Hey guys,
I wanted to ask something honestly, especially to people who’ve been in the creative industry for a few years.
When I was around 21, I used to have endless ideas. I constantly wanted to create something, explore something, build something. My mind was full of imagination all the time. Every idea felt exciting and alive.
By 22–23, I started executing those ideas. I got into shooting, editing, campaigns, projects — and creatively, things were going really well. Whenever I edited something, I could already see the final film in my head before even touching the timeline. I knew what shots would go where, what emotions would hit, what music would fit, how the pacing would feel. Everything felt natural.
Now it’s 2026. I’ve been in this industry for around 3 years professionally, and something feels very different.
I feel like my imagination has shrunk.
Earlier, it felt like my creativity could reach level 50, 60, 70. Now it barely reaches level 10. It’s like opening a book where only the first page has words and the rest of the pages are blank — even though they used to be full before.
Not just creatively, but emotionally too.
I don’t feel the same connection to life, ideas, feelings, or even myself anymore. I feel more robotic now. Like I’m just being told to do things and I’m mechanically doing them.
Somewhere between 2022 and now, I feel like I lost that younger version of myself — the energetic, curious, alive guy who genuinely loved creating.
Now everything feels more about money, deadlines, output, survival.
I’ve also gained a lot of weight recently, and sometimes I genuinely don’t recognize myself mentally or physically anymore.
Has anyone else gone through this after working professionally in creative fields for a few years?
Does creativity come back?
Or is this just what happens when passion becomes work?