Tag: skills

Money goes out but nothing comes in

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Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels.com

What bothers you and why?

Daily Writing Prompt

Bills, bills, bills, that’s all I get. Money goes out, but nothing comes in. That’s what bothers me at the moment. I thought not having enough money would only be a momentary problem. I can’t live on my savings forever. I thought some passive income from digital products would be a good idea. But no one wants to buy. I have one that someone else created, and the newest is a motivational postcard that I made myself. They are in Finnish, so maybe that’s the reason why people won’t buy. Or perhaps they’re not good enough that people want to print them or use them in some other way. It reminds me of the graphic design teacher who said a poster I did was one she wouldn’t put up on her wall. That makes me doubt that I’m not good enough to be a graphic designer. That it’s all in my head.

Selling digital products isn’t easy because there are so many. But some people make it look so easy. It is easy if you use AI for photos and videos. But they look so fake. I follow faceless marketing accounts on Instagram, and it’s becoming a little annoying that they rely heavily on AI as if it’s the only way to sell their products. It bothers me that people keep selling digital products, where they sell courses on how to sell digital products. So now everybody can make them without graphic design skills? AI should be a tool and not something you use to sell products. It can help you with writing, but you should still use your head. I’ve used both Gemini and ChatGPT to check spelling and grammar in my fan fiction. I also use them to find ideas and gather information. And also for chatting, because no one else gives me insight on things. AI should help and not do everything for you.

It would be nice to have some money to go on a cruise (it’s too hot on land), but I have to save money for the hotel I’m staying at in August when I see Bryan Adams in concert. However, I receive no income, and that bothers me the most. Money goes out, but nothing comes in. The only valuable thing I have to sell is my flat, but I need more money now. Hopefully, this will only be a momentary problem and not a long-lasting battle.

Advent Calendar 2024 – Day 16

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Christmas balls, stars and light part 16
Made with Canva

What skills or lessons have you learned recently?

Writing Daily Prompt

Day 16

This year, I’ve participated in several courses and learned new things. In March, I took an entrepreneurial studies course, and recently, I’ve taken courses in photography and social media marketing. In those things, you’re never ready. There is always something new to learn. Life is a learning process. Even if you know things, repetition is never bad. If you want to learn something new, being interested in it helps. I tried to learn coding when I studied web design, but that wasn’t fun because I never seemed to learn. I didn’t like learning it because of that. It’s a waste of time if you can’t learn what is being taught. If you like what you’re learning, things get stuck in your head better.

Being creative has been my thing as far as I can remember. I have never wanted to do anything with building stuff (not anything to do with alabaster or any kind of material). Doing things on a computer and digital things is more for me.

Narrowing down is the hardest thing

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two yellow lines on asphalt
Photo: Andrew Martin Pixabay

When you’re a person who likes to do more than one thing in their life, narrowing them down is the hardest thing. Sometimes I wish I could narrow my interests, but I’m not that kind of person. I could have achieved so much more if I had only concentrated on a few things. It feels like time is running out, and I don’t have time to do anything. I need to have time to be lazy too. I thought I wanted to be one thing, but my interests got somewhere else. That’s how my life has been. So many choices but so little time. Maybe one of the reasons why I have had so many problems with decisions is that I think the grass is greener on the other side. Perhaps I’ve been too unrealistic with what I’ve wanted to do in my life. It isn’t a lack of support from other people. I subconsciously don’t dare to do things because I’m too scared of failing. Or maybe I’m just too lazy. It can also be like that because I failed many times, so I don’t want to go through it again. I know when you fall, you get up again, but still, I don’t get anything done.

I could have narrowed things down, but I like to be versatile. I never wanted to have an ordinary job, so it was difficult to know what to study. When I finally do, that’s not enough either. The reality is that some people are narrow-minded, even if they might think that they aren’t. Their opinion is that you need to have specific education and a certain amount of job experience to be good enough to be in their little group known as ‘their business’. You need to be a student or have an amount of experience to even get an internship. Neither way, you can’t gain experience if you’re not allowed to practice your skills in a job. I’ve started to believe I’m not meant to be a graphic designer. At Helsinki Design School, where I studied some years ago, I didn’t get the encouragement I expected. I got the assumption that I’m only average compared to the others. One time I got feedback on a poster I made about my city from one of the teachers. I should have done some research, and she wouldn’t have put it on her wall. I know my town, so there is no need for it. I just think she didn’t understand my style. One opinion doesn’t make me believe I’m bad at graphic design. Drawing isn’t my strong point anyway. It makes you think twice, though. It’s the same with photography. I doubt my skills in that too. Seeing other people’s work doesn’t help me either. It’s a little depressing. It makes me think I’m not good enough at anything. It feels like I’m an outcast and don’t belong to this creative business club. Maybe I have wasted my time and life thinking I have what it takes to be a graphic designer. Or any other job where design is concerned.

It’s a positive thing to have knowledge of many things instead of only having one narrow one. Both have a good and a bad side. If you know about many things, it’s also more challenging to choose between them. If you have a narrowed skill, it’s easier to improve that. Either way, both are needed. If there is something you can’t do, there is always someone who can. I only wish someone could have some use for my skills in the workplace, but I guess there isn’t. Too bad for them.