BALANCING WORK & CREATIVITY AS A FULL TIME CONTENT CREATOR.

Recently it’s something I’ve been struggling with since going freelance and turning my hobby of photography and blogging into a job– getting the right balance between work stuff and being as creative as possible. I want to share this kind of thing with you more often, the behind the scenes, the process and the highs and lows of creating content and photography full time, I want you to know that it’s not always as easy as it might look sometimes on Instagram, it’s hard work & I want anyone that might have been feeling the same way to know that you’re not the only one.

Don’t get me wrong, freelancing so far has been amazing, having the freedom to work when I want and on what I want really is the dream & I know and appreciate that I’m very privileged to be in this position. The fact that every day I get to wake up and put my heart and soul into something I’m really passionate about is amazing! Just in case you didn’t already know, I’ve been blogging in some form since 2014 and it wasn’t something I ever imagined becoming a job one day, it really was a very gradual process up until the beginning of last year when I went from maybe working with a brand on some sponsored once every few months to working on at least two or three projects a month.

What I had been finding recently is getting the balance right between work and still managing to be creative is harder than it looks and I really admire the bloggers and content creators I know who have been doing this for years! There are definitely times that are busier than others, but when I had a busy week sometimes I ended up spending most of my time answering emails, sending out collaboration proposals, general admin bits and pieces instead of actually creating the content– let alone doing something fun and creative– doing something I loved, just because.

I found that this meant I would often end up posting something on Instagram that I wasn’t 100% happy with or that I couldn’t find the time to write the blog posts I wanted to & I found that it meant my inspiration was almost at rock bottom. I knew that something had to change.

The first thing I did was to make sure that my schedule I had come up with still worked the way I needed it to. I made sure that I had a specific time set aside just for being creative, sometimes that meant clearing a day to just head out with my camera, ignore my emails and take photos of whatever I felt like in the moment, not thinking about whether they would fit with my feed or would work for an upcoming blog post. It took me back to why I love doing this so much and definitely boosted my inspiration. On the other side of that, I also made sure I set aside a day or morning just to answer emails etc etc… trying to figure out a schedule that works has been so important and that might sound pretty obvious but having a whole blank week ahead of you, I found it was quite easy to get sidetracked!

In a similar thread, something else that has really helped my creativity levels and inspiration is getting a change of scenery. I take the majority of my photos in my one small room & I found that if I’m busy and working on a lot of content, being in such a small space can really restrict the different ways I can be creative, so mixing things up and maybe being more proactive about trying different things really helps. It’s also been so important to leave my space for a bit, maybe head out to a coffee shop, explore my local area, visit somewhere I’ve never been before– trying to find new spaces that inspires me has become so important when it comes to being able to be as creative as possible.

And finally, something I’ve learnt is to take a break. Take as many breaks as you need to get to a place where you feel inspired and ready to be creative again. Obviously at busy times, this is easier said than done, but if you can and it works for you then take a few days off of Instagram, do something you enjoy other than creating content, for me this is often things like reading a book, going out to the cinema or leaving my phone at home and going for a walk, I’ve found it refreshes me and inspires me to start creating again. Working as a content creator can be a 24/7 job, there is always something you can be working on, so if you can take a break I definitely recommend it!

As I mentioned earlier, everyday I feel incredibly grateful that this is my job but it has it’s ups and downs like any other job & getting a balance is something I’m always trying to get right! I know I don’t often sit down and write more in depth, chatty blog posts, but if you’d like to see more of this kind of thing from me or if you have any other questions please feel free to let me know. Do you have any tips for what you do when you need some inspiration? I hope you’re having a lovely day!