How I Became a SELF EMPLOYED ARTIST
How I Became a SELF-EMPLOYED Artist
Or…how I became a 1099 bish from a W2 bish 🙂
I’m not one to recommend people to quit their full time jobs just to pursue a passion of theirs. In fact, I encourage people to work a 9-5 for some time, build a financial runway, and when the opportunity makes sense to, then you can give your passion project a shot while you have a financial cushion.
While money is not everything, it can still be a huge source of stress, and I don’t think your passion project is given a fair chance if you’re distracted by your finances all the time. I spent 5 years working primarily as a storyboard artist, which gave me the time to save for retirement and for myself. As I was working full time, I still side hustled as a graphic novel author and content creator, which pretty much was like working 3 separate jobs at once. In a way, I thought of them like my extracurriculars after school.
After five years, I finally hit my first longest phase of unemployment last year, but instead of spending hours each day applying to jobs, I doubled down on my comics and social media. Instead of a 9-5, I now work a 5-9 🤣. But at least I have more fun with things now.
I use to glamorize the idea of working a full time studio job, and I still have nothing against it! But my dreams have changed and I would like to live a life of more freedom and flexibility to travel more, spend time with fam and friends, and pursue more personal projects. By rich, I don’t just mean financial wealth, but also creating more high quality memories and building resilience without the attachment to a job title. ✌🏼
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