I’ve kept my head down for a minute. ..
It’s a few things:
I always slow down in the heat.
But also I’ve been neck-deep in learning hashtag#comfyui
That’s an AI image/video gen workflow, for those not familiar.
While trying to navigate the “what’s next” of an entire industry caving in on itself(industries?), I keep circling back to the same advice I’ve heard and given:
"Now’s your chance to look inward. What do you really love to do? Chase that dream, buddy!"
Problem is, I’m already doing what I love.
So instead of pivoting, I’m doubling down.
As a visual storyteller (that’s what we’re calling ourselves, right?), it feels like the market wants us to pitch, produce, manage post, and now also AI.
...And do it all at rates from the ‘90s, but be born in the 2000s.
“YouTube native”—barf.
It can feel a little dire. A friend asked me, “How *hard* do I have to try to learn the tools that are going to replace me?”
He’s not wrong to ask. I don’t have a great answer.
“AI is a tool, it’s the wielder who makes the art” only works if leadership isn’t actively trying to hire the tool instead of the artist. At ‘90s rates.
I’ve tried to keep some hope intact, but it’s hard when there’s a waiting list to become an Uber Eats driver. There is no backup plan. The first people out the door got those warehouse jobs.
…So I’m learning the AI video stuff.
Thankfully I still love learning.
Still love storytelling.
Still love working the flow.
But don’t let the comfortably employed tell you nothing’s changed.
Whether the guy up top self-owns us into a recession or not, we’re in a new era of “career,” and it’s not going back to pre-COVID norms.
Go easy on yourself. But it’s time to think marathon, not sprint. (Rise and grind, amirite?)
The need to keep current, or wipe out, is at an all-time high.
Reach out here or roll through my spot in town and we can sit around the fire pit.
Let's talk it out.
We’re in the next-level-resilience phase of being a worker, and we could all use the support.
I want to connect.
I want to see how we make things happen with these new skills.
And I want to talk to people working with Comfy right now: send me your workflows!
xoxo
