Five Years of Growth: A Retrospective on Running MY Art Business

Introduction: Beginnings of a new chapter

It has been 5 years since I made the choice of setting out on my own. It has included many hurdles, many milestones, and many lessons I have had to learn as an adult. When setting out to run my own creative art business I was unaware of the challenges I would encounter and I wanted to share with you this perspective.

In 2021 I was working a salary position and just like many others in the world I was not happy. I was unhappy with my purpose in life, I did not like the ladder I was climbing, and overall just straight up miserable. I made the difficult decision and shouldered the idea to become a sole proprietor doing artwork. I not only took on the mantle of a new business owner but also dropped out of being a salary man and down to only part time work where I still do my day job.

The purpose of this article is part self reflection/part illumination into what I have accomplished and what I have gone through. If it helps others considering a similar path then I hope there are some things I can share that will help you avoid the potholes I have tripped in. Let's take a walk...

Early Challenges

When I first began with the idea I was scared. Incredibly scared. Growing up I have always been treated with the 9-5 mentality which works for some, but for me it does not bring me the happiness I desire in my future. My desire for future happiness outweighed my in-the-moment fears. While it is a bold move to make the jump it is also smart to plan ahead. I did put in the legwork to set aside funds, live below my means, and set up the opportunity to make the attempt.

My first year in business was definitely a struggle bus and I got humbled really quickly as I did not go positive in a single event that I did. However I did LEARN some early instances of what not to do. As a morsel of wisdom : Start small and be honest with yourself. New artists will absolutely struggle in the beginning while they make a name for themselves and in turn need to set slightly smaller profit and sales expectations.

This wasn't completely a bad year as I also did a fair share of networking and making friendships that still exist to this day.

Growth and Development

"Luck is when preparation meets opportunity." - Seneca

As you go through the years and your business grows you get to understand what people are looking for. You will slowly build a following and your die hard fans will drop hints or bluntly tell you what they want. Is it pinup artwork? Is it Horror themed cat drawings? The sky is the limit as long as you LISTEN.

The only way for us to get lucky is to create the possibilities of it happening.

One very easy way to draw fans in is with, you guessed it, Fan Artwork. I began my journey with only original pieces of art. While that is still a completely viable outlet, there is some magic in creating fan art. I have since created a little helping of Fan work touching characters that I personally enjoy and I can talk about. I feel that it is a valuable marketing tool as businesses can see what you can do with their own IP's and customers can begin to visualize their characters in YOUR style.

It is also valuable to mention that all profits and finances for my business have been separate from my personal funds from day 1. Anything made from the business stays in the business and helps to fuel the growth of said business. Phew, that was a long sentence! Just like buying stocks it is extremely valuable to keep pumping A profitable company (in this case YOU) and in return the dividends will pay for themselves.

Am I still learning lessons just like my first year in business? Absolutely. Creative fields give you the advantage of being comfortable with being uncomfortable. You will fail, but you will succeed with new knowledge.

Key Milestones and Achievements

While this isn't a vast list it is however a fun place for me to recollect some of my achievements, such as:

• Been in business for 5 Years - How f&%king cool is that! A whole 5 years of paying taxes, having something I created and sustained myself, and can share with the world!

• Have had 5+ unique customer commissions - true the number is not large after 5 years but I feel proud to know that over 5 people have been confident in my ability to contribute to their art life in some way. Original characters and existing fan work that I have had the privilege to bring into the world.

• Role Playing Game Contribution - While not the established big tabletop games I have had the pleasure of working on an individuals home brew tabletop RPG. He also allowed me to work on supplement content for an existing RPG known as Draw Steel. It is an understatement to say how proud I am to have contributed. I cannot wait to do more and bigger!

• Had a news article written about ME - Through contacts I managed to get an article written about my work and myself for a local digital magazine. It's not every day I can attribute getting posted on an official news conglomerate!

While this is not a complete list it does allow me to step back and appreciate some of my highlights. Remember above all else to BE KIND TO YOURSELF ON THIS JOURNEY. Rome was not built in a day.

Challenges Faced and How I Overcame Them

Let's be real too, being a solo artist and learning how to balance everything is exhausting and stressful. Then you have to make art on top of it! I would be lying to say every day is rainbow and sunshine as I constantly struggle to figure out how to steer my ship in the right direction. I have absolutely tried plenty of ventures that do not pan out well or are absolute failures. I have made business decisions that went nowhere. I internally tear myself up because my business does not produce enough income to take care of myself let alone my family. It is HARD.

Overall it is critical for us to remember that we all grow at our own pace and we DO NOT all start with the same circumstances. I lost my brother in 2016 and feel like life has flown by since then causing me to miss 6 critical years of growth as a young adult/artist. We cannot let self doubt and outside influence affect how we feel about ourself. This is extremely apparent with social media and the flood of amazing artists we see in the blink of an eye. For that matter there are literal MILLIONS of people who do amazing work. However they are not YOU. They will not have the same eye and influences as YOU. Embrace that and take pride in your individuality!

Failure will happen, it is just a matter of how you embrace it. Do you let it keep you down? Or do you get up like a fallen toddler and keep walking? I have taken in stride some reflections on each failure to give myself some strong lessons. I can learn what NOT to do. I can navigate a competitive field. I can analyze areas where I have more strength. You must do the same if you are to succeed and proceed. 5 years in and I still have a lot more failing to stumble into. It is just the challenge of how will I let it transform me.

Looking Forward: The Next 5 Years

My aim is to try and complete a retrospective every 5 years. What do I put forth in my 5 year plan to have accomplished by then? It is hard to pin down but I think a good place to start would be:

• Experience my first out of State Show - All of my shows thus far have been in my home state but if I am to grow more I need to experience a new audience outside of my immediate one.

• Contribute to a larger project - I put my feelers out, make contacts, and I feel that on the horizon I will get an opportunity to work on a large IP. I am ready to embrace it with full force and open arms!

• Art Book - This one I already have planned and in the works as soon as I finish the last few sketches. It gets me one step closer to feeling more and more professional.

• Passive Income - As my body of work grows I hope to create some way for my work to keep sustaining me even past the initial pieces.

More ideas will come and some ideas might get swept off the table but progress is the most important. Growth leads to eventual prosperity.

Thank you for attending my ted talk

5 years have gone by and many more are on my horizon. There will be pitfalls to endure and new milestones to ascend. What a rewarding journey being an artist is and what joy it fills me with to continue it as a career. Financially I cannot do it alone right now as a job but I am hoping in the near future that it will blossom into my staple and provider for my family.

I hope anyone and everyone who reads this will feel comfortable to reach out if they feel moved by this. I will gladly accept your questions or offer sympathy if you have gone through hurdles such as mine. In this outlet I can offer a platform to emotionally grow and the creative community to bolster each other. Let us all sail off into the sunset as better and bigger people.

Thank you to all of my family, friends, loved ones, fans, and supporters alike. You have made every step of this journey worth it and a path I will continue to stride. Head held high and a backpack for the adventure ahead!

Now where did I put my pencil...