10 questions to bring back the magic
If you’re feeling bored with your freelance work, creative business or Substack, here are 10 questions to help reignite your passion.
It happens.
Especially in the transient digital world. You run a business/platform, or freelance for clients, and at first you love it but a few years in, it starts to feel a bit boring.
Perhaps you used to rely on Instagram to spread word about your work but now the algorithm has dropped off and the low likes are feeling deflating.
Maybe AI feels like an insurmountable threat, and you can’t see there’s any point in continuing when it feels like the work is drying up faster than you were prepared for.
Or, maybe you’ve fallen out of love with the work itself.
There’s no shame in these periods of reflection. And, in fact, it can be an opportunity to reassess and make sure your work is still aligned with your values and ‘home’ needs.
But before closing the door entirely on a product, service or platform that has worked for you in the past, answer these 10 questions to see if they help to shift something.
10 questions to bring back the magic
Think back to when you began. What drew you into this type of work? (Getting clear on your ‘why’, even if it’s changed since then, can reignite some passion.)
Ask someone you know, who supports your work, what they like about the work you do. (Having an outside perspective can shine a light into dark corners.)
What matters to you the most, right now? (Having a firm grasp of your priorities might highlight which of your needs are - and are not - being met.)
What one word would you use to describe your business/work? (Distilling it down in this way is an opportunity to pinpoint the challenge or reaffirm the beauty.)
Imagine handing over your entire business/platform to a friend and seeing them make a success of it. How would you feel, watching them run it?
You’re given £50,000 to invest in your business. What do you spend it on? (Have a think about what financial support would mean for you and your work.)
What do you hate about this platform/business? (It’s time to have a good old moan about all the bits you’re not enjoying, and to look at why that is.)
If you were to send a message to your creative work, explaining that you want to break up with it, what would it say? (There needs to be a valid reason.)
Now, what would you write in a love letter to your current career? (Reflect on the good times; romance the work.)
You’re given a magic wand for your business or creative work. What wish do you make? (Is it really that you’re feeling bored, or are things actually just feeling a bit slow?)
Annie x
Ps. I run The Creative Way courses and offer coaching to help others set up and grow their creative freelance careers. You can read more about all of that here.
