Burnout.

Burnout is something that happens to the best of us. In different degrees of course, but as a freelancer I feel like I’m always walking that thin line between exciting momentum and total lassitude. Some days I wake up and I’m ready to smash it while others I’m wondering what’s even the point to get out of bed. It’s strange, and can be really draining. The recurring internal debate of “Is my work worth anything? Why I am doing this? Would anyone care if I stopped making photos tomorrow?” can be all consuming.

There is hope however.

In comes in the form of routines for me.

Growing up I was utterly disorganized, deciding what my day was going to be like as it went. It was full of bliss for most parts of middle & high school, but then came design school. I had to plan ahead to get my projects done on time and I was totally allergic to the idea of planning anything.

Eventually though, inspired by the likes of Picasso, Voltaire, and most major thinkers and artists of our era, I started learning about routines.

Someone told me that the difference between a professional and an amateur is that the former shows up and does the work whether he feels like it or not. That was game changing to me. I no longer had to feel bad for not wanting to do something. Knowing that legends like Mozart powered through symphonies when they didn't “feel” like doing so opened a new world to me: the world of routine.

Let me tell you about my own creative routines, the ones that have kept me mostly sane while working at a rate generally considered “fast paced”. I’ve been using them for years and they’re always progressing, but they are founded on these core activities and principles.

This is what a normal week looks like for me (normal being when I’m not shooting out of home):

First to hike a 150 mile trail in Slovenia

The Unseen

How I shoot my favorite time of day.