We had the good fortune of connecting with Kylie McLaughlin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kylie, how has your pespective on work-life balance evolved over time?
Finding balance is a challenge even when we aren’t dealing with global pandemics. Balance is something we inherently need to feel centered throughout the days, weeks, and months of our lives. I believe that a part of work is taking life’s challenges and adapting the best we can with the circumstances we are handed. Let me preface that I am no one to preach this from perfect practice. Before the shutdown, I realized that my workflow is best when I have balance in all the areas of my life. I have come to find that work is life and life can be hard work. In order to be happy I have learned to keep all the areas of my life in check. At the start of my freelancing odyssey I had a terrible time finding balance. The improvement I have managed to make over the past 5 years has come from recognizing my need for change throughout my days. I used to spend 6 to 8 hours a day focused on a single project. I understand now that straining myself that way led to a lot of imbalance in my life. Nowadays, with plenty of projects and tasks needing to be done, I’ve improved my ability to stop one thing and start working on another. I call them tasks, but this includes self care. Things like taking a walk outside, calling my mom, and playing with my guinea pig take just as much priority as my work tasks do. The textbook definition of balance is to have an equal distribution in parts. I relate this to the important parts of life and nourishing them equally. Self care is just as important as career success. Really more so, but what can I say, I’m still learning.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a music videographer and photographer. I film and photograph all things music including live music performances, band portraits, promos, and music videos. Making music videos is what led me into the world of music media and still brings me the most joy to make. With Covid-19 my work has been justifiably halted, so the art I’ve been working on in these months of quarantine have been restricted to take place in and around my home. This has been a challenge for me, as I know it has been for a lot of artists. Being a freelance artist in and of itself has proven to carry many challenges. My hope is that we all come out of this challenge even stronger. In November of last year I moved to Austin Tx in hopes of having greater film opportunities. In February I was awarded Best Music Video Director by Central Track. The creative fire inside of me was beginning to grow, and I know I’m not the only artist who felt waves of momentum before everything shut down. However, despite the hardships, I have seen so many people doing what they do best — getting creative. From Facetime photo shoots to writing songs about isolation, I’m grateful for these artists who’ve kept me inspired while I try to stay creative from home as well. My fire hasn’t been extinguished. My roommate, Reno Nevada, is a talented rapper and I have not let the opportunity to make him a music video during this time go to waste. We thought while in quarantine, it would be a fun challenge to see which corners & bits of our house we could make look compelling in camera. This project is currently in the editing process so stay tuned!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Can I shout out my mom for this? If so, a big shout out to PJ. My longest and purest supporter.

Website: kidfilmingkid.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/kylie.the.kid/
Youtube: youtube.com/kidfilmingkid

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