Advice for Artists: Embracing Rest as a Business Strategy

January 14, 2019

I've spent the past several years working hard on my art and business. I rarely take time off: even on vacations or trips I’m planning, sketching, answering emails, working on my website, checking and posting on social media. I’ve been powering through, staying up late, and spending weekends as “bonus days” to get more work done. It didn’t really bother me... until it did.

I entered the new year and everyone was talking about planning and getting off to a running start: Here are my goals! Here are my plans! And I started to plan... and I felt like I was suffocating.

I had a mini panic-attack and a meltdown and questioned my entire business. I wondered if I should even bother to keep painting.

And a sweet artist friend said, “you seem exhausted. Take a break.”
And I paused and said, “oh... you’re right. I AM tired.”

So I’ve been taking a break.

We all need to take care of ourselves. Even as a night owl, I can’t work ALL night, every night. We all need time off and time to rest. I’ve heard before that “great art comes from oppression.” That Picasso’s Guernica wouldn’t have happened without the Spanish Civil War. (and that's true)

But, truly, I don’t think an artist can create from a place of exhaustion and overwhelm. An artist’s heart, mind, and spirit needs rest so we can find our inspiration again.

Find our joy.

We need to be able to listen to the voice of God saying “share your truth.”

I’ve been cleaning, organizing, reading books, and listening to podcasts. I’ve been taking walks and sloooooowly easing myself into planning for the year. I’ve put no pressure on myself to create this month. That’s right - the whole month.

I believe art was meant to be shared with others.

I’m an introvert at heart (many artists are), and this is how I can share my story with the world. This is how I bring joy to people’s lives and homes. I’ve created something new, something lovely, something that touches someone’s heart, and I share it.

We all have gifts to share. And gifts are many and varied, and mine may not look like yours, and yours will speak differently through you than mine. But they are all important nonetheless.

So don’t quit your gifts. If you’re feeling tired, overwhelmed, lost, it’s ok to take a step back. You won’t lose what you had. You won’t lose your audience. Take care of yourself, of your body and mind and heart, and then return to it when you’re ready to make beautiful truths again.

photos by Anna Meyer Photo

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