A Creator’s Backstage: Notes on the Journey From Another Dreamer Who Wants to Make It in the Digital Gold Rush.

Many are trying to 'make it' online. I've been hustling for a short while, so the data is pretty anecdotal, but some interesting patterns emerge. My quest to decipher how the sausage is made.

Here’s the thing: I was always more interested in the backstage than the front stage; the process, the inner workings; the meta-level of things, and rarely the thing itself.

We like to believe in magic.

When I studied languages, I was more interested in how to learn than the languages I studied. 

When I got into photography - in the good old analog ages - I was more enticed by the darkroom, the magic that happened there. When you poured a concoction of chemicals into a sealed tank, shook it, tumbled it, and if you were lucky, the desired image would appear. 

When I studied photography, I decided to go to film school, not the Fine Arts department, because I really loved being in the studio, watching people build sets, shaping light, and watching the magic happen. 

You get the idea. And if not, so be it. 

Inner workings.

I guess it boils down to my fascination with discovering how things happen, why they happen (or not), and what it takes. 

We love to sit and watch someone perform effortlessly and as if by magic. 

But there’s rarely any magic involved; it’s a set of perfected skills. 

Some time ago, I decided to have a little stunt and become a solopreneur (not entirely true), an online creator, but a lot of things, small and big, were getting in my way; many of them simply inhibited my head.

How the sausage is made.

So in true Anna style, I decided to calm the fuck down and put myself under the microscope: what works, what doesn’t, and how to make things work. 

I am slicing and dicing my own thoughts and feelings that accompany my creator’s journey: the struggles with perfectionism, imposter syndrome, resistance, procrastination, discouragement, and many others. 

Selling Shovels During a Gold Rush is the Surest Way to Make Money.

I feel like many people go into the gold rush frenzy, hoping to make it, but all they encounter is a lot of people selling them shovels - or snake oil. 

Well, let’s find out what works and what doesn’t!