Mindful freelancing
Back in the day of my younger advertising years, I focused on only one thing: WRITING COPY. Well, good copy hopefully. One which should merit an award or a creative recognition.Ugh. (That's a whole new topic all together Lol)
Fast forward to a decade after (ok right I'm giving myself away here) in this freelance phase of my career, I am my own boss and report to no one on a permanent full-time basis. This has allowed me to see the world beyond the 'ivory tower' (the ad agency's Creative Department). Not anymore cooped up in my cube wrestling tagline studies or radio scripts on my nth revision. Today I do more than just copy.
Freelancing has taught me to be mindful of everything that surrounds the creative process. Things I cannot imagine doing as a young copywriter. Client-servicing. Costs. Status Reports. Billing. Strategy. Media placements. Idea quality control. The list of to-dos can be pretty daunting to a Creative right? But time has swayed me into submission in accomplishing these tasks asked of us Independent Creatives. Thankfully, through the years, it has done a lot of us well.
Mindfulness in what we do is I think the best way to survive in this "per-project" world. Oftentimes we catch ourselves saying yes to everyone for fear of having the lack of it, in the lean months we all dread of. So mindfulness and focus on the task at hand is a very important "skill" to adapt if one encounters insane schedules.
The wonderful advantages of Mindfulness...
Fast forward to a decade after (ok right I'm giving myself away here) in this freelance phase of my career, I am my own boss and report to no one on a permanent full-time basis. This has allowed me to see the world beyond the 'ivory tower' (the ad agency's Creative Department). Not anymore cooped up in my cube wrestling tagline studies or radio scripts on my nth revision. Today I do more than just copy.
Freelancing has taught me to be mindful of everything that surrounds the creative process. Things I cannot imagine doing as a young copywriter. Client-servicing. Costs. Status Reports. Billing. Strategy. Media placements. Idea quality control. The list of to-dos can be pretty daunting to a Creative right? But time has swayed me into submission in accomplishing these tasks asked of us Independent Creatives. Thankfully, through the years, it has done a lot of us well.
Mindfulness in what we do is I think the best way to survive in this "per-project" world. Oftentimes we catch ourselves saying yes to everyone for fear of having the lack of it, in the lean months we all dread of. So mindfulness and focus on the task at hand is a very important "skill" to adapt if one encounters insane schedules.
The wonderful advantages of Mindfulness...
- We accomplish more things in one day.
- Bigger mistakes are avoided.
- When we focus, we don't miss out on important details.
- We panic and worry less
- It gives us a clearer mind, therefore inviting more ideas in
- Each task is done perfectly and on time (even earlier)
- From the hours saved from work, we spend the rest of the day just relaxing (best part!!)
Time and again, I have reaped the good things about my being a mindful freelancer. It surely takes practice and experience to master it. But it's never too late. A good time to start your mindful journey is NOW.
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