5 Things They Don’t Tell You About Being A Creative
Any pursuit comes with its share of challenges, whether you’ve just started your creative business or you are considering taking your hobby to the next level. I want to hold your hand as we chat about lessons I have learned when I took those first steps. If you’re already running a business, I’d love to hear what you wish you had known in the comments below!
1 - Resting is the most important part.
Perhaps the reason you’ve chosen to really invest in your creative pursuits is that you’ve experienced burnout in a non-creative career. Dude, same. Now I don’t want to yuck your yum, but you can still burn out in a creative career. We creatives are passionate people, especially when in a flow-state It can be difficult deciding when to close up shop for the evening, or when the ideas run rampant and you run out of creative juice. Maybe, most relatable of all, your social media time turns into work, and it’s hard to go off the clock when there are comments and DMs to respond to.
No matter the reason *cough cough excuse* for working overtime or running yourself into the ground, you need to remember to rest. As your own boss and supervisor, it is up to you to create a schedule, give yourself time off, and recognize when to take a break.
If you’re a productivity addict and rest is the last thing you want to do, remember that rest itself is productive. Rest can recharge your creativity. Especially as a creative, your mind is essential for your livelihood, and rest can benefit your mental health. It can give you a chance to process all that has happened so far, and give you inspiration for your business’s next ventures. If you’re a visual artist, you may already be familiar with the benefit of seeing your artwork from various distances - think of giving yourself a break like stepping a few feet further back from your canvas.
2 - Nothing is permanent
This one is kind of obvious, but creative work can be costly. For creatives, there are the costs of art supplies, studio space, running a website, and the list goes on and on. And we love creative growth, so we invest in courses, coaching sessions, and memberships. Then if you choose to launch your creative work to another level and turn your creative passion into something profitable, a whole new slew of costs begin to add up.
Giving financial advice is difficult to do when addressing a variety of creative forms, and when the creators may fund their work through a variety of means. So I won’t belabor specifics here, but assuming your resources are limited for starting your business, you may want to cut a few upfront costs. This might look like taking advantage of sales, buying second-hand, or putting off delegating tasks that you can do yourself. Money can be stressful, so perhaps create savings goals and hold off on more luxurious costs until you feel comfortable making a financial investment. Ultimately, though, it is up to you to decide what costs are essential and which you can cut.
No move you make now is permanent, and you can always re-evaluate your financial priorities down the road. You can make your most intuitive business decisions when your thoughts are not clouded by the burden of financial stress.
3 - Complete originality isn’t a must.
It can be tempting to copy and paste your role model’s creative work or business to try and get a taste of their world. But there’s a fine line between copying and taking inspiration. One is necessary, one is forbidden. You might find that bits and pieces from others can really benefit your business - if you see something that really resonates with you, there’s no harm in trying it out yourself and adapting it to your business. What works for your favorite creative might not work for you, so don’t fret if you struggle to follow your favorite creative’s footsteps.
What’s important is the best way to learn what’s unique about you is to start with copying bits and pieces of something else. Even the greatest painters in our history learned by trying to exactly copy their teacher’s mastery of work.
The beauty of being a creative is that you get to set your own rules. So while others may be a source of inspiration, allow yourself to create a path that is as unique as you are. At the end of the day, your business is unique and will thrive when you treat it as such. But don’t hold yourself back by trying to make everything you do completely original, originality comes naturally with time as you continue to learn and grow from those you admire.
4 - Success comes from a
‘Stick-With-It-Ness’ attitude.
Here’s a cliché, but honest lesson for you: creating is a marathon, not a sprint. It is easy to catch wind of artists who become an overnight viral success, but the vast majority of us are chugging along, working hard, and seeing a steady growth. If you stay consistent and put in the effort, your audience will grow at a steady pace.
Celebrate all of those little wins! If you gain 20 followers in a month, that might not seem like a lot when compared to big-time creatives. But those are 20 people who care about what you’re doing!
With creative work that only YOU can produce, it always comes back to quality over quantity. When you’re feeling swept up in the numbers game, just stick with it. When you’re frustrated that you don’t sell out your product at your grand opening, just keep sticking with it. Those who don’t stick with it no matter what, are those who tend to drown in all of their own high expectations for themselves.
An overnight success on average takes anywhere between 5 to 10 years. You’ve got this, just stick with it.
5 - Before you start making money, you need to set up a system.
I always found it crazy that some painters spend as little as 30% of their time painting if they’re lucky. Like what could take up the rest of that time? Turns out that if you’re looking to take your hobby to career, there’s a lot that goes into running a creative business. The more systems you can create now, the more energy and time you’ll have later to spend on your craft.
It might seem easy enough to make a bit of money. You have something someone wants, and they offer to pay for it. Perfect, right? Except before you profit from your creative endeavors, you would really benefit from having already thought about taxes, receipts, and keeping inventory.
This is another point that is kind of difficult to generalize from one creative business to another. But generally, this is your reminder to think ahead with the more administrative side of things. It is always easiest to start off with some sort of system and to think things through ahead of time, even if things adjust or change. Preparing your business for making money will help you avoid scrambling, later on, when when you realize you owe taxes or it’s time to make a big purchase.
