Everyday, somewhere, there is an aspiring artist or creative daydreaming about pursing their creative career full time. Everyday, there are countless creatives thinking about whether to pursue their passion more seriously and so we wanted to hear from folks who’ve made the leap. We asked them to reflect on if they wish they had started sooner or if they feel they would have been better off if they had waited a bit longer.

Dr. Tomekia Manning

My journey into adulthood began in 1995 as an on-air television personality. Working as a news reporter and anchor in Louisiana and East Texas, I thrived on the spontaneous, ever-changing nature of live news. Even then, my ultimate dream was to become an actress. Yet, fear — of the unknown, of instability, of failure — kept me anchored in broadcasting for seven more years. Read more>>

Mary Shyne

In comics, there’s this thought that being younger is better — you have more stamina for drawing, you can pull all-nighters with less consequence, etc.

But I’m super grateful having started comics later than most. I always drew comics casually, of course, but I initially saw my career as one in writing, so I studied English and Creative Writing in undergrad. Not only did this help me with the fundamentals of creating narratives, I also wasn’t thrown immediately into the competitiveness of art school, where I think I personally would’ve floundered. Read more>>

Gina And Bobby

We started our channel in 2020. I had been working for 15 years as a successful vacation real estate agent and then Covid hit in 2020..

I was laid off and ended up losing my lucrative career. I started the channel; Originally for fun and for the challenge. I have taught myself how to use the production software, YouTube platform, filming, etc. Read more>>

Nandi Jordan

I spent eight years pursuing a degree in a field that, in hindsight, I was never truly passionate about. Throughout that time, I was curious, driven, and determined to reach the finish line. But looking back, I can see that the traditional work of a sociologist never stirred something deeper in me—it simply wasn’t my calling. Read more>>

Durga Ekambaram

I began my journey as an artist purely by chance in 2019, when I participated in a chalk art contest in Utah. What drew me to it was my lifelong passion for art, something that had been with me since childhood. Read more>>

Luanne Bole-Becker

Honestly, I think starting my visual arts career late in life, in “retirement,” has been exactly the right time. I’m ready for it, I’m equipped for it, and I appreciate it. In my earlier careers, I often felt I had something to prove, or that I could never let mistakes and uncertainty show. Now I know that’s not true. I’ve proven to myself that I’m smart enough, I’m good enough, and that “mistakes” inevitably lead to advancements, opportunities, and creative problem-solving.  Read more>>

Tiffany Sotomayor

If I could go back, I wouldn’t start sooner or later, I’d just have with thicker skin. I was in my 20s, living abroad, booking shows in broken languages throughout Europe and feeding my band with bar gig money. I was always hungry, just not always as resilient to the no’s as I wanted to be. I’ve learned since: persistence is part of the art and don’t stop creating. Read more>>

Bobby Pudrido

I often joke that I have been doing drag my whole life, performing for society to mask my trans-ness, but, officially, I started my creative career later than most artists I know, at age 32. Prior to that, I had never performed on a stage or thought myself a creative. Many of the performers I work with are in their 20’s, at times over 10 years younger than me. Mosts of the performers my age have been doing it for over a decade. Read more>>

Doza Cardoza

I’m 38 years old, and I sometimes feel like I’m just getting started with my creative career. All throughout my 20’s I served in the military, both the United States Navy, and then the Army Reserve. I came to Hollywood at the age of 26, and began using my G.I. Bill to attend Film Schooling. By the time I finished gaining a degree from both The Los Angeles Film School, as well as the New York Film Academy, I was getting into my 30’s and I was still serving in the Army Reserve, which was a push and pull on my creative career. Read more>>

Pablo Aguirre

I remember being just five or six years old, sitting on the steps of our home, completely absorbed in music. My father owned a harmonium—an instrument that looked like a small piano but was played with the breath, like a wind instrument. I would listen to the records my mother played on the turntable, memorize the melodies, and then find them on the harmonium. It all came so naturally to me that I assumed it was just as easy for everyone else. Read more>>