One thing I don’t think gets talked about enough in design and development is balance. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of working endlessly — tweaking layouts late into the night, perfecting code until sunrise, chasing the next project, the next client, the next opportunity. For a while, I thought that was the only way to grow.

But here’s the truth I’ve been learning: creativity doesn’t thrive in burnout.

Some of my best ideas came not when I was staring at my screen for the fifteenth hour in a row, but when I was away from it. Walking through London, sitting in a café, flipping through a book, even doing absolutely nothing. Inspiration shows up when your mind has room to wander, not when it’s trapped in endless loops of productivity.

Don’t get me wrong — hard work matters. Dedication matters. But if you never pause, if you never recharge, your work starts to lose its spark. You stop experimenting. You stop playing. And design without play is just… work.

I think finding balance is about designing your life as intentionally as your projects. That means making time for rest, for exercise, for curiosity outside the screen. It means saying no sometimes, even to exciting opportunities, because your future self will thank you for the space.

It also means being kind to yourself. Not every project will be groundbreaking. Not every line of code will be perfect. And that’s okay. Progress is built in small steps, not giant leaps.

At the end of the day, being a designer and creative developer isn’t just about what we make — it’s about how we live while making it. A balanced, inspired life leads to balanced, inspired work.

So if you’re ever feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or burned out, step away. Take a walk. Breathe. The work will still be there when you come back — and you’ll come back sharper, fresher, and ready to create something better than before.