The Unseen Deck by Sara Menegazzi

  The Illusion of Choice I recently read a statement from a post on LinkedIn that made me pause: "The customer is always right; consumers want and engage with AI-generated content, so advertising campaigns are shifting in that direction." But is it really that simple? Are we truly exercising free will, or are we being subtly guided? Is it an insult to human intelligence to say that many people are influenced without realizing it? In a world where algorithms curate our feeds, what feels like choice is often highly engineered. Every click, scroll, and interaction is tracked and analyzed to predict and influence our behavior. The world no longer waits for us to react: it acts on us first, shaping desires and preferences preemptively. Researchers at the University of Cambridge caution that AI tools might soon influence online decisions, from purchasing choices to voting preferences. The paper discusses the emerging "intention economy," where AI assistants predict an...

On September 1st, I launched my very first web novel in Italian "Gli Intuitivi" on Wattpad . It’s a project that has been living in my head and heart for years, and soon it will also be available in English. That moment of finally hitting “publish” sparked the reflections behind this article: what it really means to believe in your ideas, and how clarity and courage can turn fragile sparks into something real. I’ll admit it right away: I’ve spent plenty of time doubting my own ideas.  Some felt too fragile, others too silly, and many just too unpolished to deserve a voice. But here’s the funny thing—whenever I gave those ideas the smallest chance to live, they started to surprise me. They grew, they sparked conversations, they connected dots I didn’t even know were there. And I realized that most ideas don’t fail because they’re “bad.” They fail because we don’t believe in them long enough to see what they might become. Clarity as your secret compass Clarity is not about hav...

  Sometimes what we think defines us is the starting point on a bigger, richer journey. I believed I’d make comics forever: ever since elementary school, drawing panels felt like my true calling. I've drawn dozens of comics throughout my early life. However, when I began studying animation, I realised I loved collaborating in a team much more than drawing solo pages for hours. It was a surprising self-discovery that teaching, teamwork, and shared creative energy truly energised me more than solitary creation.  Study as a Mirror and a Doorway Don't get me wrong, I still love making comics and a nice, solitary creative session. But education did something special for me, more than just providing information: it expanded my mind outward and inward. It reveals preferences you never knew you had and helps you explore parts of yourself previously hidden. Continuous learning isn’t a luxury for those who have time; it’s a journey of self-discovery and evolution that everyone should...

What is “numbness” at work? Also known as emotional disconnection or going into automatic pilot (or, as I call it in Italian, the “sti cazzi" mode), this state occurs when people gradually detach from their job, tasks, colleagues, and even their own feelings. It’s that creeping sense that your voice no longer matters, your contributions have no impact, and you're just going through the motions, disengaged, detached, numb. Credits: Oscar Dario - Unsplash The insidious onset of numbness Numbness doesn't happen overnight. It typically creeps in slowly, especially among passionate collaborators who deeply care about a project. They believe in the mission, they give their all, and then, unexpectedly, something breaks and the connection fades. Employees start checking out mentally, not because they don’t care, but because they feel unvalued, unheard, invisible. Why numbness is devastating both for people and companies For anyone who cares about their work, this is one of the wor...

Have you ever been told that having a Plan B is essential? For years, I believed it too. That it’s smart to have a backup ready when Plan A doesn’t work out. But today, I want to share a different perspective: Plan B, as we often think of it, is mostly just an excuse to not fully commit to our main goal. In fact, Plan B is… useless. Plan B doesn’t exist: it’s just Plan A in disguise Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you should stubbornly cling to the first idea no matter what. The point is this: Plan B is actually just an adaptation of Plan A. When something doesn’t work, you don’t need to “change plans.” Instead, you adjust your course while keeping your destination in sight. Think of it like navigating north with a compass. If there’s an obstacle in the way, you might need to detour east or west, but your true direction stays fixed. The secret is to have an internal compass, your mental north,  that guides you every time you need to recalibrate. Why your internal compass i...

To my younger self of five years ago You’re tired. You think you’re doing everything wrong. You question whether you made the right choice by becoming a freelance creative. You compare yourself to others who seem miles ahead. You wonder why things take so long, why you feel behind, and why you keep starting over. Here’s what I’d tell you now: You’re not behind. You’re building something real, and it takes time. Those moments when creativity feels blocked? They’re not a sign you’ve failed. They’re a sign you’re evolving. You’re learning how to lead yourself when no one’s watching. How to get back up after a slow season. How to create when the energy is low. And yes, you’ll get better at it. You’ll learn to breathe through the fog. To take micro-steps every day: a sketch, a list, a few written lines. To lean on the people who get it. To stop waiting for perfect conditions. You’ll create work you’re proud of. You’ll inspire others without even knowing it. You’ll find your rhy...