That whole social media marketing thing, - I don't think much of it either. I'm on BlueSky, but only because the NZ writer's group I belong to is on there and I don't bother with anything else. Good to read that going back to school is working out well for you along with being able to enjoy contact with real live people. I was in my 40s when I decided that I was going back to school to get back into paid work. Best decision I ever made.
I just turned 40 a few months ago and I had a serious talk with myself about how I wanted to spend the rest of my life. I'm really glad I got this school opportunity when I did because I knew I didn't want to keep trying to rely on art/comics anymore for income but I also didn't want to go crawling back to abusive retail work (which is the only thing I'm "qualified" for, but also "too old" to be hired.)
Honestly, I felt trapped for the past few years and now I feel like I can breathe again, even though I'm going to have a really heavy workload for the next six months. I'm going to school, still doing freelance stuff whenever possible and trying to work on my own comics whenever I can.
I'd still say 10/10 decision and I really do love the direction that my life is heading in.
Even though I was great at it for my day job, I could never get social media to work for me. Only when I starting writing a newsletter did things feel right for me. I love writing my newsletter every week and getting to dive into what interests me. I applaud you taking control of what is bringing you joy and getting rid of what isn't!
10000% agree on the newsletter being more comfy. It feels much more authentic.
Getting rid of social media is something that I really should have done years ago tbh. I never liked it but I thought "I had to use it" but you know what? I'm an adult and I don't have to do anything I don't want to do!! XD
Good for you! Glad to hear school is going well. I feel the same way about social media. I still have accounts, but I rarely post anymore. Even if I was more diligent, I don't feel like I'd break through all the noise out there, anyway... Death to social media! Long live Substack!
"Even if I was more diligent, I don't feel like I'd break through all the noise out there, anyway."
Exactly this! I feel like social media is a lot like a rigged slot machine. You keep putting in money (time and sanity) and hoping you'll eventually get rewarded. But more often than not, for 99.99% of the user base, nothing happens and you're stuck deciding if you want to keep giving it your attention (because sunk cost fallacy) or is it better to just walk away.
Thank you for sharing! I’ve always found social media to be a source of anxiety and I’m realizing more and more that I don’t need it. I’m very happy to read about how much better off you’re doing!
Social media feels a lot like that "friend" who doesn't have your best interests at heart and keeps trying to tell you that you're not doing enough. It felt really liberating to just deactivate my accounts and walk away.
That's how I've been feeling for awhile. When X happened, I ignored that account & never used any of my others, because quite frankly, social media tends to just piss me off these days! 😒 I do get on Facebook when my kids post pics of the grands, otherwise I'll fall down the FB rabbit hole & lose a whole day!
That whole social media marketing thing, - I don't think much of it either. I'm on BlueSky, but only because the NZ writer's group I belong to is on there and I don't bother with anything else. Good to read that going back to school is working out well for you along with being able to enjoy contact with real live people. I was in my 40s when I decided that I was going back to school to get back into paid work. Best decision I ever made.
I just turned 40 a few months ago and I had a serious talk with myself about how I wanted to spend the rest of my life. I'm really glad I got this school opportunity when I did because I knew I didn't want to keep trying to rely on art/comics anymore for income but I also didn't want to go crawling back to abusive retail work (which is the only thing I'm "qualified" for, but also "too old" to be hired.)
Honestly, I felt trapped for the past few years and now I feel like I can breathe again, even though I'm going to have a really heavy workload for the next six months. I'm going to school, still doing freelance stuff whenever possible and trying to work on my own comics whenever I can.
I'd still say 10/10 decision and I really do love the direction that my life is heading in.
Even though I was great at it for my day job, I could never get social media to work for me. Only when I starting writing a newsletter did things feel right for me. I love writing my newsletter every week and getting to dive into what interests me. I applaud you taking control of what is bringing you joy and getting rid of what isn't!
10000% agree on the newsletter being more comfy. It feels much more authentic.
Getting rid of social media is something that I really should have done years ago tbh. I never liked it but I thought "I had to use it" but you know what? I'm an adult and I don't have to do anything I don't want to do!! XD
Good for you! Glad to hear school is going well. I feel the same way about social media. I still have accounts, but I rarely post anymore. Even if I was more diligent, I don't feel like I'd break through all the noise out there, anyway... Death to social media! Long live Substack!
"Even if I was more diligent, I don't feel like I'd break through all the noise out there, anyway."
Exactly this! I feel like social media is a lot like a rigged slot machine. You keep putting in money (time and sanity) and hoping you'll eventually get rewarded. But more often than not, for 99.99% of the user base, nothing happens and you're stuck deciding if you want to keep giving it your attention (because sunk cost fallacy) or is it better to just walk away.
100%! Walk away!
Amen!
Thank you for sharing! I’ve always found social media to be a source of anxiety and I’m realizing more and more that I don’t need it. I’m very happy to read about how much better off you’re doing!
Social media feels a lot like that "friend" who doesn't have your best interests at heart and keeps trying to tell you that you're not doing enough. It felt really liberating to just deactivate my accounts and walk away.
That's how I've been feeling for awhile. When X happened, I ignored that account & never used any of my others, because quite frankly, social media tends to just piss me off these days! 😒 I do get on Facebook when my kids post pics of the grands, otherwise I'll fall down the FB rabbit hole & lose a whole day!
To be fair, Facebook is great for cute cat videos.
That's the rabbit hole I usually fall down, lol 😂