This year has been quiet.
Not the kind of quiet that brings calm or clarity. The kind that makes you question things.
If you run a small studio or freelance practice, maybe you’ve felt it too: fewer inquiries, more silence in your inbox, projects that don’t quite get greenlit. Weeks where the only thing moving is the cursor on your calendar as another block of time stays unbooked.
And it’s not just about work. It’s about what the quiet stirs up.
Running a studio, especially solo, usually means spinning plates. You wear every hat. You become very good at staying busy—sometimes out of passion, sometimes out of necessity. But this year, the plates slowed down. Some dropped. And that stillness didn’t feel spacious. It felt unsettling.
I’ve had stretches of time where I wasn’t designing much of anything. No brand systems or packaging layouts. Just the invisible work: updating case studies, writing proposals, refreshing the portfolio, trying to stay ready—even when nothing was knocking.
There’s a mental weight that comes with that kind of limbo. It’s not burnout exactly. It’s more like being creatively paused while still carrying the pressure to perform.
One of the harder parts of being a small studio—or a one-person studio—is how isolated it can feel. You don’t have a team to debrief with when things are slow. You don’t always know if it’s just you. You start asking hard questions:
Is this a me problem? A market shift? Do I need to reinvent everything again?
Social media doesn’t help. It’s easy to believe everyone else is thriving, booking dream clients, and growing their teams. But behind closed doors and quiet DMs, I’ve seen another reality: many of us are navigating uncertainty. Quietly. Alone.
And yet—this quiet season hasn’t been all bad.
It’s given me space to reflect on what kind of work I truly want to do. Who I want to partner with. What I want Elsy to feel like—not just for clients, but for myself. I’ve revisited old ideas. I’ve explored new ones. I’ve slowed down enough to hear myself again. That’s something.
There have been small wins. A surprise referral. A project that aligned perfectly. A kind word from a past client. Sometimes that’s all it takes to keep going.
If you’ve been feeling any of this—uncertain, unmotivated, a little disconnected—I just want to say: you’re not alone.
This season has been humbling, but also clarifying. It’s reminded me that creative businesses aren’t just built on momentum. They’re built on resilience, reinvention, and rest.
So here’s a quiet invitation:
If this year has been slow for you too, I’d love to hear about it.
You don’t need to have a plan. Just say hi.
We’re still here. Still making. Still believing in the power of design to connect, express, and move things forward—one slow, thoughtful step at a time.
— Lucie
Elsy is a woman-owned creative studio in Portland, OR. We partner with the most talented creatives and freelancers to tell your story and achieve your goals.