Katy Fairman

If there was a way to brush the cobwebs off a WordPress admin dashboard, then I would be doing that right now. 

Once a home for my motorsport musings, this website has now become a base for my contact information and examples of my work. I recently completed a huge refresh of this website, but my main focus was getting back to contributing on this blog as it was where I first fell in love with writing. The outlet that made me realise I wanted a future in motorsport journalism. 

I don’t yet know what I will be writing, perhaps a mix of opinionated pieces and interviews but one thing I am keen to continue with are these ‘diary’ style posts. I am happy to speak candidly about most things, even on the internet, and one thing that has been on my mind recently is the topic of comparison. 

I think it’s often easy to overload yourself with commitments – something I have found particularly true when going freelance – as in this age of social media, we’re always just meant to look ‘busy’. I always have the fear that I don’t appear to be doing enough, even though at the start of this year I visited nine countries across four continents in six months. Still, comparison is, and always will be, a thing I struggle with, despite all the motivational quotes you see plastered over Pinterest. 

However, this year I have tried to get better and understand ‘me’ a little better. Even at 28-years-old, there are always new things to learn about yourself. 

One of my biggest takeaways has been the simple fact that we are all on different paths. I know it’s easy to think, ‘well, duh Katy’, but I cannot tell you the amount of times I have seen people online and thought to myself “well, I wasn’t doing that at that age so I must be behind”. 

“There’s so much time to achieve dreams you don’t even know exist yet.”

It’s a toxic mindset, and as a rule it’s important to remember that there is no fixed schedule for us to follow, especially in a creative field like journalism. I never went to university, never took a single course and learnt all the skills I have in my own time, but there are also people who did study and have a qualification. Guess what? Both are totally fine. There are also others who finished an unrelated degree at higher education, but changed their mind or those that found their passions later in life. 

As much as I tend to mirror my own achievements against those of a similar age or younger than me, it’s also important to have perspective. I am 28, and although that felt really old when I was growing up, I have come to realise that it’s still so young! Yes, my friends are getting married and starting families, but there’s so much time to achieve dreams I don’t even know exist yet.

Of course, these habits of comparing yourself to those you see in the media can be tamed. I personally find it good to follow people who bring positive vibes and are authentic to my timeline – I say sat behind my laptop in my pyjamas at 14:19 on a Thursday afternoon. Oops.

Although I am sure comparisons will still come and go from time to time, we are only human after all, I find so much enjoyment and pride in celebrating my friends achievements instead. I am super lucky to have met some incredible people during my time working in motorsport, and seeing what they are up to and being their cheerleader is so much more rewarding than finding myself stuck in a doom scroll on Instagram. 

I know this is a very short and random blog entry, but I wanted to end it with one saying that has stuck with me on this subject matter.

“Don’t measure your progress with someone else’s ruler”. 

Speak soon, and hopefully with a post that is a little more related to motorsport!

Best, Katy​​

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