Mini Series | Killing the Starving Artist Archetype (2/3): The Writing Life: Balancing Day Jobs and Creative Pursuits
Welcome to part 2 of our mini-series, 'In Defense of the Day Job,' hosted by Katie Dalebout and Michelle Pellizzon. Challenge the belief that leaving your day job is necessary for pursuing creative dreams as they explore case studies of iconic artists like Andy Warhol, T.S. Eliot, and Frida Kahlo.
Discover how these artists balanced day jobs while pursuing their creative passions. Gain insights on reframing 'selling out,' managing energy between work and creativity, and using a day job as a launchpad for your artistic dreams. Tune in for inspiration on navigating creativity, entrepreneurship, and finding your flow in unexpected places.
“When Elizabeth Gilbert talks about how she had a day job until ‘Eat, Pray, Love’, her big hit came out, her first big book hit. That was a massive wild phenomenon. Julia Roberts played her in the main class. It wasn’t until that even though she had been making money as a writer that she left having a day job, because she says she never wanted to put the pressure on the art to make her money. Because the second you do that, then you have to make compromises. So it’s actually kind of cool if you can have your job over here that funds the other work and then you can take as many creative risks with the work as you want because you’re not dependent on it. You’re more free.”
“I want as much of my life to be made up with generative time as I possibly can. Not all day jobs are degenerative to our soul and to our spirit. In fact, a lot are either neutral or generative because they give us some capital to fund our work, and maybe even some whitespace in our day to just create and dream and think where we’re not hustling all day long. Day job isn’t a dirty word to me. I’m actually always impressed when people have a day job and they’re working on something else, because there’s nothing forcing them to work on that other thing. They’re doing it because they’re compelled to, and that is so sexy to me.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Rethinking the notion of "selling out" can transform how day jobs are perceived, recognizing their potential as enablers of creative endeavors.
Balancing creative work and day jobs prioritizes energy management over time, crucial for sustaining productivity and creative flow.
Day jobs serve as pillars offering stability, resources, and impetus to propel creative projects forward, acting as supportive foundations for artistic endeavors
Not all creative work has to be monetized immediately—some projects are just for learning
Unrelated jobs contribute diverse skills, experiences, and networks, enriching and expanding creative horizons by providing unique perspectives and opportunities
JOIN THE HOLISTICISM HUB FOR FREE
✨🔮✨
JOIN THE HOLISTICISM HUB FOR FREE ✨🔮✨
“All my big mistakes are when I try to second-guess or please an audience. My work is always stronger when I get very selfish about it.”
“So many jobs give us this opportunity to learn some skill or be in rooms that we would never have access to if we were just representing ourselves as creatives. Like being at an ad agency, there are some really shitty things that you have to endure. But there’s a lot of really interesting stuff that you get to experiment with. And that you get to learn just by being in the room, just through osmosis, by seeing it happen. And it might not directly feel like it impacts your work or it’s important to your work. You don’t necessarily feel like ‘I got to do an apprenticeship at this ad agency in order to be a renowned poet.’ I undoubtedly, if you can figure it out, it’ll propel your work forward. Like it can only help you if you look at it as ‘Here’s a laboratory or playground for me to learn some shit that I never would have, I can learn, and that I don’t have the money to learn how to do. But I’m basically getting paid to experiment with other people’s stuff. So let me see what works for them. And then just apply that on my own for free.’”
“I think it’s important to hear all types of stories about how people find their creative way. And also that it ebbs and flows, that there’s not one right way forever. Like if you had a day job now, to your point, you might feel really burned out. And, again, coming back to the whole thesis of this series that we’re diving in on and trying to excavate for ourselves, how do we create the environment to be the most prolific versions of ourselves possible? Because only through that or through that we find ourselves pushing into all of our potential, we find our edges, we find who we are and our space in the world. And I think that’s part of the point.”
-
Famous artists such as Andy Warhol, T.S. Eliot, and Frida Kahlo who had day jobs while building their creative careers
Reframing your mindset around concepts like "selling out" to help you see day jobs differently
Managing your energy, not just time, when balancing creative work and employment
Day jobs as source of financial stability, resources, and momentum to fuel creative side projects
Working in unrelated fields to gain new skills, experiences, and professional networks
Monetized creative works versus projects that are just for learning
Artistic freedom beyond sole income sources
Streamlining tasks at your job to free up mental space for creativity after hours
Following curiosity and doing experiments for learning that lead to opportunities
The way artists discovered their flow was by alternating between employment and passion projects
How leading with your artistic identity, rather than your job title, shapes your self-mythology
Can day jobs coexist harmoniously with creativity when you reframe your mindset?
Job validation's momentum extending beyond the workplace to inspire artistic pursuits
The importance of quality of life and inspiration for sustaining a creative practice
Different paths to living an artist's life
📚 Resources and Links:
Hear all of this and more every Tuesday morning by subscribing here
Sign up here for your weekly wink from the Universe and receive curated links to tickle your brain and coax out your intuition!
📩 Connect with host Michelle Pellizzon-Lipsitz and team Holisticism
This podcast is edited by Softer Sounds Studios