I’ve been a business owner since 2010, and before that, I worked long hours as a school teacher and administrator. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found that I have a harder time responding to and recovering from stress. When my husband suggested that I needed to find a creative outlet, I signed up for some drawing classes and enjoyed myself, but I didn’t have a burning desire to pull out the pencils when I was feeling a need to de-pressurize.
On a lark, last year I signed up for a “beach art with resin” class with my mom. We both created beautiful pieces and decided we wanted to buy some materials to create a few more. Last summer, a friend of mine was holding an art fair on his property in Arroyo Grande, California, so my mom and I nervously signed up to have a booth. We had no idea if anyone would want to buy our work, but to our surprise, we sold several pieces that day. That was all the incentive we needed to buy a tent and start signing up for area art festivals. To date, we’ve done 9 shows and last Sunday was our best day yet, although it certainly isn’t so much about the money as it is about being able to create something that makes someone else happy.
When I’m feeling stressed out, I know that I can sit down, relax and channel some of my overwhelm into a piece of art. And oftentimes, letting my creative side take over helps me solve whatever puzzle or issue might be bothering me. I highly recommend finding a hobby that allows you to tap into your creative side!