Commercially Speaking

It doesn’t matter how good of an artist you are, if it doesn’t sell, it’s garbage.

I recently came across a video by Campbell Walker on YouTube where he was talking about the problems with the internet.

That’s when it hit me, I’ve been screaming about this my entire life.

So, I decided to pen my thoughts.

“It doesn’t matter how good of an artist you are. If it doesn’t sell, it’s garbage.”

This is what the entire world has taught us. And commercially speaking, that is the truth.

If you can’t pay your bills, you are going to end up on the street. But the problem is bigger than just this.

When I was working as a freelance graphic designer and used to be a so-called “Instagram Guru” I faced a scenario that made me quit Social Media once in for all.

Whenever I made a design, all I was thinking is “Will it go viral?”.

If you can’t see the problem in this statement, lemme put it this way, “I trained my creativity to suit the algorithm”.

The moment I realized this, I deleted every Social Media account I had, even WhatsApp. I took a small break and wanted to see how I can undo this.

I eventually realized the best way to get over this is to create without caring.

Not only that, but I stopped taking client work and started working on stuff that I liked, and it never left my computer or my notebook.

I was done with wanting public approval, and all I cared about was how that made me feel. I still make plenty of designs and write about a lot of stuff that doesn’t leave my person.

I do client work to pay my bills. The feedback I get from the client doesn't affect me, it just affects my work.

I did this for almost 6 months and until then, I was damn frugal and survived on the money that I made before.

It took me an emotional breakdown to get my actual creative mojo back.

If you are someone who’s in the point in your life, I want to say that you are not alone! 🫂

But I urge you to take a break, however short it may be, or you’ll burn yourself out.

And if you feel like talking about this, reach out to your friends.

If you are like me and don’t have a lot of ‘em. Then just hit reply to this.

One free therapy session for you!❤️

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