Rachel How

Right now, it's the Apple Studio Display. I appreciate that it has a beautiful screen, speakers and webcam all in one aesthetically-pleasing product. It syncs well since I'm using the Apple trackpad and keyboard. I just love it so much.

Honestly, I struggle with this a lot. Things that worked for me so far are:

• Caffeine (coffee/tea) to get in the zone
• Noise-cancelling earphones or focus music (classical music is great!) to focus
• Gather inspiration from various sources. It could be creative advertisements from different brands in different countries, listening to great podcasts, flipping through magazines/books, going to a café that you've never been before, trying something new, sketching on the notebook.
• Take a break. Switch it up. If you design every day and feel like you're lacking creativity, go and do something else, like cooking or camping or whatever that you enjoy.

On weekdays, I start my day with a cup of hot coffee or Malaysian milk tea (we call it 'teh c' here). Then, I sit down at my desk and look at the events scheduled for the day, as well as my to-do list. Few times a week, I review my to-do lists and decide which to eliminate. Being my own boss means that I can work at any time I want, depending on my energy levels. I love what I do - hopping between multiple responsibilities in a day - Product design, entrepreneurship and content creation. My days are unpredictable and I don't function well with rigid schedules, but I try to make sure I get 2 to 4 hours of uninterrupted work time. Apart from that, I follow my heart/gut and do whatever that is most important (to me) for that day.

Yes, I have 8 income streams but they all span from 3 main focuses - Client work (UI/UX design services), content creation (creating YouTube videos), and digital products (resume templates etc). So, these are the 3 things I spend my energy on, every Monday-Friday. The by-product of these income sources are things like YouTube ad revenue, brand deals, affiliate income, and donations. I'd love to expand more on digital product income as it is more passive.