Is it natural to wonder what life would have been like had you chosen a different path? Is it common? We asked many artists and creatives from all over the country if they’ve ever wondered about whether they should have pursued a more standard career path to see what we could learn from their stories.

Eric Standley

I would be miserable if I could not be compulsively creative on a daily basis. Impulse is an inescapable energizer for me, which is not a great ingredient to be a follower, or to hold a regular job, but it is essential to my creative process as an artist and professor. Logic taunts me into oppositional thinking like a squirrel to a bird-feeder, and though I’ve learned to filter over the years my viewpoint has to start the long way around with a sarcastic edge to it before I come back to what others would find obvious. Read more>>

Caleb Taylor

I am thrilled to be an artist, to always be in pursuit of new ideas, and to be seeking an understanding of how the work I’m making relates to my observations, my community, and the canon of art and design. The question of happiness or satisfaction for an artist can be a moving target influenced by the ebbs and flows of exhibition preparation, the challenges and excitement of building new work, and seeking new opportunities. Read more>>

Picasso Snow

It’s funny what’s defined as a “regular job” because being an artist feels pretty regular to me… Not regular in the sense of boring, but I’ve always been creative, so the journey to becoming an artist came natural with time. Though it’s a creative journey, the operation still needs to run effectively, the same as any traditional job. Whether you’re in the office or in the studio, you’re meeting deadlines, making sales goals, answering emails, and marketing to your audience just the same. The main difference is the ability to water your own seed and watch it grow. Read more>>

Penny Fournier

For a long time, art has been the only thing I was good at, it was my outlet and my escape. So when I moved to New York to pursue it professionally I was afraid that I’d lose the joy that came with creating. And for a while I did. A few years ago I launched a brand of stationery and gifts. I was selling everything from pins, patches and greeting cards. Read more>>

Shannon Hogarth

I love what I do because I have never thrived in a monotonous setting, it’s so freeing be able to choose what I work on each day based on how I feel. In my world there is always an ebb and flow with the seasons. I sell my jewelry at craft shows in the summer and the holidays, then I go into some slower months before it all picks back up again. It can create some tougher months financially, but I have learned how to plan for those better as time goes on. Read more>>

Max Paulin

Working and studying as a visual artist, the thought of being happy with my work crosses my mind often. I think it’s difficult to allow yourself space to enjoy your work and have pride in it when you are constantly working and critiquing what you make. What I’ve learned though is that when I am truly uncomfortable or unfamiliar with what I am making, I tend to be a lot happier as I work through the process. Read more>>

Meghan & Tracey Photography

My Photography journey began when I was fourteen years old in my freshman year of high school. I developed my first roll of film and was immediately hooked. I don’t think I even thought about pursuing anything else or questioning a career in Photography, until I got older, between college and adult life. Read more>>

Erin Nielson

I love being an artist, and have always wanted to do something creative. There are struggles, however, with being a freelance artist. The pay is often sporadic, with stretches of time earning a small income followed by the occasional big payout. Because I run my own business, I also have to keep up with marketing, finances, emails, contracts, and more on top of doing the creative work. Sometimes I’ve wondered what it would be like to have a more “regular” job. The idea of having a more regular income sounds nice, and it can be stressful running a business on my own. Read more>>

Serrin Joy

As an artist, would I say that I am happy? To the creative aspect of everything, I would answer yes. The best part of being a creative in general, is having the ability to release your emotions, through a special communication… your ART! Whether that be a painting, a song, a dance, a monologue, etc. It’s a gift to be able to impact and relate to those around you, simply by doing what you love. I think anyone in the entertainment field, can relate when I say, (minus the business aspect at times), being an artist is not only fun, but very therapeutic. So long story short.. yes! Read more>>

Kelly Phillips

I actually consider myself to have two careers: one where I make comics and art, and one that employs me full time. The balance between the two hasn’t always been easy, but it works for me. It’s meant that my creative projects can be more selective, more suited to my kind of timelines, more self-indulgent. I worry less about my work making my ends meet and instead think first about what kinds of projects I want to bring to life and what the kinds of stories I want to tell. It also gives me an edge when working in areas like self-publishing, since printing, paying artists, and distribution needs lots of funds to make things happen. Read more>>

Meena Osei-Kuffour

People say its stressful to be a creative full-time or to be an entrepreneur. I somehow am both. Its been an interesting, frustrating, exciting, heartbreaking, happy, stressful journey. I left my full time job in the Fall of 2019 after finally throwing up the white flag. I said to myself, If I’m going to be stressed and unhappy, I might as well do it on my own terms. And I walked out. At the moment it felt exhilarating and then reality sets in. How will I pay my bills? How will I go to the doctor? Can I afford to only do this? Etc Etc Etc. Long story short, I think I am happier as a creative. Read more>>

