially one that ties in with identity so much. But important! Running a business requires so much, it needs to be really right to be worth it. 🙂
This is so interesting thank you! I’m heavy in the business building stage, not yet seeing any progress and I’m beginning to wonder if I’m doing the right thing with my life. I crave freedom and stability all at once, and I do not want to go back to my old day jobs at all. So there’s my dilemma, but reading your perspective has been helpful 👍🏻 and I love the word frolic, and bullet journals, and Notion 😀😀
I know that feeling of craving both freedom and stability! I wouldn't have wanted to go back to my old job either - for me the key was a new job, with a new role, that incorporated what I loved about running my own business, but also gave me the stability of a job. Building a business is beautiful work, and hard, and it teaches you so much about yourself. 💛
I love your shift to sub stack! It feels more personal and I find it interesting to follow your creative journey. I’m a writer too and I rewrote my first novel 5 times before moving on. It was so hard to let go of that project! After writing another novel (that was brief and messy), I found the novel idea that challenged me and yet liberated me. It’s been my favorite project to work on! I leave you with one of my favorite quotes: “Reading is like breathing in, and writing is like breathing out.” (Pam Allyn)
Glad you love the move to Substack too! It feels more personal for me too. Aaah your novel writing journey sounds so similar to mine - I hope your story foreshadows mine of finding a liberating novel idea. I really hope I do! Love love love the quote 🙏
I loved reading and connecting to the journey this post shares. I resonate with the process of coming into and building the Substack space as it feels more free-ing and brings me back to my roots of blogging. Making shifts can create bits of friction in the spirit but gently giving into the pull feels most powerful, letting ourselves dance and mingle with that pull we feel called toward in transition. Thanks for sharing freely :)
Thank you for reading! I love how the roots of blogging are coming alive here on Substack 🥰
Ooh, this resonated. Really enjoyed this glimpse into your behind-the-scenes - thank you for sharing so candidly. I'm 18 years into self-employed life and am feeling the pull towards dipping my toes back into employed waters for the first time since leaving journalism. Lots to reflect on.
Oh that's interesting! 18 years is a looong time, congrats on doing it for so long. Employment can be terrible and it can be great - I'm really glad I gave it another go 😊
I love this! It’s so rare to hear of someone making a shift back to a full time job and embracing a hobbyist mindset towards their creativity. It really does free so much mind space and amps up the fun that you can have with your art!
Yes! I like to talk about it for that reason - it's not a story many share. The freedom and mindspace and fun of a hobbyist mindset is amazing 😊
Thank you for sharing your experience 🤍
2023 was such an year of change for you, but as you write it it feels like you’ve made all the right decisions - and I especially admire how you took the time before making a final decision on things. It’s something I really need to start learning myself, taking time to think and reflect before making a decision.
I hope 2024 brings you all the creativity Elin! 🥰
Thank you Monique! Yes, the reflecting definitely makes a big difference. Writing about it really helps me sort out my thoughts! 🤗
Thanks Elin :) It was really fun to listen to you sharing about all these reflexions and shifts!
Glad you liked it Marie-Pier! 😊
I've been following your Substack for a bit now, Elin, and found it very interesting to read about your experience of moving away from self-employment to employment, because I have been in a similar situation. I started a photography business and I thought that's what I wanted but it turned out that it wasn't. In the past decade, running an own business has become super popular and so glorified. I felt like it was the new ideal and strived for it, too. And yes in a way it was great but in other ways it really wasn't. Constant overthinking, not being able to think about anything else, it took up most of my life. I neglected myself, my hobbies, my wellbeing and the people I love. Owning a business is definitely a lifestyle you have to choose. And I realised I wasn't passionate about it enough to endure the hard times. I'm so glad I let it go and got a part-time job. It was such a relief. My life has been so much more balanced ever since. I do the things I enjoy doing, I try out new things and most importantly I feel at peace which I wasn't self-employed. I go home after work and do not have to think about it anymore. Though, I've not given up on self-employment entirely, I'm enjoying what my life looks like right now.
Hi Elin, I stumbled across your blog via the Explore feed (Substack algorithm wins again), and I can so relate to starting out as a blogger - trying to make a creative business work - and then going back to the fun of blogging. This is sort of where I'm at at the moment, too. Your seasonal planner also looks great! I'm in need of a physical planner that works for me (my to-do list is too simple, and others have been too complicated), without having to resort to a digital solution! 🍂