Fear

Poster from Popcorny

 Since my Quit Your Day Job feature on Etsy I have received countless emails from designers and Etsy sellers who have questions about how to makes sales, get started and expressing that I am an inspiration to them. It has been overwhelming and humbling. But one email really struck me- a woman saying that she was a designer that was not working because of fear.  It struck a very deep chord with me.
What people do not see when the read a feature on a someone (and I am no exception) are all of the fears, worries and doubts that plague creative people trying to make a go at selling their work.

I lost my father in 2003 to cancer. He was my compass.  After I lost him I had no idea which direction to point, where to go, what to do.  I had two children...worked hard at being a good mother and wife, but there was a gaping hole in my heart that was filled with fear. Everything was so overwhelming, but nothing more so than the feeling of shame that I felt, knowing that I was not reaching (or even trying to reach) my potential.  Thank goodness for my mother who by telling me to "Give it a shot" somehow have me permission to move past my fear and start working on my art again.

So what does all this mean? If you do not try you will fail for sure. That is the truth. If you try, you still might fail, but at least you know that you tried. Then you get up, dust yourself off and try again.
You can do it. I believe in you.