Jessie & Chris Apple

Happy is an understatement. In a way, happy doesn’t even cover it. It’s more like being an artist and making a living at it is like being hungry and then getting fed with the most delicious, healthy food. It fills your belly and nourishes your soul. The last time we both had a “regular” job was 2008 and neither of us would ever go back. It was actually a great job. I was music director and Jessie was general manager of a music school in New Jersey. Read more>>

Jen Ruse BAD

Being an artist full time is full of many ups and downs. Whether it’s not feeling inspired to create, feeling a financial crunch, or anything in between, it’s something most full time artists deal with and can relate to. Several times as a creative, the thought of having a “normal job” has definitely come to mind more than once. Read more>>

Gina Graves

I have lived most of my adult life pledging allegiance to creativity. Happy is an interesting word. I would say that my creativity is the thing that always stood by my side, no matter what may have been falling apart in my world. I would say it was and is necessary for me. I was perfectly content to wake up in the morning, walk my dog, make some coffee and head straight to the piano. In the afternoons, I would teach private lessons- which was far more fulfilling than I could have imagined when I dreamed of a life as a professional musician. Read more>>

Abigail Whited

First of all, I think it’s strange and possibly a bit reductive to separate “artists and creatives” from “regular” jobs/professions. If you’re happy doing what you’re doing, and you are able to support your life/family, that’s all that matters. That said, of course I wonder what would have happened if I had selected a different profession. When I was in high school I was torn between wanting to be an animator and wanting to be a genetic engineer. At the end of the day, my art teacher was extremely supportive of myself, my talent, and my future goals. If my science teacher had been even half as supportive my whole life could have ended up differently. I think about that all the time. It’s human nature to wonder “what if?” Read more>>

Alex Culbreth

Although I wouldn’t consider myself particularly happier than people who work “regular jobs” and I do work “regular jobs” still, I think that my photography has brought me a lot of opportunities that have made me happy and would not have happened without it. Solely through my pursuit of photography I have met and connected with so many more people than I normally would, I’ve gotten to collaborate with so many creative people, I’ve traveled to more places, and I’ve seen so many more concerts. Read more>>

Kenzie Kenzie’s Place

This is exactly where I want to be, I knew that always, and now that I’m living in it everything feels so right! I’m currently a student at the University of North Florida studying biology, i planned on going to medical school and being a plastic surgeon specializing in dermatology, but the goal never felt right! at least not as a plan A! I made a promise to myself to prove that whatever dream you make if you set your mind to it and back yourself 100% it can and will be done! Read more>>

Dolla 512

ok so this is a great question, being in this music industry is amazing but its not all i do i have two regular jobs too i also work as a bartender and kitchen manager as well so i am doing everything in one. i get to live this amazing music career life and also work a regular job or jobs lol but hopefully one day soon music is all i do I’m very passionate about music so i also engineer all my own music and for some other artist as well if i can so any one of those jobs for life it be amazing . Read more>>

Jackie E. Davis

Sometimes I think about how nice it would be to get a regular paycheck if I had a “regular” job, but that’s about where my fantasy ends. I think I always knew it, but it took me years to accept how unemployable I really am. I just… can’t get motivated for other people. Whenever I work for someone else, I unfortunately do the bare minimum. I worked part time at a screen printing shop and while I did what I was told, I did it with very little enthusiasm and almost no effort to problem solve. Read more>>

Bexter Richardson

I am happier as an artist and creative. There’s nothing compared to the freedom of expression we illustrate in our work. The ability and opportunity to create something from a mere idea or inspiration into a published musical product always brings a sense of satisfaction that goes way beyond the “9 to 5”. This whole creation process is so personal and fulfilling that it becomes, MY work, MY job, MY world, MY environment and MY liberty and safe space to be and feel as entitled. We cannot take such attitude to a regular job. Read more>>

Erica Terpening-Romeo

When I zoom out, there is no question that I am happiest living a creative life. But of course, the doubts, instability, and uncertainty that go along with an artist’s life are bruising, and require a lot of resilience and foolhardiness to overcome. The good news for me is that the alternative most immediately available to me is a career in farming, which isn’t much more stable or certain, and is no less laborious, time-consuming or impractical. And there’s not much money in either. Read more>>