Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachel Strickland. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rachel, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

Living the self-employed freelance artist life is very different from having a “regular job” although that will mean vastly different things to different people. There are many amazing benefits, and sacrifices, to having a more conventional professional career path, and vice versa.

I tried it. To me, a “regular job” was where you went into an office building for 8 hours a day, did something mysterious at a computer, and had a boss. You received a regular paycheck, and got a tax refund at the end of the year. You had lunch breaks and coworkers and a lanyard. I did this for 6 months in 2010, writing copy for the Amazon app store which had not yet launched.

There were parts of it that, to me as a lifelong freelancer, were fantastic. The work required no emotional investment from me whatsoever, so when I left at the end of the day, I left the work there. Having a regular paycheck was a thing I’d only ever heard about- and the financial freedom to just buy a croissant because I wanted one was a thing of delight. I trained after work, and performed at least once a week, doing my stage makeup at my desk before leaving for the day. I was living a double life, and it was exhausting, but also rewarding.

When my 6 month contract was up, I was invited to apply for another 6 months, but my choice was already made. As wonderful as the stability of my 9-5 felt, wanting to put all of myself into my creative work felt even more compelling. So I declined to extend the contract, and instead took my first international opportunity and went back to my freelance ways.

Freelance artist life is rarely stable, and rarely predictable, but it has been worth it for me. I’ll always be grateful for that 6 month contract and what it gave me the opportunity to experience.

12 years later, I consider myself fully unemployable. I’m so used to working for myself and choosing my own projects that I don’t think I’d make a very good employee, and I understand that the price of that autonomy is immense personal responsibility. It’s not for everyone but it’s a trade I am, personally, happy to make.

Rachel, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I saw a clip of Cirque du Soleil when I was in college, and felt a stab to my ribcage. You know the one; where you feel a warmth spread through your chest and also a heaviness because it doesn’t belong to you, and it might never belong to you. I wanted THAT. I felt a lot of grief, because I assumed I was too old (I was 19) to pursue such work.

Fast forward to age 25 when I changed my mind. “What the hell,” I thought. “If it doesn’t work I’ll know I gave it a shot at least.” I saved up for 5 months, then moved to San Francisco to start training. I never done anything harder physically than learning circus arts. It totally remade my body, and it remade my insides as well. I wanted to give it all of me, and I did. I supported my training by dancing in some locals companies, and writing SEO copy online. My hands frequently went numb in my sleep, my hamstrings tingled from stretching, and I developed strong callouses on my hands, of which I was immensely proud.

After a few years I started seeking out freelance aerial work, and coaching as well. This discipline has taken me around the world several times; I’ve had the privilege of performing, choreographing, and coaching aerial in Australia, Ireland, Canada, and Thailand, as well as the honor of performing alongside some of the greatest legends I’ve ever met. None of it was very predictable. It’s taken me on some wild adventures that I never thought I would experience. A few off the top of my head are going on tour with a rock band (Queensryche Cabaret), or on a tour bus (The Vau de Vire Society), or busking in Toronto (Natural Wings Aerial Dance), or falling (safely) out of trees in Ireland, dressed like a fairy grandma (Fidget Feet Aerial Dance). There’s always been a new skill to learn, or a new character to embody.

I also loved mentoring, and guiding emerging artists on similar paths, equipping them with whatever tools I had amassed to aid their journeys. I founded an online mentorship program called The Audacity Project, which has grown and I continue to run a few times a year to equip creatives with the tools necessary to be working professionals. It’s currently in its 6th year running.

In 2019 I decided to stop traveling so much and really focus on my own creative works rather than working for other companies, which was a big scary step. I founded my Patreon to keep myself accountable, and the change it has made to my ability to produce my own work is monumental. Because of the support of my amazing patrons, I’ve been able to keep that promise to myself and really focus on unearthing all the half-formed curios lurking around in my imagination, and bringing them to life.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Yes. It’s a very simple axiom, which is to tell the truth. There’s an amazing quote from Martha Graham, which reads:

“There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open.” -Martha Graham

That quote has seen me through a great deal of doubt. When it comes down to it, I want to keep the channel open, and tell the truth about what I find there.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Oh hands down, that has to be grind culture.

As a freelancer living in late-stage capitalism, you can feel a great pressure to say yes to every single opportunity that comes your way. I certainly did, and ran myself ragged for years out of a sense of scarcity (that wasn’t unfounded).

I’ll never forget standing in this gorgeous historical theater, I was performing there that evening. It had red velvet curtains and an elaborate proscenium. It was literally my dream come true. I stood there staring at it, and felt nothing. I was too burnt out to even enjoy the accomplishment, pushed far too deeply in exhaustion. That was such a sad moment, such a waste of what should have been joy. I started being more particular about the projects I said yes to after that- so I could really give them everything I had, and truly experience them fully.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rachelstricklandcreative.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachelstricklandcreative/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/madamerex/
• Other: https://www.patreon.com/rachelstricklandcreative

Image Credits
Photos by RJ Muna, Max Cooper Photography, Carly Forrest, Cooper Inveen, Jesse Lenihan.