Fashion Design grad here! a phrase that helped me early in my career was, āyour career is a jungle gym, not a ladder.ā
Lean into what seriously interests and inspires you, lean away from the mundane, stressful, and toxicāand climb away. I started as a fashion designer in nyc, but clothes ended up boring me. Now, I work in comms and account mgmt at an ad agency! brand psychology and identity is part of what drew me to fashion, and it took leaving fashion (and nonprofit!) to find happiness at work.
PS unravel work/career as an identity as quickly as possible to achieve maximum health/happiness in work. I quit a glam yet toxic job āon paperā last year spent the summer reflecting on why we so often ask kids what they want to be āvocation basedāwhen they grow up. When I grow up I want to be kind, generous, funny, happy, and as self sufficient as possible.
Mar 11, 2024
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as someone in the creative industry, its hard bc sometimes all i wanna do is throw myself into my passions and work so hard i get myself sick. but iāve realized im not happiest when i work 50-60 hour work weeks (even if im fulfilled and having fun) i need the time and space for the things that fuel being creative: exercise, hiking, being with friends, playing dnd. This work is like breathing, you should try to find balance between breathing in and out. Creatives are often told that their work should become their job, but sometimes, itās truly better for it be a side hustle or things that operate on a project to project basis.
I found it helpful to get connected with people who I admired and see what their days look like. Are they running around 24/7? are they constantly making work they actually donāt like bc it makes money? or are they dedicated to things they love and are fulfilled? or are they practically controlled by their work? Their day to day can be very similar to yours, so understanding if that would be an environment you would be happy in is very important.
I agree that volunteering is a good place to start, also gets you connected to the people who work in the industries yr interested in! Museum studies might be broad enough for you to also access some internships across a few industries which really give you great insight what working in various environments can be like for real. I will say working in an arts environment has been incredible for me, i feel truly myself and able to be who i am with very few masks on.
Oct 6, 2024
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Iām applying to a new role internally at my company that a colleague thinks I would be a great fit for. It would be a significant step up in my responsibilities and pay + I wouldnāt have to hustle as much as I do and could work less long hoursā¦ regardless of how this application goes thatās a huge goal for me just in general! I want to quit my self-employed work with an agency I absolutely hate in a field that Iāve never enjoyed but pursued out of convenience/necessity.
Iām a generalist with good analytical decision-making skills and can do pretty much anything if I sit down and take the time to learn it (I keep surprising myself with what I can do!) so hopefully some of the efforts Iāve put in this year will pay off in seeking a career pivot.
Would love to have more leisure time and to dedicate more effort to my creative pursuits. Going back to therapy might be a good idea because Iāve made significant progress in a lot of areas but could use help in others. I also want to umm decorate my house more and probably replace most of my wardrobeā¦
Dec 5, 2024
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growing up i felt compelled to have a job that i felt contributed something "important" to the world. there is a lot of background pressure that a career should be a "calling" or something you feel so passionate about that they couldn't not do it for a living.
a really useful piece of advice i got a little over a year ago (meant to apply to scientific academia but applies just as much to humanities, arts, etc.): jobs that use the language of a "calling" do so to exploit labor. if your job is your passion, why shouldn't you burn the candle at both ends until you have nothing left but passive indifference (or, even worse, resentment) for something you once thought interesting enough to devote your entire life to?
i think a bit about what my life would be like if i just did undergrad in computer science and got an avg boring programming job. lots of choice about where you live, pays pretty well, work is intellectually interesting enough, and it actually ends at 5pm so you have enough free time to explore other things you enjoy. a few friends from college chose this path and it definitely has its downsides, but its worth considering, esp. if you are really uncertain about what you actually want out of your life.
Feb 17, 2024
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The last frontier of single use fashion for women: bridesmaid and formal dresses. In the sharing economy, buying a $200+ bridesmaid dress to wear once is asinine. Rental is the future of occasionwear. i love renting per-loved bridesmaid and special occasion dresses starting at $6/day at www.shoprevu.com
Mar 8, 2024
Optimally enjoyed outdoors on a sunny day (pretending itās a workday lunch beer)
Mar 14, 2024