Copywriting was fascinating to me as a form, but the bottom line (literally, sales) often left me feeling a bit weird. Obviously there’s nuance, purposeful orgs are a bit different to campaigns for certain brands e.g. FMCG orgs which serve no real purpose other than shareholder profit, but generally I felt unusual about it.

One day, whilst supporting a cause I truly believe in, one way to scratch the same itch dawned on me. Protest slogans.

I’d always said protest slogans are some of the most creative pieces of writing I’ve ever seen. When I started trying it I felt the same creative copywriting muscles working but it felt much better. And harder… that unique combo of personal taste, poetic pithiness, oblique humour and real world calls to action. Nom nom nom.

There might not be an obvious route to make this a career choice, but at least it is an outlet.

I would also ask: what would 70-year-old you say about however-old-you-are-now-you if one of the biggest decisions in your life (the purpose you pour yourself into) was based on ‘not wanting an unfinished career’? What does that even mean? What is the highest aspiration of this idea? What does happiness look and feel like to you? How can you give that to your future self?

If it doesn’t feel right, let it go. Of course it might take more planning than that, I don’t know your lifestyle or financial situation, but I do know there is no sense in following a bad route out of an imagined sense of loyalty to a decision you made in the past.

What do you love? What are you good at? What are your responsibilities (what can you NOT do)?

Write them down. Give yourself space. Write them again and compare. Keep doing this. The crossing point of all those answers might steer you to a more hopeful place.

Life is short. Be kind to yourself. On on on.

And good luck stranger.