Do you ever wonder what life would have been like had you chosen a more standard path? Does everyone have these doubts sometimes? We wanted to find out and so we asked as many talented artists and creatives as we could and have shared highlights below.

Galya Gornishka

I am happy to be a full time makeup artist and business owner. I am a full time makeup artist for a first time this year. I always used to have another job in the past. I am an accountant by my college degree and I used to work in corporate America for many years. I finally decided to quit last year and pursue my passion in makeup full time. Best decision ever! Read more>>

Adam Yokum

Overall, I am very happy with my life as an artist. You are telling me i get to do what i love, work with my friends, and also travel around the world to present what i love to other people? Yeah that is the best job in the world. With that being said, there is a lot of rigamaroo that comes with the job as well. Whereas most regular jobs have a set time of work (9-5), this job has no boundaries of time spent working. You could work for 4 hours a day, or 14 hours a day. One of the things i struggled with & am still working on, is learning when to shut it off. Read more>>

Jose Calabres

I think the question could seems simple, but like everything related to art, the answer can be deeper than expected. First of all, we should define what it means to be happy. I suppose that being happy is a consequence of achieving happiness, right? but achieving happiness is not an easy thing. It is not easy because happiness is in itself a distant goal to reach, Read more>>

Jonathon Paul

The last time I had a job was a couple of years ago, it was as a security guard. Even though it provided an income, I was not motivated to be creative, I often had doubt and moments of depression because it suffocated me as a creative. It was just countless hours of working for another persons company and I came to the conclusion that I need to put this same effort in my own company. At that point I completely engulfed myself in my company, Read more>>

Kevin Barranco

To tell the truth, feeling happy and even fulfilled is a subjective idea. There are times I feel wholesome as ever, and there are days where things barely make sense. That’s what makes the experience more enriching and exciting. I do sometimes think as to how it’d feel to go back to consistency and a more stable mental state instead of living the wild lifestyle of an artist. Then I answer my own question by realizing I wouldn’t give it up for anything less than I was meant to fulfill with my talents. Read more>>

Jen Spaker

I am definitely happier as an artist. It’s a hard job because an artist creates each idea, decides on a design and style and then produces the finished product and hopes someone will buy it. There’s a lot of mental energy that goes into the painting process. There are many paintings that don’t quite work out and that can be frustrating. So, being an artist can look like an easy, fun job but its actually the hardest job I’ve ever had. Read more>>

Emma Levitz

Whenever I experience financial hardship, I consider what it would be like to have a “regular” job. After some romanticization of the ideals of consistent paychecks, benefits, and “clocking out” when you get home, I still circle back to remembering why I do what I do. Recently, somebody asked me what was my most fulfilling job, excluding being an artist, and my mind went blank. Read more>>

Rosario Spence

Creating cosplay from the video game that I love, and turning it into actual armor that I can wear, makes me happy and gives me satisfaction. I do sometimes think if I had a regular job I could help more financially, but being a full time content creator on twitch gives me control of my time. I am my own boss and I can balance it between streaming, taking care of my family and making cosplay. I wouldn’t be able to do this without the help of my husband since he has regular job. Read more>>

Pascale Sexton Bilgis

Creating from our own hands and being able to earn a living through it is a magical feeling. Doing art is a meditation in itself, it helps the soul grow and express it self, so when i realised people enjoyed my work it felt like a double win, as it is good for me but others too! Being an artist is a very free ” job” as we choose our own hours. Read more>>

Caleigh Boyd

I can say with confidence that I am happy as an artist. Art in every form is something that I always have been & always will be extremely passionate about. It has been the most consistent & constant thing in my whole life & I am in love with it. There are times that I wonder how my life would be if I wouldn’t have dropped out of college & I get worried that I won’t be taken seriously in life. But every time I have those thoughts, I am equally comforted by the feeling that I am on the exact path that I need to be on. Read more>>

Nadajia Hall

Last year around the month of November, I started working for a medical transportation company as a facility coordinator. I honestly loved my job. But it got to a point where I found myself waking up, going to work, cooking dinner, then sleeping; No time for creating art. I felt like I was stuck between giving up my passion and working full-time. I was happy that I was finally able to pay bills on time and keep groceries in the house, but I was also upset because my art area, which is my dining room, was looking lonely. Read more>>

Hannah Maria Mendenhall

I am happy at this moment, that I am an artist. Ask me after Christmas maybe?All jokes aside, I could be so many other things if I put my mind to it, but I am an artist to the marrow of my bones. I used to question my worth in the world as a creative earlier on in my career. We are bombarded everyday with news and media with the stark truth that life is hard, and a big question of what the future holds. Read more>>

Stevie Redstone

In my experience, being a musician in this age doesn’t really have an off-switch. At least not for me. Unless I’m asleep, or enjoying quality and truly present time with my family, my mind is pretty much always grinding on whatever I’m currently working on, need to work on, or brainstorming new ideas for content, songs, promotion etc. Because of that, I do sometimes wonder what it would be like to work a 9-5, or more “normal” type of job where when I’m off, I’m OFF. Read more>>

