Getting started sounds so easy – but for millions of aspiring artists and creatives, the uncertainty of the path forward presents a very real challenge. So, we wanted to gather some artists and creatives we admire to open up about their experience and how they think about whether they should have started sooner or waited for a better time.

Pilar Maroto

I wish i had started way before, i was always thinking on everyone else’s opinions and too afraid to do it. Read more>>

Elena Takmakova

I should start with saying that I don’t really wish I had started my creative career sooner or later. I believe I started it just at the right time. When I got understanding of life, myself and my role in life. But to get to that point I had to go through all my previous experiences. To learn some important lessons. And now, when my creative career just starts, I appreciate my creativity even more and treat it with respect. Something that I didn’t do before. The only thing I wish I did is to pay attention to the signs life was sending my way trying to direct me in the right direction but I was so obsessed with the idea of building a corporate career (that obsession was based on my fears that I didn’t even realize I had) that I moved in absolutely opposite direction. Therefore, I now try to be very aware of what comes my way, how I feel about it and treat everyone and everything with kindness and respect. Because you never know where God is going to take you and who is going to walk that path with you. Read more>>

William Deloe

I started my journey last year in December, when I got my first job offer as a 3D Environment Artist. I previously worked at a bakery shop for a year after graduating from school and getting nowhere with job offers. I was very happy and grateful that I could finally do a job that I love to do. I wish I had applied to more internships during College as that seems like the best way for students and graduates to get a entry job due to the competition. I focused too much on my grades in school when I should have been more attentive to making connections and applying to as much internships as possible, because unfortunately most that are offered are for students only and not graduates. Read more>>

Ziere Bryant

Fantastic question, If I HAD to choose, I would say sooner. That answer might come as a surprise to those who have been with me on my journey since day one because I am one of the few artists who had the foresight to start their career early. I released my very first song in 2014 while I was still a teenager. Most people around me didn’t take me serious & whilst many might’ve considered being young a handicap due to age allocations, as I look around at the field nowadays, I can tell I made the right decision. Read more>>

Ellie Cat

Although I do not feel like I am rolling up to my 35th birthday, my career is just now beginning. I still feel as if I am bouncing all over the place, without one clear path regarding what I want to do with my life—going back and forth between all aspects of fashion, beauty, and art while sharing my experiences with others with realistic expectations. I always have said, “You name it, I can do it, and if I can’t. I’ll figure it out.” My career hasn’t always been the most steady and I am most certainly not where I would like to be. I have had the same dream since I was a little girl. I want to be recognized, noticed, and famous, no matter how I have to do it. I just wanted people to recognize who I was and to have a positive influence on those who did recognize me. If you put all of my experience throughout the years onto one resume, I would imagine it would be a pretty lengthy but outdated rap sheet. Read more>>

Christopher Madden

I didn’t get into any formal creative performance until I was in my 30s. Growing up, I made video sketches with friends and family and even created a fake radio show with my sister. I’d edit together tapes using two camcorders, a VHS player, and a RadioShack soundboard. But none of this felt like creativity to me—it was just fun. As I got older, I never saw myself as a creative person. That was a story I told myself often, and one that my teachers seemed to reinforce. Read more>>

Yumi Emily

I think I used to wish I started my career earlier but now I don’t really think that way. The only reason I thought I should’ve started drawing sooner was because I thought my drawing skill was tremendously lacking compared to those who has been drawing since they were very little. I thought that in order to become a good artist, I have to catch up with people who’s been drawing for many more years than me. However, I realized that’s not really true. Read more>>

Ine’a J

At times I do wish I started my career as a creative much sooner. In terms of being an artist and putting out music into the world. I was already an open musician (pianist) and would sing and write songs in private, but it would have made a lot of a difference if I knew who I was as an artist sooner than later. It’s almost as if I did but imposter syndrome & fear consumed me when it came to being a vocalist that it robbed me of my growth & confidence. I try not to dwell on the what if’s and know that things happen for a reason and in their own timing as I was also very young, so I’m grateful for what I have when it happened. I also have made many musical accomplishments at a fast pace so it helps me to feel better that I’m not behind even though I started later as a recording artist than my peers. Read more>>

