It’s going to take a little doing to absorb it all. The blogger, Bill, asked to be a friend on Facebook a few days ago.

Here’s my situation: I currently work 4 days a week (32 hrs) as a graphic artist. I’ve been doing this for the last 4 years. I took a pay cut to have Fridays off to paint. This was one of the best things I’ve done to find more time to paint. I could afford to do it because I make a decent wage at my job and my husband Jimmy and I live simply. We’re not big spenders and don’t feel the need to keep up with the Jones’s.

My main painting days are Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. I try to spend at least 8 hrs in the studio working. If I’m on a roll, I will sometimes go longer. In addition, I force myself to paint a couple of evenings during the week even though I don’t want to! I’m very protective and selfish of my painting time. I’ve had to say no to many invites. Jimmy (and a few people that are close to me) know these are my days to work and they leave me alone to do what I have to do. They know it’s serious to me and they allow me the space to pursue my painting. It’s important to have this support.

Speaking of support, Jimmy is a big, big help. He works 3 days/week, 13 hr days. This allows him 4 days off. When he’s off, he takes care of the cooking and cleaning in our house freeing up my time to work.

Of note with me, (like you Julie) I have no kids and not much social life. Being an introvert anyway, I don’t miss the social life.

I agree with Julie and Joni that exercise is SO important to keep your energy levels up. On the weekends, when I take a break from painting, Jimmy and I make a point to get outside in the woods, no matter the weather. We live near a state park and we either hike w/the dog, mountain bike, or go kayaking for a few hours. I always feel better/refreshed when I get back to the studio.

So far, this has been what’s working for me.

Kelly

I think that you hit on a really important thing here…EXERCISE! Not only does that help keep energy up, but it gives us “permission” to take the time we really need to spiritually re-juice. I take my dogs out in the mornings for a 4 mile walk every day that weather allows. It is a one hour BRISK power walk in a wooded park very near my home. I allow my mind to wander and just think about anything that floats into my head. This for me is the best way that I know of to keep “clutter” out of my head. And of course the border collies LOVE it too! I would encourage anyone to find an exercise program that they ENJOY. It can be quite meditational. And a refreshed mind creates better art.

After a 17 year carreer at Hallmark cards as a greeting card illustrator, I went part-time to persue my wildlife painting. I did children’s illustrations of a very commercial nature at Hallmark, and then did the realism on Thrursdays-Sundays every week. I kept this schedule up for five years. It took some time to learn how to change gears from one style to another, going back and forth between styles several times a week. But after a while it came easily. I decided ahead of time how many hours that I was going to paint each day and DID IT. If you ask yourself “do I want to paint today?…” you are giving yourself permission to answer “no”. So don’t give yourself a choice. Just say to yourself “this is what I am going to do and this is how I will do it.”

Now that I am painting wildlife every day, I’ve had a new adjustment to make. I like to work in many different styles, and have found it difficult to pull myself into one style. So I allow other areas for my creative “explosions”. What I have learned through this transition is that there is always a way to make things work for us. We just have to find it….and DO it!