Lockdown’s taken a pretty serious toll on everybody’s mental health, and with the future up in the air for so many it’s quite easy to simply fall into a habits of distraction. There’s nothing wrong with taking time for yourself, but always keep opportunity in mind – the better you can cope with all the uncertainty around now the easier you’re going to find navigating “the new normal” moving forward!
We’ve collected a short list of blogs we’ve been keeping updated with during lockdown, we find that reading about others’ experiences in our freshly virulent world helps us see new perspectives and feel a bit less isolated in our world view. These blogs share an opportunity to learn from a diverse set of experienced creatives who share content that could prove valuable to you, both personally and professionally. Have a read through, and let us know who you think should be on this list!
#1 Notes on Freelancing by Ameena Rojee
Ameena writes about the trials and tribulations of being a freelancer and an artist in a time of change and unpredictability. You can find her articles on LinkedIn. She shares online what many of us are thinking in person, and she’s brutally straightforward about the failures and successes that make up her journey of development and self-discovery. I love Ameena’s accessible, relatable, and human writing style and I would highly recommend signing up to her newsletter.
Ameena is a freelance portraiture and documentary photographer based in Croydon with a background in campaign production. Community and culture are the cornerstones of her work, and she also runs of the land & us, an online journal for photographers exploring their relationship with the natural world.
#2 Creative Rebels
More podcast than blog, I’ve been an avid listener of Adam and David’s take on creativity, productivity, and the creative services industry for little over half a year now – and I’m still hooked!
They feature a wide range of entrepreneurs, creatives, and influential industry leaders on their podcast, and with tons of content already on their page and triple weekly updates becoming a regular thing, there’s loads of value to be had from the wealth of experiences shared on their enjoyably conversational exploration of what it means to be creative in 2020. Check out their podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Creative Rebels is hosted by Adam Brazier & David Speed, who want to share their story, hear stories from around the world, and help creatives trying to make it.
#3 Work Notes by Dave Smyth
Dave writes clearly, concisely, and refreshingly informatively while adeptly keeping it relevant and interesting. He has a special skill for boiling down complex ideas into plain English, which is great as he often writes about important but aversive topics such as contracts and pricing as well as productivity and creativity.
I also recommend checking out his Freelance Pricing Guide, which I’ve had a read of myself. It won’t give you any absolutes, but it’s a great way to get advice on the matter in a well explained and very balanced way.
Work Notes is a collection of articles written that explore freelance and self-employment topics like money, contracts, clients and well-being. It’s also where Dave shares and documents his real-life freelance experiences
#4 Is This Working? by Anna and Tiffany
Anna and Tiffany run the “Is This Working?” podcast, dedicated to questioning how work as we know it impacts our lives.
They each bring something different to the table and have great chemistry together and with their guests. Their episodes are full of first hand experiences most of us would relate to, and their talent for going really in-depth on the subject makes for some really insightful listens.
Anna Codrea-Rado is a journalist, podcaster and campaigner. Her writing appears in the New York Times, the Guardian, BBC, Wired, the Paris Review, New York Magazine, the Atlantic, Refinery29, Vice, Monocle and many others. She writes about business, culture and technology with a particular focus on working life.
Tiffany Philippou is a brand & communications strategist with ten years of startup experience. She helps startups reach effective communications by working with them to define their story, understand their audience, and articulate their point of view on the world.
#5 Seth's Blog by Seth Godin
Seth Godin is an industry favourite, but I’ve found his daily thoughts to be a welcome catalyst for contemplation. He doesn’t actually write about current events very much, and the global coronavirus pandemic doesn’t feature much in his writing at all.
I’m a fan of both his books and his blog, and I think that he shares a wealth of knowledge and experience in creative strategy, entrepreneurial ideation, and personal growth for free with great consistency and a very accessible tone of voice.
Seth Godin is a writer and teacher who does projects. He is also the founder of Akimbo, home of the altMBA.
What do you think of this list? Do you have any blogs or podcasts you’d like to recommend? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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