Zach here, your friendly neighborhood community manager.

The Memo from the Desk

Zach here, your friendly neighborhood community manager.

Last time we chatted I mentioned the 2 most common issues creatives deal with: Focus & Confidence.

I went over focus last time, let's dive into confidence today.

Have any of these thoughts ever popped into your head? Thoughts like:

• I can't call myself a [Insert Profession] because I never got the training
• Am I making the right choice?
• I feel like a fraud
• Am I good enough?

I'm sure many of us have struggled with these thoughts — I know I have. Sometimes this is called Imposter Syndrome, but when you boil it down it all stems from a lack of confidence.

We lack confidence in ourselves.

We lack confidence in our work.

We lack confidence in our process.

So what can we do about this lack of confidence?

Well therapy is a great suggestion. Some of the hurdles that impact our business are not business issues…they are emotional and psychological issues. Human beings are messy, emotional creatures and when we try to separate that aspect of ourselves from our business we are in for all kinds of problems.

The other thing we can do is reduce the amount of comparing we do to other creatives and their businesses.

Stop looking to other people's businesses to find the right way to run yours… it's your business, run it how you want! The best way to run your business is the way that works best for you.

I think that this constant comparing to others is eroding our confidence in our own work.

We lack confidence in ourselves, because we constantly compare ourselves to others.

We lack confidence in our work, because we constantly compare our work to others' work.

We lack confidence in our process, because we constantly compare it to others' processes.

Stop the comparison and build confidence in yourself.  You are much more valuable than you give yourself credit for.

Until next time.

Zach Ebert,

Maker Division Community Manager

Pretty much everything

On the Bookshelf

Aaron Draplin is a national treasure that we must protect at all costs. His book is a constant on my bookshelf. He taught me the importance of owning my work and being confident in being 100% me.

Get Your Copy

Beetlemoses

Artist We Love

Beetlemoses is a painter and comic strip illustrator. I recently found his comics on Instagram and he's slowly becoming my favorite comic strip artist. The absurdity and mix of zoological topics is hitting some deep part of my subconscious that can't get enough.

CHECK OUT the instagram

ALL Caps by mf doom

Now Playing

I'm a late bloomer when it comes to MR Doom, but I have it one repeat nowadays. Just give it a listen and you'll see what I mean.

GIVE it A LISTEN

Stephen landed a five-figure project with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science —something he once would’ve thought out

of reach.

The opportunity came through a friend with an existing connection to the museum’s marketing team. That intro got Stephen a meeting with their marketing director, and he came in ready. Armed with a newly crafted capabilities deck—built during Maker Division’s Module 3—he pitched his services with clarity, confidence, and strategy. The director later told him it was

that deck that helped seal the deal. Her exact words? “Badass.”

The win wasn’t just about good design. It came from showing up professionally, understanding the value of his work, and having the

assets and negotiation skills to back it all up.

Stephen Vosloo

Division Win

“A 5+ figure engagement I never would have dreamed about with out the tools and coaching I received through [Maker Division[. The Denver Museum of Nature and Science were looking for fresh creative and a friend who I had worked with previously had an established relationship with their marketing department. They got me some face time with their marketing director and I was able to pitch my services using my magic capabilities deck that I had just completed crafting from module 3. She specifically mentioned my deck and how important it was in their decision making. The word "badass" was used and I know I would never have gotten in the door if it wasn't for that heavy lifting marketing asset.”

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