We recently connected with Sway Jones and have shared our conversation below.
Sway, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Have you been 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? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
For myself and many other creatives, earning a full-time income from your craft is the ultimate goal. While in college, I worked several part-time jobs. The closer I became to graduating, the more I knew that I would only use my degree as a backup plan. I knew early on that I wanted to work for myself and I planned to do so through my art. For 12 years now I’ve been a full-time artist. I have maintained this through commission paintings, sign paintings, logos, portraits, graphic design projects and any other freelance projects that were brought to me. Financial success came with always staying ahead by planning what was next, staying consistent in my work, setting goals for desired monthly income, and moving with intention towards those goals continuously. Being full-time started off difficult. After college my peers all went immediately into the work field. They had jobs, new cars, and were even buying houses. I would compare myself to them and often question my decisions. So I took a few office jobs along the way to be sure that I was doing the right thing for my happiness. None of the jobs ever lasted long. I’ve read before that we like or dislike things to push us towards our purpose. For me, being in an office was unbearable, when to most it’s fun and exciting. Maybe their purpose has something to do with parts of the office lifestyle, so they naturally enjoy it more. The office made me miserable, so I knew that it wasn’t for me. And soon after, I concluded that no job was for me. I enjoy putting my efforts into something that I built and can grow within. Purpose has always led my journey and I am grateful for that. There is no area of my journey that I would have sped up or slowed down. Every lesson I needed. And every lesson is continuously shaping me into the entrepreneur I strive to be.
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
My name is Sway. I am the owner and artist behind my business Sway Art LLC. Sway Art is an umbrella for the many different services I offer. With Sway Art I offer almost everything you could imagine artistically (Original Sway Art Artworks, Painted Portraits, Custom Painted Decor Artworks, Wall Mural Paintings, Interior Wall Staging, On-site Painting Classes, Book Illustrations, Book Cover Designs, Digital Product Mockups, Logo Designs, Digital Marketing Content, Product Labels Designs, Apparel Mockups, and much much more) My years of experience has given me the opportunity to be exposed to so many areas of art, design, and graphic design. Weekly I help my clients take their ideas and make them reality. I am most proud of the repeat clientele and collectors I’ve gained over the years. There is so much gratitude that comes with gaining a client’s trust. Being passionate about my business, my professionalism and giving the people who choose to support me the best products is extremely important to me. Bringing clients’ visions to life and the amazing collectors that buy my original pieces are things that keep my business and my drive to improve my business going. I take pride in providing a great experience to each person that supports my business.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist for me is the genuine nature of people, most whom I have never met, appreciating something that started from my own thoughts. As an artist, when I put works out to the public I never know if someone will understand it, love it, not love it, or think it’s average. But to me, it’s like I am releasing a book that’s only in my language. So when others see those works, love and appreciate them; It feels like they understand my language that never had a translation guide. That feeling is like nothing else. With my original artworks, those pieces take days of prep before anything is ever painted, and then sometimes weeks of painting until it’s shown to anyone. But it all starts from my interpretation of one inspiring moment that’s formed into an idea for a painting. Just the idea that my perspective and interpretation of a moment is seen and appreciated by so many is rewarding. I remain grateful for that daily.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
One of my biggest unlearned lessons has turned into a revolving door of balance. I’ve had to unlearn that being hard on myself isn’t the only way to push myself to success. Being an entrepreneur, the balance motivating yourself to stay productive, but giving yourself enough grace to remain mental sound is essential. Having your own business gives you the freedom to move to your own beat, which is beautiful. But to be financially successful you have to have a structure and discipline of some sort to actually get work done. It’s difficult to have motivation 24/7. So finding the balance to both self-motivate and give myself grace has been key for me. I’ve learned that consistency helps me alot with that. I am in best harmony with myself and my business when I plan out a schedule for each day. The routine and consistency keeps me productive and allows me to have grace within myself to not feel lazy.
Contact Info:
- Website: soswayed.com
- Instagram: @_SwayArt
- Facebook: @shopsoswayed
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sway-j-67373013a
- Other: Tiktok: @_swayart
Image Credits
n/a