All posts by Erika Rasso
17 Gifts for Writers & Entrepreneurs in 2017
Can we take a moment to rejoice that this year is almost over?
Thank god…
Alright, now back to stressing about what to get your friends and family for the holidays.
Last year, I wrote about some really great stuff and was even gifted a couple of the items I recommended (yay — my family reads my articles!).
As with most annual activities, I always have the goal of making things bigger and better than the year before. Some of the items I found this year are pure genius, so I consider that goal accomplished.
I’ll let you have the final say, though.
So buckle up, and let’s shop for the writers and entrepreneurs in your life.
There’s Only One Solution for Burnout and You’re Not Gonna Like It
As we are now halfway through October, I’d like to think that summer is finally over.
Thank god.
To a kid, summer means three months of ultimate relaxation and fun. It means no more classes, no more school work. Tons of time to chill.
But after you enter adulthood, summer really loses its meaning. Yes, we continue to have — and be affected by — the seasons, but there’s no more vacation mode. No more time to rest and recharge. It’s just another season you have to power through.
This was my first real summer of just “powering through,” and boy did I learn a lot.
Primarily, I learned that burnout is not at all fun and something you should try to avoid at all costs.
Writing is Still The Most Important Medium in Content Creation
I think every writer goes through an existential crisis (or 50) in their lifetime, and at least one of those crises is brought on by another article with the title, “Publishing is Dead.”
All through high school and college, I was inundated with advice to choose a career in a science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM)-related field. And though my passion for writing was evident, the attitudes of my teachers suggested my passion would soon enough turn into failure.
But, because I’m a stubborn and spiteful person, I pursued writing anyway.
That’s not to say that my confidence didn’t falter in college. When I would hear someone call publishing “a dying industry,” I’d panic and think, “Oh my god, what am I going to do with my life.” So of course, within my first year, I sat down with an advisor to talk about pursuing a double major. One in english, like I wanted, and one that was more career-viable.
I settled on a minor in marketing and felt safe in my future as a young professional.
I’ve since figured out that my minor in marketing isn’t worth as much as I thought on paper. However, the knowledge and experience it provided did help me get most of the jobs I’ve had since graduating.
It’s also given me a profound sense of confidence in my career choice as a writer.
Because everything I did (and still do) involved writing.
What Type of Writer Are You? How Emotions Affect Your Creativity
Social Media has created monsters of us all.
Okay, that’s probably an exaggeration.
But it has changed the way we express ourselves. For the better and for the worse.
When you’re happy, you want to share it with the world. So, you open up Facebook or Twitter, or even your blog, and you write about it. Maybe you post it with a selfie or set your mood to “elated,” and you bask in the support and adoration of your friends and followers.
On the flip side, when you’re upset, it’s so easy to type out all your frustrations and vent to hundreds of people at once with just the click of a button.