We were lucky to catch up with Pratiksha Muir recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Pratiksha, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

When I say I watched a painting tutorial on youtube and quit my job to become an artist, I probably sound unstable. So I am going to take you back. Back to 5 years ago when I was always on the hunt for my next indulging dopamine hit – the next glass of wine, next order of takeout, next chocolate-anything dessert. I would tell myself ‘it was a hard day’ or ‘I deserved it’ – which I could make either work for any day. Until eventually I felt like I was losing control of my habits and health. One day I looked up 20lbs heavier and had the ability to drink a case of white claw if I really wanted to. That only led to the candid realization that living in the hamster wheel was not how I wanted to live.

I knew I needed to shake things up. So I searched for an outlet outside of my job, friends and indulgences. It started with a purchase of a $20 paint kit. I came back to my apartment and instead of spending the night with my normal take out order of pad thai with a side of rangoons, I spent it finding videos to paint along to. And I never stopped. No matter the years and personal changes I wanted to work through, art was my solitude.

I never had the intention to make painting my career, but started to share my work on social media. After a while I would get inquiries. Eventually I sold my first painting for a whole $10, and even though that didn’t even cover shipping, I was hooked. 2 years after purchasing that first paint kit, I quit my job and became a full time artist. Since then I have painted for celebrities, expanded my team and matched my corporate salary. It may have not always been easy, but it has been easy to never look back.

Pratiksha, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Pratiksha Muir, founder and artist of P Muir Art, paints large-scale urban-inspired fine art. After losing her father to ALS, her world and perspective shifted. She had a new appreciation for life and decided to use her moments to pursue her passion. After quitting her corporate job to become a full time artist, she knew that making art with a message is how she could live a life that existed beyond her own. She is passionate about helping other artists, being vocal on important issues, making sure to always take time for self-care, and unapologetically living life each day. She seeks inspiration from a variety of places including her childhood, hip hop & pop culture, politics, and everything in between. With each of her pieces, you will get a small piece of defiance combined with her entire heart.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Fiverr – When first starting a business, I felt the need to save as much money as I could and do everything myself. A task that seemed easy, like launching a basic website, never ended up being as simple as I thought. I would find myself tied up in multiple side projects just to get to my main objective. This led to burnout and the creativity in my work to deteriorate. I wish I used freelancing services like Fiverr sooner.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I think strategy depends on where you are within your business but overall I found luck with these 3 things:

1. High quality content– You may have to post frequently to grow but I have found that quality leads to more sales. I believe that posting 3x/week with quality content is better than 7x/week with mediocre or rushed content. This may be the opposite of what TikTok and IG reels promote, but this is what leads me to more engagement and sales. *My happy spot of posting frequently and maintaining quality and is 3-5 posts a week*

2. Show personality – Being a creative is more than selling a creation. People invest in the creator just as much (if not more) than the art. Customers like to feel connected before they feel comfortable buying.

3. Level up – Watch 1 youtube video a week and implement 1 thing. Examples- how to edit reels, how to take professional pictures with an iPhone, how to run FB ads, etc. *This doesn’t mean changing your strategy every week. Find one thing you can get even better at.*

Contact Info:

• Website: pmuirart.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/pmuirart
• Facebook: facebook.com/pmuirart
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pratiksha-muir-a6215a8a/
• Twitter: twitter.com/pmuirart