“You’ve acknowledged that your current situation isn’t working – so what do you stand to gain?”

Creative Career Conundrums is a weekly advice column from If You Could Jobs. Each week their selected panel of professionals from the creative industry answers your burning career questions to help you navigate the creative journey.

This week’s question:

I love my job. The team is amazing and I’ve been here for a long time. However, the pay is low and I’ve realised I’m very unhappy in the city due to cultural clashes.

Without a support system here, it’s emotionally challenging to keep going. I’m finding it hard to secure a new job with the same status and quality of projects as my current role. I’ve spoken to many industry professionals, but there’s always something “shady” about the design studios we discuss, making it difficult to distinguish between definite “no’s” and potential options. I’ve realised that moving out of the city is the solution.

But I’m struggling to finalise my portfolio because I’m too comfortable in my current job, even though part of me craves new challenges and a better personal lifestyle. I’ve created a pros and cons list to filter potential jobs and ensure I make the right choice. Despite setting deadlines with an external person for completing the portfolio, I face paralysis from fear and end up not moving forward. I tend to be a person that is actionable so, what am I missing?

Why can’t I make the leap to a new job and location despite recognising the need for change and taking steps to prepare for it? What is missing from my approach or understanding that’s preventing me from moving forward?

Katie Cadwell, co-founder of branding studio Lucky Dip and The NDA Podcast:

There’s a lot going on here. It sounds as though the real problem is you’re torn between comfort and challenge. In any creative career, there are moments where the learning curve is really steep (usually coinciding with a change in roles). After time, that curve flattens out. Then you have to choose whether to stay and enjoy that new comfort, or start the process over again. All the best creative leaders’ careers graphs have very few plateau moments – they make a big change as soon as they no longer feel challenged. This TED talk by Luvvie Ajayi Jones is a great summary of what it feels like to embrace those feelings of discomfort and how empowering that can be (along with how important it is not to except the status quo).

I can give you some advice on the geography conundrum. Now more than ever before, where you work doesn’t have to dictate the quality of the studio you’re working for. Incredible boutique agencies are opening up everyday, from all parts of the globe. Exploring remote roles could be a way to live where you want without sacrificing the quality of your work.

But it sounds as though you’re doubting yourself. In order to move forward, you need to focus on what you want, rather than what you might lose. You’ve acknowledged that your current situation isn’t working – so what do you stand to gain? Write that down, those are your goals.

I think you’d benefit from finding a mentor to help work through some of this. There are lots of schemes to choose from, The Arena is a great one. Or reach out to a few people you respect, quite often you’ll find they’re happy to lend some advice. Chatting to someone impartial can help give some clarity – and probably unpack what you’re feeling in a more comprehensive way than I can. Best of luck.

In answering your creative career conundrums we realise that some issues need expert support, so we’ve collated a list of additional resources that can support you across things that might arise at work.

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