This Content on the Go Thing is Difficult.
I’ve been struggling. When I started this journey, I thought I knew exactly what to do - grow my platforms, build an audience, and turn my love for photography and travel into something sustainable. I set clear goals and timelines, expecting steady progress. The reality has been very different, and now I need to reassess. I’m by no means quitting, but I am facing the fact that my plan may have been unrealistic. The goal stays the same, but my way of getting there needs to change.
Struggling with time management
I thought I could keep up with everything—filming, editing, writing, and posting consistently. However, traveling full-time isn’t just about creating content; it’s about experiencing the places I’m in. The balance is harder than I expected. When you’re moving constantly, your time is consumed by things you don’t account for. I find myself navigating new places almost everyday, finding dinner spots, booking accommodation, researching activities, and discovering the cheapest transport option. It leaves very little time for editing. It feels like I’m always playing catch-up, trying to fit creativity into gaps that barely exist.
Becoming completely overwhelmed
As I started seriously working towards my goal, I realised I was quickly becoming overwhelmed. My brain was constantly firing ideas around, searching for a style and direction with essentially no blueprint. I am constantly looking for photos when out with my camera (which comes everywhere with me), whilst also wondering if I’m going to need video footage to go with the photos. If I decide to record, I need to choose whether i shoot landscape for YouTube or portrait for Instagram. Most of the time I’ve not even had chance to think about the video’s content, I’m just shooting hoping it’ll be useful later. Even if my camera is packed away, I am distracted by thoughts of what needs doing next. Something needs to change.
Feeling Like a Failure (But Not Stopping)
It’s frustrating to set a goal and not hit it. It feels like failure. But the easy route—giving up or pulling back—doesn’t sit right with me. For once, I want to keep pushing, because I believe this is worth figuring out. I know content creation takes time, and I know I need to adapt rather than force a plan that isn’t working.
What Needs to Change
Instead of trying to do everything at once, I need to be smarter about what I create. Maybe it’s fewer but better posts. Maybe it’s focusing on what feels most natural—photography, storytelling—rather than forcing content that doesn’t fit my style. Ive never seen myself as the creative type but now I do, I think I’ve got the ingredients somewhere I just need to turn it into a recipe somehow. I don’t have all the answers yet, but I know one thing: I’m not stopping.
I have realised three key things need to change.
1. Instead of trying to do everything at once, I need to create fewer posts of higher quality. In short, quality over quantity.
2. Stop playing to the algorithm. This is sucking the fun out of creation due to the rigid parameters around the content, duration, and frequency of my posts.
3. Most importantly, remember why I am doing this - photography itself. Taking and editing the shots is what I love. Other things can wait and be built upon in the future.
I have already started to make these changes, and despite still feeling muddled, I definitely feel better. Have you ever felt like this? Let me know!
This Week’s Journey: U-Turns, Ruins, and an Earthquake
If you’ve made it this far—thanks for reading. I’m going to start including a quick update each week on where we’ve been and what’s next. This is that.
This past week has been anything but ordinary. Sammy and I have been making our way through Northern Thailand, pulling last-minute U-turns, exploring ancient ruins, and even experiencing an earthquake.
We started by taking the 10-hour train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, completely burnt out. We spent six days there, two of which we did absolutely nothing—just recharging. The rest of the time, we wandered the Old Town, soaked in live music, took a cooking class, and visited a market on a coconut farm, trying to get back into the travel mindset. I had wanted to see the rice fields, but with it being both dry season and burning season, they were either dull and brown or quite literally on fire. Not ideal.
Originally, we planned to head into Laos via the slow boat, but after some last-minute research, we changed our minds. Low water levels meant a real risk of getting stranded overnight, and the intense burning season meant two days of breathing in thick smoke. Add in a pinch of Sammy excessively reading the government travel advice, and a U-turn was all but definite. We rerouted.
(So much for a small update.)
We still went to Chiang Rai to see the White Temple—stunning. Then, instead of heading to Laos, we made our way back toward Bangkok, stopping along the way. In Lampang, we planned to visit a sky temple, but it was unexpectedly closed due to extreme fires in the area. And that’s where we experienced the earthquake. We were in our hostel room when Sammy suddenly started swaying. We jumped up and ran outside—it felt like being on a boat. Luckily, there was no damage, but for a moment it was a surreal reminder of how small and fragile we really are.
From there, our rerouting meant we got to meet up with friends we made in Malaysia. We explored Sukhothai, the first capital of Thailand (at the time called Siam), renting bikes to explore the ancient ruins. This was one of my favorite stops so far. We even treated ourselves to a “luxury resort” (aka, a place with a pool).
Now, we’re off to Cambodia, feeling re-energized and ready for the next part of the journey.
