We recently connected with Anna Leckie and have shared our conversation below.
Anna, appreciate you joining us today. One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?
Working as a commissioned artist has allowed me to see a breadth of humanity. Some of the craziest things I have experienced as a service-based commissioned artist are the bizarre requests I receive for commissioned work. During my most active work season, I typically get sexually harassed about once a month by someone asking for a raunchy painting or sending unsolicited nude photographs for me to create art with. As a female artist with a public profile, I have had to seek protection from these unwanted interactions. I have changed where I advertise, but even on the most respected platforms it still happens! Apart from the frequent sexual harassment, I have had people come to me seeking healing from their deepest traumas and abuse through creating a work of art. This, if done correctly, can be profound for me and the client. I have had to turn down a lot of those job requests however because I am not a mental health professional and am not the right person for some particular requests. I have to put a lot of thought into the boundaries around the nature of the work I want to take on.
I have had difficult clients, clients refusing to pay, clients wanting to hire me as their personal artist for an extended period of time for unspecified projects, and I have had people degrade me for requiring contracts and working agreements. However, I have also experienced the most wonderful, loving, and healing interactions with my clients. Working in the public sector as a contractor who has a specific skill set opens me up to a lot of tricky interactions. However, I am thankful I have gone through each experience because I have been able to help other entrepreneurs through similar situations. The majority of the work I get to do on a daily basis is rooted in incredible storytelling and I am so grateful for that.
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 started my art business: Art 4 in 2019 with the goal of marketing myself as an artist who could help clients make their creative dreams a reality. I got hired to paint portraits, memorials, murals, abstract pieces, children’s book illustrations, promotional materials for businesses, and much more! I have always been an artist but I never set out to make it my profession. I began creating art for friends and sharing what I was making on social media and it lead to many commission requests. After one full year of consistent work, I decided to make it a business.
I set out to utilize my unique tool set as an artist when taking on jobs with people who may have incredible ideas or direction but need a push in the right visual direction. I am very much a creative consultant. I want to drive the visual narrative forward for my client in a way that tells their story exactly as they are hoping to.
For the past few years, I have continually been working contract jobs as an artist. Currently, I am illustrating for a publishing company and doing graphic design. I have enjoyed running my own business immensely. This year I decided to pursue my Masters’s degree in Business administration at The College of Charleston to get better at running a business and creative entrepreneurship. I would love to scale my business and my creative reach.
Have you ever had to pivot?
A lesson I am learning currently is how important it is to be able to pivot in business when one gets stuck. There is so much I don’t know about business and reaching a wider audience. I think it’s important to reassess every so often and ask yourself, “How can I do better?” Even if you are content where you are, you can always do BETTER. I’m earning my MBA currently with an emphasis in Marketing. I am on a quest to increase my knowledge and learn everything I can about business. I hope to return to my creative journey with a fresh set of eyes to truly maximize my potential. Its also a bonus to meet a ton of cool people along the way!
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
There are endless resources that have made an impact on me. One of which I recommend a lot is a book called 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris. This book teaches entrepreneurs how to maximize their time so that they can organize their life however they want!
Another book is Elon Musk, by Ashley Vance. I love learning about successful entrepreneurs and what drives them to innovate.
I am constantly reading books on creative entrepreneurship. Here is a general list of what I have been reading: Rework by Jason Fried, Creative Careers by B. Jeffrey Madoff, Real Artists Don’t Starve by Jeff Goins, and How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist by Caroll Michels.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.annaleckieart.com
- Instagram: annaleckieart
- Facebook: Facebook.com/annaleckieart
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaleckie/