I’m not here to lie to you: creating art as your job WILL result in burnout. Things will begin to feel repetitive and you’ll just start going through the motions to get the finished product. You may even begin sacrificing your own creative direction to appease non-ideal clients.

There will be a day where you’ll reach your breaking point, and you’ll either breakdown or breakthrough. Everyone breaks at some point, what matters is the direction. The choice is yours.

But isn’t that the point of art in the first place? To be challenged in our abilities and push us to new heights we didn’t see as possible before. And no, creating art as your profession is not for everyone. Some people allow the first breakdown to deter them or they allow the fear to become all encompassing and create failure before they even attempt. But in tandem with self trust and grounding, you can create art for a living and flourish in that lifestyle.

What I’ve found to be important to me in my journey of creating a living around creating is recognizing that the art I create for work is not the only way I get creative. And I’m not just talking about taking my camera and getting creative with it, but finding other mediums to nurture my creativity.

For me I’ve found love for:

• Junk journaling
• Watercoloring
• Baking
• Cooking
• Clay molding
• Ceramics
• Candle making
• Coloring
• Herbalism
• Yoga
• Poetry

Oh and this blog post you’re reading : )

The ability to create is everywhere, and creating more than you’re consuming, especially as someone who makes art for a living, is so important. You start to compare yourself to the art and whatever other mind numbing content you consume. Overconsumption is REAL, and it can cause creative blockages in my experience.

Art is nothing but a depiction inspired by life made into something new. Emotions and feelings alchemized into the way the artist perceives them. And then potentially received in a completely different way by the viewer of the art. And how beautiful it can then go the inverse: life can be then inspired by your art. Creating a physical embodiment of the way you view the world then causes you to crave more awe in your life. And others witnessing you art can feel similarly. I know there have been many art pieces I’ve seen that have sparked my own creativity and craving for more life experience.

So while yes, you’re most DEFINITELY gonna get burnt out and hate the things you make sometimes, keep making things. Make art you hate, make art so ugly you never want anyone to see it. And then make some more. Make art no one will ever see, art just for you. It’s all about being able to come back, time and time again, to your core reasons and values in your creating. And they can change over time alongside your personal growth, that’s the beauty of it.

And my challenge to myself in mitigating my own creative burnout is this right here, my journal transmuted into a blog. Writing has never really been something I felt I was “good” at, but the more I’ve written over the years (I’ve been journaling since I was 15), the better I’m able to articulate myself and find my style. So here it is, my writing, authentically written and barely edited, because that’s exactly how I’d do it in my journal.

So to all the people who I’ve inquired about what they’re creating and if they’ve considered making their art into their job and they immediately respond with “Oh, I don’t want to get burnt out and hate it because I made it into a business”….isn’t art about creating and hating and starting all over to fall in love with it…again and again?