We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shannon Barnes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Shannon, thanks for joining us today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you as a business owner?

Early in my career as a mental health professional, my supervisor said to me, “If you are not growing, then you are dying.” She meant this to be received as a seed of business wisdom. She modeled this belief as she chased opportunities to help her counseling agency grow. She did not believe that doing the minimum, and putting all of your eggs in one basket would help her business grow. And she was right. A person must look for opportunities, be willing to step out of your comfort zone, and apply old fashion hard work in order to grow. I have seen many who did not do this, and they did not grow.

This lesson certainly did take root in my young mind and I was always able to apply the concept to any goal. Once I achieved that goal, I would ponder the next goal so I was always growing and not dying. That wisdom has served me well in my career in the mental health field. As I began to branch out and identify goals as an artist I applied the same concept. It did not take me long to realize that quality materials were expensive, but the artist who tries to cut corners by using lesser quality paints and canvases is not growing. You can sustain but you can not grow if you are inhibiting the quality of your work with less quality materials. I set a standard and began painting. Soon it was not enough for me to complete an oil painting and then gift it to a friend or family member. I wanted to continue growth. Soon it was enough for me to enter my artwork into online art contests and win recognition. I wanted to continue growth. I began to create goals for myself in the professional art world. This is where many artists hit a ceiling and choose to remain stagnate and potentially neglect their growth. I hit that same ceiling, and I hit that ceiling hard. I was not ready to play with the big boys and girls. But the early lesson I learned from this supervisor had played out many times in front of me as I watched others who did not continue to grow, and therefore, eventually died. I continued to focus on accomplishing the next babytstep. As doors were closed I focused on growing around those doors. Determination is a must and determination does pay off. However, faith is the most important ingredient for determination. I began to pray specifically for direction with my art and potential art career. My heavenly father always works for my good. I knew if an art career was not the right path for me, then it would not happen and I would be at peace through my faith that Father God had a better plan for me. God is faithful. Sometimes his answer to us is no, but if it is for our good, then often his answer is yes. I am now a fine arts gallery owner as well as a professional artist. I am able to enjoy moments when strangers admire my work. I have also enjoyed moments when others in the professional art field have approached me offering further opportunities for growth. Those moments are when I see how far I have grown. I am thankful for this blessing. Those moments motivate me to continue growing. I have also learned that growth should not be defined by a currency or accolades alone. If you can see your progress from one milestone to the next, and you can apply this growth to a greater purpose, then you are growing.

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 was born the middle daughter of a middle class family in North Georgia. My father was an artist by calling, and an accountant by profession. He always worked hard to make sure the bills were paid. I saw early in my childhood that his passion was to create paintings for others. And everyone who owned one of his paintings raved about his talent. He would often sit and draw with me. This truly began my artist career. It is in my DNA. However, God had a different plan for me in early adulthood. I knew in high-school that I was meant to be a helper. I asked many questions which did not provide the answers that felt right until I learned what psychologist/Professional Counselors do for people. They help with depression, anxiety, relationships, and any other ugly that life will throw at people. I knew this is what I was meant to do. But I actually did things backwards. I married young and had my beautiful daughters young. This I would not change! That calling to be a helper nagged at me until I finally returned to college in my late twenties. I grew fast and completed a doctorate degree in counseling studies. I worked hard and truly put my heart into helping people with their struggles. That growth path lead me to owning Tranquility Counseling Services. I started that business as a solo practice, but grew it to a practice that now has at least five well trained staff, interns when appropriate, and I provide supervision and teach young clinicians just entering the field.

In 2011, my father who was an artist and mentor to me passed away with cancer. I leaned into art for comfort. That same nagging voice returned only this time, it was beckoning me to grow in my art skills. So I began to grow and learn. I painted and gifted those paintings. I grew more and stepped out into art contest and exhibiting my work in a variety of exhibits. I continued to grow. One day I said to my husband, “I am going to open an art gallery.” We laughed together, because in that moment it certainly seemed like just a dream. However, as I continued to grow I also continued to envision what my gallery may look, smell, sound like. I began to think about what steps would be needed in order to open that gallery. About a year later, as my husband and I were walking around the downtown area where we live, we saw new construction for commercial buildings. Once again I said to my husband, “I am going to open an art gallery. ” This time I added, “And I think it could be in that building.” The next day he took action and made some phone calls. We both began to pray over this. We both knew that if this was not God’s will for our lives, then we would hit a dead end. I specifically prayed that if this was meant to be, then it would fall into place without us forcing it. Even though we jumped through what felt like a million hoops, we never had to force anything. (I am thankful my husband jumped through many hoops for me in support of my dream) We signed the papers and opened Tranquility Fine Arts in January 2021. I have also maintained Tranquility Counseling Services. Both businesses continue to grow.

Any advice for managing a team?

Every action has a reaction. When managing a team, the first step is making sure you have the correct team. You must know your goals, your standards, your integrity, your morals and values, and your mission. Your team should hold the same standards, integrity, morals and values. Your team can adapt to your mission which will position them to help you accomplish your goals. People who are unequally yolked typically will not accomplish a goal. This is true in business. If your team members hold a lesser degree of morals, values or integrity than you, it is highly likely they will stunt your growth.

Once you have the correct team and action takes place, a good business leader will react to them in a manner that is respectful and rewards their value. Any successful business owner will tell you that it is important to take care of your employees. But it is up to the business owner to know how to do so. A young business typically can not take care of employees through monetary rewards. However, treating employees with value and respect, encouraging employees, validating employees, and mentally/emotionally supporting employees can go a long way in taking care of employees.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When Tranquility Fine Arts opened to the public in 2021, the gallery started with multiple employees. At first, I truly felt that these employees were inspired and wanted to grow with the gallery. I quickly learned, that may not be the case. A variety of issues arose that left me realizing that some employees will be inspired and want to grow with you. However, other employees have no interest in your growth and they are present for self serving purposes. I was quickly reminded that this in fact is human nature, and it is normal for an employee to think of taking care of him/herself only. After all, they are employed for a paycheck. I had to pivot my business plan quickly so that I could make changes. This simply meant that I had to remember a hard life lesson most of us learn in young adulthood. That lesson is simple, “you can not depend on other people to make your dreams come true, and you have to be ready to do the work yourself in order to accomplish a goal” I changed my business plan so that we could grow the first year independently without full time employees. The part time employees that remained were very much appreciated and we found our flow. As we enter 2022, it is time to pivot again and meet the needs of a growing gallery by adapting our business plan once again. After all, this is the definition of growth. Adapt, increase, mature and continue on.

Contact Info:

• Website: tranquilityfinearts.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tranquilityfinearts/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artfromthepsychee
• Twitter: @ArtFromThePsych