The reality of running your own creative business
Thereās a lot of talk about āmaking it happenā. It seems so easy when you see the words in a brushstroke font on Pinterest or Instagram.* You click ālikeā or you pin it. You feel inspired for a few seconds or (if youāre lucky) minutes and then you go back to your real life. In your real life, things probably arenāt Instagram-perfect and an inspirational quote isn’t going to change your life.
Maybe (like me) you have moments in your creative life where youāre crying at the dining room table because you HATE the illustration youāre working on and feel like itāll never be ārightā. Maybe (if youāre lucky) you have someone in your life that will see you struggling to create something as awesome as you want it to be and encourage you to keep pushing. If you don’tĀ have someone like that, then let Ira Glass be your person and read this.
Maybe (like me) you have moments in your business life where youāre so overwhelmed that you actually have āfantasiesā of getting a cold or the flu, just so you can have an excuse to take a break from the hustle of being the head of every department of your small business. Or maybe you find yourself spending way too much focusing on what your peers are doing and you get lost in this āwhy canāt my business be as successful as theirs mindsetā. Iāve been there too. Maybe you consider getting a āreal jobā with benefits and a 401k and co-workers to chat with on your break (as opposed to doing what I do ā sharing my innermost thoughts with my pets).
Iām going to share the big āsecretā I learned pretty early on in my business and creative life. It isnāt easy. Youāre going to have moments where you want to do more than throw in the towel. Youāre going to want to take the towel and stomp on it and then burn it while chanting or screaming. Youāre going to get intense bouts of imposter syndrome and question why you ever thought YOU had the talent to be an artist or the skills to be a business owner. Doubt and overwhelm WILL HAPPEN! Theyāre unavoidable. What separates the makers who are dreaming of making time for their creativity or the entrepreneurs who are wishing they had the problem of not being able to keep up with the demand for their products or services is not JUSTĀ talent (Ie: having a product or service that someone actually wants to engage with) but perseverance, working hard AND smart and adaptation.
You probably know all the stories about the failures of highly successful people. Twelve publishers rejected J.K. Rowlingsā manuscript for Harry Potter. Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before he secured financing for Disneyland. Vincent Van Gogh only sold one painting while he was alive. Thomas Edison said, āIf I find 10,000 ways something wonāt work, I havenāt failed. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.ā Einsteinās teachers thought he was āmentally handicappedā and āslowā. The first time jerry Seinfeld was onstage he was booed off. Henry fordās first auto company went out of business. Yet, all of these people persevered. They didnāt let go. They pushed beyond the fear and kept making and taking chances.
When it seems like someone has āgotten a big breakā it probably means that after years of honing their craft, working hard AND smart and adapting has finally paid off.
Perhaps there are some modern-day versions of Marilyn Monroeās āgetting discovered at a coffee shopā story but I donāt know of anyone like that nowadays. From actors to entrepreneurs to artists to chefs to bloggers to musiciansā¦ EVERYONE I know that has gotten to a point where they feel (at least a bit) comfortable with their finances and security has worked hard AND smart to get there!
Youāve probably guessed by now that I donāt have all the answers. Despite being a maker, artist and creative business owner for nearly two decades thereās STILL so much for me to learn. Maybe thatās the pointā¦ never rest on your laurels. Keep pushing. Keep working. Keep building your community.
These past few months my inspiration has gotten a shot in the arm. My overwhelm turned into excitement. My questioning of the path I choose transformed into confidence when I truly internalized that I would never be happy working for someone else. My insecurities related to my creativity didnāt feel as detrimental when I reminded myself that at least Iām MAKING SOMETHING!
Donāt get me wrongā¦ I still have those moments of doubt and burnout and asking myself how I ever ended up in such an emotionally and mentally taxing career. BUT at the end of THIS day Iām feeling pretty grateful.
I know itās WAY easier to focus on what my life isnāt, rather than what it is. As someone whoās never been able to be 100% āon itā about keeping up with self-care daily routinesā¦ I try to focus on positive things in my life (Ie: gratitude but without all the yoga, smoothies and appropriated Buddhist prayer flags arched in my backyard ā not that thereās anything wrong with that stuff if youāre into but it just isnāt for me) Iām all about the 80/20 rule. I try to do the things I know Iām supposed to do 80% of the time.
Those āthings Iām supposed to doā include all kinds of things from walking my dog to drinking more than a few sips of water per day to not slinking off for a drive-thru cheeseburger to not procrastinating to being kind to myself to forcing myself to make time for continuing to learn.
One of my (many) therapists once told me to treat myself as if I were a small child. Ie: what I would say to a small child that felt like a loser? Or was berating him/herself for making a decision? Or wouldnāt let him/herself take a break?
Through all of these moments of questioning my creative and business self, aside from my natural drive to keep going, the other two most helpful things that have kept me from curling up into a ball and marathon-watching on-demand TV shows are my community and the excitement I get from learning new things.
After all these years as an artist and business owner I know how important having a support system in place is as well as how key it is to be up to date on whatās happening in your community. This second part is more important than ever before as a large majority of our lives are lived and shared online and the online social world (in the grand scheme of things) is still such a new thing. The first part (community) is something every human has needed forever.
For me, the first time I FINALLY felt that sense of belonging to a group of like-minded individuals was at our once a year event,Ā Craftcation: Business and Makers Conference. Aside from the community I get there, the education is what helps me stay on top of trends and get the skills and resources to build my business as the entrepreneurial climate evolves. I also get a much-needed break from my routine and am able to look at my life and business from a new perspective. Finally, (after so long of making things with a purpose) I rediscover the pure joy of creating in the moment.
If youāre a maker, creative business owner, blogger or a creative person looking to better your business and lifeĀ then join me and 400+ other amazing, inspiring, welcoming people at Craftcation.
The community, skills, resources, tools and knowledge are waiting for you.
Donāt miss your chance for this one a year life-changing event to:
-Build your community
-Start the business of your dreams
-Get the tools and knowledge to push your existing business to the next level
-Feel the pure joy of learning new skills and making
-Spend four days at the beach having fun
-Nicole S.
*(from first paragraph) We’re totally guilty of being suckers for the whole inspirational quote thing too. In fact, “Make it happen” was one of our Craftcation mottos!
