We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kylee Firlit. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kylee below.

Kylee, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

For the last 3 years, I’ve been able to make a full-time living from my creative work and freelance career. It’s not always easy but I’m proud I’ve been able to make it work and find so much more satisfaction from what I’m doing now compared to being in an office working for someone else. It was intimidating taking the leap from a regular paycheck and office job to full-time freelance and there have been many challenges along the way. Sometimes they seem like just a bump in the road and sometimes they feel like a huge struggle but in the end every challenge has taught me something and helped me grow to where I am now.

Over the last 3 years, I’ve had to teach myself how to run a business and deal with the admin side of a creative business, I’ve had to figure out how to manage my time while juggling many hats and tasks, and somehow still continue to be creative. One of the biggest things I’ve learned that has helped me stay successful in my full-time creative business is that you can’t wait for creativity to come to you, you have to continue to seek it out and find ways to bring creativity to you.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a graphic designer and illustrator who infuses my art and design with the inspiration I find from days spent in the mountains and nights under the desert stars. I help businesses evolve and brands connect with their audiences through unique brand identities and visual storytelling. I specialize in creating custom brand aesthetics that intertwine thoughtful design with bold illustration and help people connect with nature.

Aside from my design work, I create bold and colorful artwork to catch the viewer’s attention and tell a story, whether it’s the feeling of a journey into the mountains or an inherent appreciation for the natural world. My artistic style focuses on bold linework, lots of detail and tons of color. It’s unique and memorable for the abstract and colorful landscapes and animals I love to draw. My dramatically bright and dreamy illustration style paired with clean design is what sets me apart from others and allows me to offer something unique. And outside of my illustration, I also do some silversmithing and love making jewelry with beautiful natural elements of the world.

I’ve been a “solopreneur” for the last 3 years and am still constantly learning and growing within my creative career and journey as an artist and outdoor enthusiast. I’m proud of how I’ve been able to learn and progress to a point where I can combine my creative career with my love for art and nature.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is to help people break away from the daily grind and connect people to our human roots of a simpler, beautiful, natural world. Grateful for the surroundings I climb, run, bike, ski, and breathe in, I believe in creating a future where everyone can find meaning in the outdoors and inspire stories worth sharing.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I’ve had to unlearn the mindset of being busy vs. being productive. Our culture constantly rewards being busy and our work environments thrive on the constant hustle and as someone who is naturally fast-paced, impatient, and performs under pressure, I’ve driven myself to burnout many times in my personal work where the sky is the limit. After biting off more than I can chew or letting scope creep happen throughout projects, I’ve found myself burnt out and not wanting to work on anything, let alone be creative, until I’ve taken time to reset and undo weeks of stress. I’ve had to unlearn (and am still working on) the art of productivity and taking time to slow down even during high-stress projects, connect with people, work on passion projects, and determine what is actually necessary vs. what time I’m spending on things that isn’t helping me or my business grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.kyleefirlit.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kyleefirlit/