Do/ Disrupt/ – If it ain’t broke, break it

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“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got”
Henry Ford

I recently re-discovered a book by Mark Shayler someone I met many years ago (promise I won’t plagiarise the whole book) a charismatic man with many great ideas.

I’ve been freelancing for over 18 years or so, spent 12 years in my last role at Fuzzy Duck as Head of Digital and for some bizarre reason spent 9 years at 7comms – damn that makes me feel old!

Sticking to the norm is easy, it becomes orderly…it’s not disruptive. Be disruptive!

I’d like to think I spent most of my career being challenged with tasks that I wasn’t 100% sure I could do, but I did it anyway and I always found a solution, whether it was experimenting with new tech….3D, VR, game development, native app dev, augmented reality, Phidget sensors, web sockets etc etc…the list goes on and I won’t bore you with the details.

In the end, you just have to do something you love!

So, what defines success? Is it money? recognition? fame?…maybe in it’s simplest form it’s watching your mum play with an interactive you made at the Manchester United Museum (free entry)…or your kids running riot at Eureka! pleading they don’t break anything you and your colleagues have spent months working on…or Steve the builder getting new clients because of the website you built him.

Success is subjective – and I haven’t peaked yet!

The life of a freelancer

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I remember the first freelance job I had, it was in 2008! It was for a local company which is just around the corner from me now in Great Moor…light years away from what was my bachelor pad in Cale Green.

There is a certain danger in taking that freelance step, to move away from a guaranteed salary, going into the unknown, and I’ve been very fortunate to work with some amazing clients and truly talented individuals during my career.

Pre Covid, everyone was expected to be in the office with a 9-5 mentality…but let’s be honest it was more like a 7-6 with the traffic / parking, particularly in MediaCityUK.

Post Covid we had a hybrid working environment…and we were agile, and it worked. There is so much more creative freedom in doing what you’re good at, in a hoodie, music on, at home, and I don’t miss the office environment.

Alistair Monaghan

Now its 2026, and I’m entering a new phase of my freelance career. I’m still upskilling and trying to find my niche in this tumultuous time, while ignoring all the targeted marketed base44 / bolt social media posts.

Onwards and upwards for 2026!!! – GSAP / Three.js