12 things I’ve learned from 12+ years of creative side quests.
Over the last 12+ years of being a creative entrepreneur, I’ve had more creative side quests than I can count. A collab photography magazine (16HOURS), a couple collab eBooks, mini-brands, another two magazines (The Unmistakable Effect, The Solitude Sessions), multiple blogs, notebooks, jewellery… and all of the other shit I’ve totally forgotten about lol. 😆
I've been asked about them a few times over the years, but I never knew what to really say about it to be honest. Until recently, I realised I do actually have a lot to say + share here, these days. So here are 12 of the biggest things I’ve learned from my many, many side quests.
For the creatives who can’t not make stuff. And who need a reminder that not everything needs to be a ‘thing’. 🌀
1. The side quest moves through you. 🌊
There are no goals here, only curiosity and following your intuition. What are you secretly obsessed with but haven’t told anyone yet? What would you make if no one ever saw it? What have you seen someone else create that made you think, fuck, I wish I made that?
2. Don’t do it for the money. 🙅♀️
The true beauty of the side quest is when it gets to be free, without it being tied to your main source of income. THIS IS V IMPORTANT! It’s the opposite of the entire point. That’s not to say you can’t make money at some point, but even then, do it with caution (see #5).
3. Your side quests are your Creative Playground. Throw everything you think you know out the window. 👋
This isn’t a strategy game. This is a vibes game. If your side quest exists in the same realm as your work, this is even more important because you will be on auto-pilot without even knowing it. What would you do if you didn’t know how it was supposed to be done?
4. Go offline with it. Create something that doesn’t need the internet to exist. 🤎
This is a new one for me because up until I was making jewellery all of my side quests were VERY online. But the world of creativity making jewellery has opened up for me has been incredible, as someone who’s business runs 100% online. It’s so fucking refreshing to close my laptop and go make something with my hands.
5. Don’t force it. If it dies when you monetize it, maybe it was never meant to scale. 😬
Every time I pushed too hard or tried to turn it into “a thing” before it was ready, it went south. My new rule? Set a no-monetization period. I did 6 months for my jewellery, maybe it’s a year, whatever. Just let it be fun with zero attachment to selling it. I had a magazine a few years ago, it ran for a while and people loved it, but I think I tried too hard to make it “a thing”, and when it was too much work I just had to let it go… But I do wonder what it would have looked like if I could have told myself this.
6. You don’t have to explain it to anyone. You are the fucking niche. 👀
People will ask if the side quest is your new “main thing.” Let them. Your only job is to stay grounded in why you’re doing it and what it means to you. Just make the shit you’re excited about and let the rest go.
7. Side quests all have their season. Let them. 🌀
The second it feels really hard or there’s a lot of resistance, it might be time to re-asses and see what needs changing, or moving on from. I think it’s a real life skill to be able to step back and see how you REALLY feel about something so you don’t stay in it longer than you’re meant to and end up resenting & hating it.
8. When you’re burnt out, or sick of trying to run a ‘business’ & make money, side quests bring you back to yourself. 🪄
Especially for my creative entrepreneurs, this is big. And you will find yourself in this place at least once, if not multiple times over the course of your career. The side quest gets to be FOR YOU, NO ONE ELSE. Let this work, this exploration, this creative rhythm be the place you re-discover who you are and why you do what you do.
9. Be very mindful of what you share, or don’t share. 🌲
If you snap into ‘business’ or ‘content’ mode and feel like you need to show the process or make a nice neat reel or carousel out of this side quest, stop yourself. And ask why you’re doing it. Because the pressure YOU put on yourself to share it will change the energy of it. Don’t underestimate this one! I’m gonna say it again: let this be yours.
10. Protect the energy of the side quest at all costs. 🤺
The side quest needs a special kind of magic to keep it alive, and for you to feel truly creatively fulfilled by it, which is kinda the goal. Make space for it in your life and don’t compromise on that time. Give yourself rules to protect the work, like maybe you don’t tell ANYONE about it for a month. Treat it with the energy it deserves, and watch the universe match that for you.
11. There’s no excuses anymore. There’s always a way, you just haven’t looked hard enough. 😏
You don’t need permission. You don’t even need a big budget—just a willingness to figure shit out. The tools exist. The platforms exist. There are tutorials, templates, printers, platforms, and services for just about anything. If you’re feeling stuck, it’s probably not because there aren’t options—it’s because you haven’t looked hard enough, or you haven’t decided to take your side quest seriously enough yet.
12. Stop waiting for the ‘perfect’ time. It doesn’t exist. You just gotta decide to start making something. 😍
I could write a damn essay about perfection, but I can tell you without a doubt letting go of my fear of things being ‘perfect’ is partly what has led me to create so many things over the course of the last 12+ years as a creative entrepreneur, let alone all of the other creative side quests I’ve been doing my entire life since I was a kid, lol. One of my fave antidotes to this is a quote from Danielle LaPorte — “Everything that’s ever been done could have been better.”
