The 2nd Best Advice I give Myself as an Artist

Masks 3

The best piece of advice I give myself as an artist is to stay focused on my own life. When I am in a rut, I follow this quickly with my second best piece of advice- “There is no convenient time.”

I learned about this advice while doing consulting work for textbook publishing companies. I do this work on top of my full-time job and other commitments. A common refrain I kept hearing from publishers was simply “Kim, how do you get this work done so quickly?”

I finally realized why it was possible. I am not super woman, although, I will say, I am quite efficient. More to the point was that very early on in my consulting work I made the simple decision, “There is no convenient time to do this work.” And that statement allowed me to get out of the fantasy that eventually somewhere down the road, a “convenient time” would appear. It never has and it never will.

Never once has there been a “convenient time” for me to review 2,500 powerpoint slides for a publisher. My full-time teaching job didn’t suddenly stop, nor did my stepkids suddenly stop needing me while I was given this work.

I made the work happen then and there, because I knew there would be no magical time in the future.
I am trying to take this lesson I learned and apply it to my art life. Few of us have open days for creation. The worst thing we can do, though, is constantly put creation off by thinking a more convenient time will emerge. It won’t. Now- get creating

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