Francis Aguilar

I 100% wish I had started sooner. I had always tried to dabble with creating content and making videos, but deep down, I felt shy—maybe a little embarrassed about what my friends and family would say. The funny thing is, I eventually decided to start a secret Instagram where I knew absolutely no one. That’s when everything changed for me. I started enjoying posting videos because I wasn’t afraid of the views or engagement—I started with zero followers, so there was no pressure. Read more>>

Mikell Howington

I definitely wish that early in life I had known that I should study both architecture and interior design. I know I have a natural ability in various creative areas. I wish I had taken a decisive direction right from the start. Unfortunately, I chose a very unlikely path in that I spent my college years studying business at the College of Charleston. This was an inappropriate choice which did not suit my personality and abilities. I was a round peg in a square hole from the start!! Read more>>

Clyde.

I wish I would have started my creative career sooner. As far back as I can remember, I have always had a deep connection to all types of music. It was like a felt that whatever I was listening to was part of me. I was reluctant to create and express myself because I was concerned about what other people, specifically friends, family and work colleagues would think. I started creating music at 41, after a rather significant medical scare, where I lost significant kidney functionality and spent 3 weeks hospitalized with no clear answers on how it all happened. One doctor told me I was withing a few days of losing my life at one point. I realized that I spent most of my adult life trying to earn money, building a successful career in leadership and seeking some type of validation from others that had no true connection to my life. Having to process my own mortality allowed me to reflect on my life, my choices and how I needed to make changes for myself, which ultimately led me to start writing. This became a therapeutic process that helped me be more impactful and intentional with the time that I have. Although I wish I would have trusted my purpose and leaned into my creative side earlier in life, I do believe that things happen as they should and I am blessed to have found a reason that opened this door for me. Read more>>

Hannah Levin

I first fell in love with visual art when taking a beginners drawing and painting class at my high school, and it changed the trajectory of my love for art, as well as my life. Prior to this, I hadn’t painted or drawn much since elementary school. Diving back into it rekindled something in me. I decided this was something I wanted to continue to pursue. I had felt completely free being able to make something completely mine atop a blank canvas. I went to college in Boston for art therapy, and upon graduation assisted with a friend’s queer art collective as assistant art director and blog editor, while I worked in a cafe in Davis Square. Editing and designing the semi-annual publication for the collective brought such joy to my life during my time in Boston, and connected me to so many amazing creatives in the New England area. During the pandemic, I temporarily opened an Etsy business where I sold wire wrapped crystal pendants, rings, and earrings. Upon moving to Philadelphia, my love for painting soon morphed into a love for drawing, and then printmaking after I took a class at a local art memorial. Read more>>

Coco (cortney) Cooper

If I could go back in time, I definitely wish I had started my creative career sooner. I actually began writing my first fiction adult novel in 2006. Over the years, I started and stopped a dozen times, faced a computer crash that wiped everything out, and had to begin again. I finally finished it in 2016, but then I froze. I wasn’t sure how to take the next step or even if I trusted my ability to turn it into a book others would want to read. Looking back, starting earlier would have given me more time to grow and develop my craft, but I think the stops and starts were part of the journey. They made me question what I really wanted and gave me the resilience to push through. Writing my first, and only, children’s book has given me the confidence to pursue novel writing seriously again. I’m now preparing that original novel for edits and moving forward with new energy. Read more>>

Chris Hunt

Looking back I wish I would have started my creative career sooner. I have been creating content since November of 2015, but only started full time in May of 2020. I did not start full time until after having children. I always wonder what it would have been like if I got the time to fully dedicate 100% of my time to my channel instead of giving it the leftover time after my 9-5 before kids. Read more>>

Casey (Sassy Grilled Cheese)

I constantly see creators on this platform (YouTube) that “I should have started 2 years ago”. “It was so much easier to grow on the platform [x time-frame] ago”. To that I say – “Today is better than tomorrow” but ultimately I think people should create content publicly when they are ready to. I’ve been making content since I was a kid. My sister and I loved Saturday Night Live and other variety comedy shows so we would make our own cringy skits and filmed them – most of which were never archived or posted anywhere. Read more>>