Hi there!

So, I have some updates about how AnthroBrand is going to operate going forward. As many of you know, I was recently recalled to my full time job, and my professional responsibilities are consuming a lot more time and energy than expected. It's taken me three months to realize it, but I now see that I do not have the time or capacity to run AnthroBrand and the communities that have blossomed around it by myself. With this being said, I'm going to make a few changes when it comes to AB, the Discord Server, and my personal life.

Change Number One:

Consolidation of all satellite communities into the main AB Server.

This change has already happened, but I want to highlight on this because I feel like it's an important topic to cover for many reasons. Last week, I consolidated the AnthroBrand Art Jam server into the main AB server to reduce my overall load when it comes to community management. Running more than one server is extremely challenging when you also have client and friend servers to look after. By consolidating the AB servers, I took the first step towards regaining some time and energy. Granted, this wasn't an easy decision to make, but if I'm burnt out, how can I help anyone else?

I think everyone should take a moment to do an inventory of their current responsibilities and assess where things can be consolidated (merging companies, assets, or projects into one cohesive unit), or liquidated (the process of bringing a company, asset, or project, to a reasonable end). This should be part of the process during any major life change, or at least once every six months. We all lose time on projects that aren't panning out, and sometimes taking that knowledge and putting it into another area can be very beneficial.

Change Number Two:

Adjusting my availability to fit my schedule and life.

Next, I will be adjusting my availability to fit my new lifestyle of working full time and also running AnthroBrand. My email will remain accessible 24/7/365, but I am going to start reclaiming some social channels that I once opened up for AB. My new availability is now posted on the site.

My Discord will no longer be listed on the AB site and all business inquiries will need to be submitted through either email, Twitter, or Telegram. I'm keeping Telegram as an option so I have a place to chat with those who have questions, but my Discord will no longer be available as an outlet for AB. I have too much to keep up with on there as it is, so I'm reducing my overall workload by eliminating this channel and routing all AB business through Telegram and email.

This is something else I think you should consider if you're feeling overwhelmed. You can restrict certain channels to only your personal life and have others dedicated to your online work. This separation of work/life is a great asset when it comes to finding balance.

Please note: Current clients will not be affected by this change.

Change Number Three:

Adopting a new sona to regain freedom and keep my brand consistent.

Anyone who has been around me long enough knows that I lament using my sona as the face of AnthroBrand. Doing this has severely limited what I can do while maintaining credibility in a professional sense. Things like posting nsfw art or thoughts just isn't something I feel comfortable doing on the main AB Twitter, and the more I think about it, I don't really like doing it on my AD account either. Mariah is AnthroBrand and I want to always maintain a certain image for the company itself, which means my lizard brain is always frustrated because I can't indulge in certain desires without fear of consequence.

As a result, be prepared to see a separation in both my writing and my online presence! I'm going to adopt Marlo as my sona and keep Mariah as the face of AnthroBrand. All things AB related will still be routed to Mariah, where as all of my personal life stuff and presence on Discord will transition to Marlo. Just the thought of having a sona that is still me, but not as connected to AB, feels so amazing. I will finally be able to do all the things I haven't been able to, and it won't directly reflect on the site. Letters from the Editor will come from Marlo, whereas actual professional writing will come from Mariah. Hopefully this helps set the tone of each article as well~

As a personal note: No, I'm not going to be any different. I'm still going to be the same person, just with a cute new look. Not like people changing sona's is uncommon in our community, but this is truly fueled by my need to separate my work and personal lives.

Change Number Four:

Delegation of responsibilities to the AB Team.

Beginning June 5th, there will be a new email address, and staff page, added to the site. This will also coincide with the consolidation of all AB Staff roles into one AB Support Staff role on Discord. By moving everyone into one roll and ensuring that they are all comfortable with community support, I will be able to free up even more time to write articles and keep helping clients get organized. I will still be available on the server, but I won't be the only person people can talk to about AB.

The first thing I want everyone to keep in mind is that these people are volunteers. Each one of them has a life outside of AB, but has been kind enough to support our mission and help our community prosper. Everyone will get to meet and read a small bio about each of the Support Staff members when the new page goes live on June 5th.

Change Number Five:

Spending more time focused on client's needs.

Since I have been so busy and kinda spiraling into burnout after burnout, I want to make it clear to everyone why I'm making all of these changes.

I want to be able to spend more time in client servers, answering questions, interacting, and helping people get their own lives balanced.

I want to be able to join game sessions, really focus on saving up for my dreams of being a VTuber, and be able to just be more personable with everyone who has supported AB or is just part of my friend circle. I want to have the energy and mental capacity to be social again, so this is what I'm doing to reach those goals. I know it's a lot of change in a short time but, just like every other project out there, AnthroBrand is evolving. It continues to expand and I need to adjust in order to keep that momentum.

AB is helping more and more creators find their center and that's fantastic! I have written countless articles, built more servers than I can remember, constructed a free TOS base, and administered the launch of several subscription services for new and veteran creators alike. This is what I enjoy doing the most and I still do it all for free. Yes, AB has a Patreon, but it's strictly volunteer and will remain that way. I will never charge for the services I provide that are designed to help creators gain control over their projects.

I hope these changes aren't too dramatic or a big surprise to anyone. I'm just a dog, and tinydeer, who is trying her best.

Just to reiterate so there isn't any confusion:

I wanna thank everyone for reading and sticking with me through this whole thing. I'm learning as I go and I want to keep helping everywhere I can. Life is forever a WIP and I cannot believe that like, almost 700 people are interested in watching how mine progresses. Thank you all for your support and believing in what I am doing has real value to the Anthro community.