Hey !

I still remember a few years back shet a decade ago na pala. 

This was when I decided to become a full-time freelancer. 

Back then, most of my regular freelance video editing clients naglaho at the same time (it was around August din, and I didn’t know the concept of Ghost Month yet). 

No matter where I looked or who I talked to, I just could not find any new projects to take on. 

April yata ako nag-resign sa office and then August na, waley pa din. 

My ipon looked like a jeepney trying to get through rush hour traffic with only three wheels.. at madami pang nakasabit.. habang maulan at baha.. at malayo pa yung terminal.

Yes, ganong visceral levels. 

It was incredibly frustrating and discouraging. 

I started doubting whether I had what it takes to make it as a video guy. I even considered giving up entirely and going back to a boring yet comfy desk job. 

I didn’t realize it back then, but working in corporate made my mindset become very fixed na pala - I was convinced that I simply couldn't survive or thrive as a freelancer.

But then, I got a message from a former photography client na lawyer, (I took their portraits for their firm’s website) who needed a personal blogging website built for him and his writer friends.

Sabi ko, “sakto marunong ako nyan.” 

Even though I had zero experience building websites from scratch. ^_^

I simply jumped at the opportunity due to desperation, lol.

Learning WordPress and figuring out web design in 2013 (wala pang drag and drop and one-click websites like we have these days) was painfully difficult and time-consuming. 

Many times I wanted to quit mid-project. But somehow, by persevering through the long nights googling the error messages that inevitably resulted, plus watching YouTube tutorial after tutorial, I got it done. 

When the client left a nice review after the project, it completely changed my mindset about my freelancing business, and myself as a whole. 

Their website was called Kartilya PH, and it was essentially a combined blog of 3 lawyer and writer friends. They’ve since moved on to other things and wala na yung website ngayon, but I actually found the PDF USER GUIDE of me giving them the ‘keys’ to the website. 

As I was reading it, napasabi ako, “Holy Cow, sino tong taong to?! Ang techie nya a!”

Good times. 

It was like a totally different person from how you know me today (a couple of re-inventions later). Let me know if you recognize the 10-year younger version ni Shoden from that PDF above hehe

And I got paid a tumataginting na… 

I didn’t say na magaling ako mag-pricing nun ha. Dami pa ding kulang hahaha. The negotiation skills would come later pa. Ibang email na yun.

Anyway, back to our story. 

I realized that if I said “I can’t do that,” I was severely limiting my potential without even realizing it. 

The power comes when we catch ourselves in that fixed mindset rut, and ito yong magic word.

Add mo lang yung word na. “YET!” 

This turns it into “I can’t do that...yet!” (tapos sabay bulong.. I-google ko yan later hehe)

Suddenly no freelance project, no skill seems impossible to learn anymore. 

Everything becomes an opportunity to expand our abilities and grow.

I don’t have the expertise to build highly functional apps from scratch YET. But with some targeted practice and persistence + pig-headed tenacity and AI, I can absolutely get there!

Making engaging explainer videos for startups seems totally out of reach given my limited video editing experience. But with the right software and some practice, I can level up my skills and start offering that service...ay wait! 

Nagawa ko na pala yan in one of my next evolutions, hehe.

Pero you get it na, right? 

I wanted to share this kasi if someone like me managed to do it, ikaw pa kaya ? 

The “yet” mindset opens up a world of possibilities and potential we may have previously shut ourselves off from. 

When we start believing in our capacity to learn and grow, we become unstoppable.

Are there skills you’ve convinced yourself you just “can’t” learn or projects you “could never” take on? 

Catch yourself and change that fixed mindset when it appears! 

Say the magic word “...yet” and open yourself up to new opportunities.

If you found this mindset shift valuable, it would mean the world to me if you share it sa friends mo who may be feeling discouraged or stuck. 

Together, we can turn “can’t do” statements into “can do...yet!” moments. (I’m working on it to make sound cooler, pero ganon talaga sya e, hehe)

Happy Friday!

Shoden "Webdeveloper Chops" San

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