If I was starting over tomorrow, here's what I'd actually do differently

I get a lot of questions about starting out and how to grow, so I wanted to just talk it through. No big lesson, no dramatic reveal. Just honest thoughts from someone who's been doing this for about five years and is still very much figuring it out.

Consider this us getting coffee together.

Instagram is still the move, but I'd use Stories way more from the start

I would still go Instagram-first, absolutely. But the one thing I'd change is making Stories a proper habit from day one. Being personal, being present, showing up as an actual human and not just someone who posts designed things.

I never really built that habit early on and it genuinely shows. It's so much harder to start doing it later because it feels weird and unnatural when you haven't done it consistently.

I'd also diversify earlier. Not spread myself across everything at once (please don't do that), but TikTok, an email newsletter from the jump, and a website with actual SEO that I was actively working on. These things compound over time and I waited too long on all of them.

On niching down: do it, but don't rush it

Yes, niche down. But it genuinely takes time and you cannot force it. I've been doing this for five years and I'd say I only truly landed on my niche in the last year, maybe less. And that's okay. That's actually how it's supposed to work.

My advice is: explore everything. Try it all. Don't box yourself in too early because you don't actually know yet what you love most, what you're best at, or what people want from you specifically. The niche will come. You just have to do a lot of work first to find it.

Raise your rates faster. Seriously.

There's obviously a natural progression when you're starting out. You're new, you're building experience, you charge accordingly. That part makes sense. But I waited way too long to move up from entry-level pricing and I wish I hadn't.

You don't have to wait until you feel ready (you won't). You don't have to wait until someone tells you you're worth more (they won't). You just raise them and see what happens.

Use your quiet time properly

When you don't have client work, work on your business anyway. Your backend, your systems, your admin, your processes. Learn something. Build something. Develop something.

Whether you're just starting out or you've been at this for ten years, the quiet seasons are not a break. They're actually your biggest opportunity. Don't waste them being stressed about the quiet. Use it.

Launch digital products earlier than you think you should

My first digital product was a Notion template, which is still my most sold digital product. The thing is, I'd had it for ages before I put it on Gumroad. I genuinely don't know why I waited so long because it was so easy and people actually wanted it.

If you have something useful sitting on your hard drive right now, whether it's a template, a system, a resource, whatever, just put it out there. Gumroad takes about twenty minutes to set up. Seriously.

Stop overcomplicating your personal brand

This one's for my fellow brand designers who are reading this going "but I need my brand to be perfect before I start." You don't. Truly. A quick logo, some fonts you like, a few decent photos of yourself and you're good to go.

Your style, your skills, your whole creative identity is going to change so much in those first few years. You're going to look back and want to redo it anyway. So don't get stuck in the loop of rebrand, redo the website, rebrand again. Just start. Let it evolve naturally.

About finding your style

I remember when I started out, everyone said you need to develop your style. Pick a style. I don't believe in that. I genuinely don't.

Your style finds you. It comes through doing the work, trying everything, getting weird with it, doing passion projects that scare you a little.

The best thing you can do when you're starting out is just design constantly. Try every style, post it all, use it all as content, challenge yourself with briefs you'd never normally take on. Never stop designing, never get precious about any of it, and your voice will show up eventually. It always does.

If any of this resonates, or if you're early in your journey and want to chat, just leave a comment or reach out on Instagram. I genuinely love hearing from you.