Xiao daCunha

I am definitely the happiest when I’m creating. I do get my phase wondering if I should keep going, but since I don’t have a regular job to begin with (I run a digital marketing agency and work fully remote), I don’t get the urge of finding a regular job. For me, being able to create whatever I want without the pressure on worrying about sales, marketing, or even reach/exposure in general is a luxury, and luxuries need to be earned. My mentality is I’m going to do what I’m best at professionally, continue to grow my revenue stream, so I never have to worry about selling my creations. Read more>>

Alice Chui

I love being an artist and honestly wouldn’t imagine myself doing something else. That said, I’ve wondered what I’d be like having a non-creative related job or a “regular” job. When I was younger I wanted to be an ornithologist, which is the study of birds! I would be quite happy studying birds too, but I learn to realize that anything I do is creative. Read more>>

Simone Bryant

In 2021 I quit my full time job and I can say I am happy to pursue my life as an artist. That job taught me that no matter where I am employed, I want to feel connected to the work. Working as I florist I knew I wanted to be a creative all the time. That job also helped show me how I can value the work but not the workspace. So, I set off to pursue something different and new art jobs and projects. But, I did face the comparisons to regular jobs. As I am growing as a painter I still faced financial inconsistency. So, I found a job at a local art gallery in Detroit called, Norwest Gallery. Read more>>

Suzy Wilson

Am I happier as an artist or creative? Yes. But that is sort of an unfair question and answer. While I have only been a songwriter/vocalist for a few years, most of my 40+ year career was spent as a creative. The only jobs I ever had that I wasn’t a creative, were in high school and right out of college. I was a waitress at a small diner and then worked in data entry in the student financial aid office at my former university. Read more>>

Ayanna Hill

Absolutely! I’ve actually had a “regular job”. I would always say to myself on that Job I can’t wait to do these same things just for myself. haha boy what was i asking for . The last time I had the thought about having a regular job I’d overwhelmed myself with work and things kept piling up. I thought it would be so much easier if everything wasnt left to me looking for a easy way out as we sometimes always do. Read more>>

Elia Esparza

I’ve always known I wanted to be a performer, an artist, creative of some sort and performing. Throughout my life, I have attempted the ‘regular job’ route and found that it truly just wasn’t for me. I worked at a magazine company, as a waitress, assistant, ect and found the restrictions of the 9 to 5 dont feed into my productivity. I was living in NYC in 2012 and working as a waitress at the time, when I suddenly got let go for pay cuts and thats the last time I had a ‘real job’. I realized I could work on my craft and create my own businesses on my own time without having to sacrifice my creativity and sanity. Read more>>

Caribe Groove

We believe that being an artist and being creative should be a joint and complementary task; however, we understand the dynamics that make it possible for some to live fully from music, without this meaning living for music, it is there where, by way of reflection, we ask ourselves about the value we give to what we create, especially for that it is in general the public and the followers of certain musical genres, who determine this balance. Read more>>

Patty PerShayla

I am definitely happy in life as an artist. I’m not here to glamorize it or anything, some days I’m flat broke. But I have gotten to a point where I don’t owe anybody anything, and that’s a great feeling. Having less feels lighter. I had a desk job straight out of high school, in lieu of a college education. My parents were always supportive of my creative endeavors but they made it clear I was to support myself. Read more>>

Justin Johnson

Since I monetized my poetry, the thoughts of being a “regular” person with a “regular” job comes up often. Once I started to give my art to the world I now have to worry about other aspects that have nothing to do with my art. (promoting, marketing, social media, videos, having a presence in the scene, etc.) I get a thrill at creating everything else previously mentioned is extra and unnecessary for me. I use to think this is what I wanted, to get paid off my artistic craft like some of my personal favorite artists, Read more>>

Prince Frazier

I am ecstatic to be an artist. My career is still fresh with plenty of room for growth. After really working on myself and finding out who the true Prince “T’Challa” Frazier is, the path to becoming a self-employed artist has become effortless. Technically I still have a regular job. At the time of writing this, I am a sophomore at the University of Massachusetts Lowell studying “Composition for New Media”, I am part of the work-study program where I am currently working in the mailroom which is by far the closest thing to a traditional job I have had. Read more>>

Karen Golmer

I am happiest as a creative artist, but there is a part of me that craves balance with the technical- scientific world. Because of this I bounce between focusing on art and taking projects that put me in a position to help the world’s best scientists commercialize their technology. I also like to think I use my creative, right side of the brain to help entrepreneurs. Read more>>

Emilio Cole

As a creative/artist, I feel so many different emotions and they do indeed come in waves. Somedays I feel confident and like I’m one step away from being the next big thing and then the next day, I feel like I’m far from ever being discovered or listened to. Excited, scared, motivated. So many. I sometimes think when I see other people just living a normal life, “what is it like to not feel as nervous for their future like I do mine?” Read more>>