Day 14 on Communication

Yesterday I sent out the first invites to my newsletter. I can hardly believe that I have made this commitment. One email each Friday about my posts from the week and the even bigger part: sitting in bed each morning, Monday to Friday, writing for the Blog.

It feels unconventional to stray from social media and to pursue this format instead. This move goes against most of the advice I’ve been given. Now I have an old school blog and an email list. I live in 2010. This got me thinking about communication: how is it really working for us, what are we annoyed about and what do we crave?

Social media is built like a slot machine, it is fast paced and addictive. There is always something or someone new to see, always more. Content of all kinds scrambled together by the algorithm. To be honest, I have grown to feel quite anxious and overwhelmed whenever I am on there.

I wish there was another way for me to connect to my favourite creatives, maybe even something physical I could get in the mail. A book or a DVD with their videos that would land at my house once a year. Something that would mean, that I have a direct connection to them without stepping into the online swamp.

I know that in person meetings are still best, but what about those international connections? I am between counties myself and most of my friends are scattered across the globe. I want to feel close to them, to their creative pursuits despite being far away. That was the promise of Instagram and Facebook, wasn’t it? That it would bring us closer together? Instead I am shown less and less of the people that I actively follow. We have lost control of our own feeds.

In the grand scheme of things, building a website and a blog is a small act but it is one of resistance and I would encourage you to consider the option. On social media, we are the guests on someone else’s platform, they always make the rules and when something like instagram falls out of favour, our work is lost with it. On your own website, you are the boss, you make the layout, decide what to talk about and when. It is your own project.

I am excited and nervous to be here and to write for you each morning, as this practice becomes second nature I am also looking forward to designing other things to share, but I am trying to be patient and take things one step at a time.

Thank you for being here, for trusting me to send you that email and for your curiosity about my musings and obsessions. I hope you are well wherever you are

Celine