Happy 4th Birthday ART BY MEGAN!
Today as I sit here in my new home-studio and daydream a little after doodling a few new ideas onto paper, I am reflecting on my past 4 years as a full-time artist.
I feel simultaneously like it has been 20 years and / or 45 minutes since I started this career in NYC just 4 years ago. SO MUCH has changed since the day I left my teaching career 5 years ago and decided to take this giant plunge into art making professionally. I am grateful, speechless, exhausted, inspired and hopeful for what’s next on the horizon.
A few observations as I begin year 5:
Everyone emails you back WAY after you give up and think that they never, ever will. So, just send the email.
My paint jars which once looked pristine, now have a beautiful patina of paint on them and I love them. Don’t touch my jars.
I thought that I was leaving teaching when I began my art career and I now teach 1-2 workshops or classes a month. I guess you can’t escape your calling!
Watching fellow art-friends develop their craft over time has been really so satisfying to me. I love seeing other people (women, especially!) succeeding at doing something they love.
I love social media because I think of the number of people I now know because of online friendships and I am AMAZED. It’s nice having met so many amazing people both online and in real life because of this new career. It’s one of my favorite parts of this business.
It’s still really hard to feel confident in knowing everything about being a business owner some days. Other days, I feel like I am finally figuring out running my own business.
Hire help & ask for help. I hate asking for help. I still hate it but I am asking and learning and it’s a giant breath of fresh air.
Always buy the expensive white paint. The cheap stuff (isn’t this a great metaphor for all things!) never looks as good and you will regret it later.
I need to clone myself. I am literally one of the most productive people on the earth. BUT, that being said, I still have so much I dream of doing. So, if you know anyone interested in testing cloning out, give me a call.
I need to chill out and be thankful and soak it all in. I am bad at taking a break. I returned to work just a few months after having our second baby. We had also just moved. But, I just cannot STOP MAKING ART DANG-IT. The hustle is real, my friends.
So, what’s up next? Write a few emails, dream up some AMAZING projects in the works, hire an intern, snuggle my baby and big kid, make some dinner, chat big dreams with my husband over a glass of wine and hopefully stay awake to watch some Netflix (a girl can dream).
Thank you for supporting this dream.
Thank you for being a part of the journey.
Thank you for sharing my work with friends, family, and super kind strangers on the internet.
