How to Turn Your Art into a Job
Making money is not a bad thing in and of itself, is it? Of course not, we all need to make a living, unless we are independently wealthy, or have won the lottery (perish the thought!) It’s when money becomes the deciding factor in the work we do that we might lose perspective and even start making bad decisions.
For a creative, the love of money can really be a problem. It will convince you to take shortcuts, and even compromise on things that are important to you. But again, who wants to be a starving artist?
It sounds groovy and even worth doing when you’re working for someone else, but it’s not, really. So, the big goal, if you want to keep doing your art, is to turn it into a job. Ah, easier said than done. I mentioned in my first post that I wanted to be a writer and ended up becoming one, though it looked a lot different than I had hoped. I’m not disappointed, I’ve had an awesome career, but writing for businesses is a lot different than writing novels. So how do you turn your art into a job?
I knew an incredibly talented young woman who was (and is) a musical artist. She has a stunning voice, but even more she’s a prolific and uber talented songwriter. Still, making it in the music industry is just downright hard. She didn’t give up and managed to have some significant wins under her belt in a few short years. But at the same time, she was also doing something else she loved – traveling. You might not think traveling is an art, oh but I would disagree. To find that rambling home on that tucked away island with the most incredible orange grove and a 5-minute walk to a pebbled beach, is no small thing. But what really helped her turn a passion into a career was discovering her love of photography. Now she not only travels to beautiful places, helping others find joy in their journeys, she documents them and SELLS the photographs. She’s having a blast, creating, and getting paid for her work.