We recently connected with Haley Schulz and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Haley, thanks for joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

I don’t spend much time wondering about what could have been, but I do wish I had kept creating beyond my high school and college years instead of stepping away from visual arts almost entirely during my 20s. At the time, work, travel, and relationships took priority, and I was searching for something in myself that—looking back—I think making more art would have helped me find sooner.

That said, I’m not sure a creative career would have been the right path for me any earlier. I was caught between the ideal of pursuing my passions and the necessity of a stable career—something I think was especially common for those of us who entered the job market after the 2008 recession. I’m grateful that now, with more experience, maturity, and a strong support system, I can navigate the challenges of being a professional creative without burning out.
In many ways, I did things in reverse: I took the corporate route first, then took the plunge into freelance illustration after 30. And I appreciate that timing. It keeps me feeling fresh and new to the industry—like I’m just getting started. And that feeling is valuable in a field where persistence is everything.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’m a digital illustrator originally from the Bay Area, now based in Madrid, Spain.

My journey into illustration really took off during the pandemic. I was forced to slow down and as a result I reconnected with the creative practices I had loved as a teenager. Before that, I had spent years living abroad as a teacher in Thailand and later worked in digital marketing at Google. It was an incredible experience where I learned so much about brand marketing, client relationships, and public speaking. But when I left that world at the end of 2019, I found myself feeling lost—unsure of what I truly wanted and disconnected from my creative side. At first, I tried traveling again, but as we all know, 2020 had other plans.

Then, one day, I picked up my boyfriend’s iPad and started playing with Procreate. It was a complete revelation. Suddenly, I had all these creative tools in a portable format, making the process of creating art faster and more intuitive. While some people might turn their noses up at digital art for its efficiency, I’m a huge fan. Creativity is about ideas, and the faster you can bring them to life, the more you learn and discover. Every artist has their tools, and I’ll always be grateful to Procreate for getting me started.

My first step toward becoming a professional illustrator was through surface design—creating art prints, stationary, and home goods via print-on-demand. It was both exciting and vulnerable to put my artwork out there and see people buy it for their homes. Eventually, I earned some commissions and commercial projects, expanding beyond just personal work—though I still love creating for my Etsy and Society6 shop and participating in drawing challenges on Instagram.

Today, I primarily work as an editorial and commercial illustrator, creating artwork for picture books, websites, magazines, corporations, and nonprofits. What excites me most about this type of work is how it allows me to explore so many different ideas and concepts. I’ve always been someone with too many interests, never quite sure what I wanted to do—but through illustration, I get to do a little bit of everything. I’ve created artwork on science, humanitarian issues, religion, climate change, travel, gardening—you name it. It still feels especially heartening when organizations with meaningful missions reach out to me—I get to do what I love while supporting causes I care about.

Now, as I enter my fourth year as a digital illustrator, I’m excited to deepen my skills in graphic design and digital tools. I recently completed a large visual identity project and I’m looking forward to offering more of these services to my clients.
Going forward I hope to share more about my creative journey because I want everyone to understand that it’s never too late to start creating more.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My mission is about reclaiming creativity and finding liberation through it. Creativity—broadly speaking, not just in art—is an innate gift that we all have, yet it often gets stifled as we move through life. Societal expectations, endless distractions, media noise, and ultimately, fear of self-expression can all disconnect us from our creative instincts. But we live in a world with no shortage of challenges, and solving them requires creative minds—so to me, this work is deeply important.

Right now, that mission starts with reclaiming creativity in my own life. It’s a slow, ongoing process, and I often have to recalibrate. I check in with myself by asking:

Am I in touch with my vision for the world and the future?
Am I allowing myself to fully desire and experience pleasure without fear?
Do I understand how I want to spend my time, independent of financial gain or external validation?

For now, my focus is on navigating this within myself. Maybe one day this mission will expand to helping others—but first, I have to live it.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

By seeing yourself as a creative (which I believe is available to anyone), you instantly position yourself at the center of your own life. Yes, you gather feedback, inspiration, and collaboration from the outside world, but everything has to be filtered through your own mind, and the output ultimately comes from you. There’s something incredibly empowering about that—about realizing: If I want something to exist, I just have to make it.

Of course, it can be intimidating to know you’re the one driving. But for people who are committed to their craft, that realization is energizing. Once you start seeing your ideas take shape and unfold into reality, it’s addicting. And after that, there’s no going back.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://haleyum.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/haleyum_art
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/haleyschulz