Wednesday, June 8, 2016

New Beginnings - Make Me Unstoppable

I did a crazy thing. Crazy and terrifying. I did the unthinkable and quit my job to pursue my passions full-time without any sort of backup plan. 

There's a certain level of shock that comes along with making a major life decision like saying "goodbye" to your steady pay check and wallet full of freshly-earned tips, yet on the other hand, I don't think this move came as much of a surprise to anyone who knows me. I've had one foot (and at times only a baby toe) in my business with the rest of my body and mind in my part-time job for years now, and it hasn't been easy. I've felt a disturbing level of anxiety for far longer than I think I was aware of due to the fact that I wasn't feeling fulfilled. I felt like I was wasting away my talents, and feared that many of the things that I valued most in myself were being pushed aside, and would eventually no longer be apart of who I am. 

I can't express to you how insanely overwhelmed I feel right now, not knowing where my next pay check is coming from and knowing that this could very well blow up in my face. Despite my extreme unease, it feels really empowering to be able to say "I'm giving this everything I've got!" without having any sort of safety net to break my fall. It's easy to look at the mountain I have ahead of me and feel like I'm never going to get where I want to be, but I'm trying to take things one step at a time and trust that everything will happen in it's own time, so long as I put the work in. 

It's tricky to know where to begin, but with so many other fellow creative entrepreneurs sharing their own experiences online, (in blogs, podcasts, twitter chats, and more) I feel a little more at ease knowing how many individuals have been in the same position as me. It's so inspiring to hear about other success stories (which I have to remember usually don't come until you've experienced a few failures) and the journey that got them there. 
"If you put both feet into your business, the momentum will pick up."
I recently came across a fantastic podcast from #createlounge, which is all about sharing stories and advice from other creatives on how to tap into your creativity daily. In the midst of an "OMG! What have I done? I'm going to fail!" freakout moment today, it was so encouraging to listen to Episode 1 of the #createlounge podcast, featuring artist Paige Poppe on Pursuing Your Art Full-Time. One of the most reassuring quotes from the podcast was Paige stating that "If you put both feet into your business, the momentum will pick up." Well, here I am, with both feet firmly planted in my business and I'm ready for that momentum! If you're anything like myself and are looking for a surge of motivation, or perhaps something to settle that horrible, sinking "what have I done?!" feeling, I highly recommend giving this episode a listen. 

I'm really looking forward to sharing this new adventure with you and having the time to create engaging and unique content that I can truly take pride in. Thank you to my family, boyfriend, friends, and colleagues for all of your unrelenting support. You are helping to fan the fire I've lit under my ass and I cannot thank you enough for that. I love you all and am so grateful to have you along on this journey with me! Cheers to making it happen!

Listening To:
"Tonight make me unstoppable" Forever my pump-up song! 

2 comments:

Unknown said...

You go girl! You got this!

Kayla Hollatz said...

Thank you so much for mentioning our #createlounge podcast episode! I'm really glad it resonated with you and came to you at the right time. You're doing great things. Cheers to having both feet in our business!