When it rains it pours...

Is it a good idea to say yes to every project?

It can be hard to think of saying no when perfectly good work makes its way into your lap. With the economy all over the place how do you tell someone “no, I cannot make you your logo/ad/graphic.” It feels foolhardy to dismiss a job when it comes in. Then what if you end up turning down a job that would have been the dream client? Or take the job that sounds like a dream for it only to turn into a nightmare.

Even if you manage to select the best projects for yourself how do you balance work time and down time if you’re working from home and juggling. If you’re like me then it can be hard to juggle down time, sleep, and parent life with artist life, and it can start to feel like it is a lot of balls to keep into the air. Not to mention, the importance of feeding the social media algorithm that takes up whatever time you have left and punishes you for not posting to it regularly.

We all have good days, bad days, busy days, and slow days. That said it can be hard not to worry that the lean times will be too lean, but I think my message this week is that you shouldn’t be a slave to the fear of not having work. Artists and creatives don’t cease to be creative just because there isn’t a client to work with. No matter the ups and downs of our chosen field things will work out and you need to have faith in your talent. Down time from client work can be the biggest advantage you have to develop your style and become the artist you’ve always wanted to be.

So don’t fear the downtime to the point that you cannot say no, don’t burn yourself out trying to outrun the slow times, and remember the joy of being creative for the sake of being creative.