“Our sense of value and self-worth is often tied to how much money we make,” says Michael Zwell, human capital expert and author of “Six-Figure Salary Negotiation.” “There is an illusion that we live with and believe that a bigger paycheck makes us happier and more valuable.”

In fact, research shows otherwise. Studies have shown most people feel happier in a five-figure job where they are earning more than the majority of other people in the company than they do in a six-figure job where they are making significantly less than others, says Stan Smith, founder and CEO of Smith Economics Group Ltd., in Zwell’s book. Ultimately, he says, people can’t rely on short-lived salaries, promotions and raises to keep them happy but rather the contributions they make in the long run. From CNN

Image by Summer Pierre

I’ve known Summer Pierre for a few years. She was kind enough to be profiled on Another Girl at Play and dish with me on several occasions in both Palo Alto CA & New York. With each visit she’s inspired me and her blog is a never ending visual treat. She’s an amazing, highly creative artist… with a day job.

I once wrote about the highly acclaimed artist Dai Giang who had art showings around the world and sold paintings for thousands of dollars. Yet during the day he worked in the manufacturing plant at Mountain Safety Research – an outdoor gear company. Anything but creative!

Summer shares a lot of thoughts about having a day job (the reasons, the good, the bad, the ugly) that I think everyone can relate to. She’s even made a zine out of it (The Artist in the Office). Why I love these discussions is because I think sometimes some artists feel a sense of “shame” if they have a “day job” or any job that isn’t 100% based on their creativity. But they shouldn’t as long as they’re creating and living the way they want – who cares how it gets done. There is no generic “Right Way.” One way doesn’t make you a real artist. There’s just life and living it the best way for you.

Personally, I’m the most creative when I have a million things going on. If I had nothing to do all day but write and paint I’d do anything but. I believe firmly in the Thoreau quote, “How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.” So because of this, I am on the go a lot, I do a lot of things – some creative, some not. But everything is piece that makes up the larger picture of who I am. Everything I do are things I want to do whether it’s for business or pleasure. This way, despite being tired I’m never drained – and always creating.

The world judges only the outcome but we forget this because we tend to judge the process. We judge the title, the outfit, the company, the paycheque, the right answer, the wrong answer. But really, all that matters is that you do something that satisfies you – whatever and however.

After all, that’s all that should matter, right?

My take on this is because if you have nothing you don’t have fear of losing anything. All you know is you want something so bad you’ll do whatever you can to get it. The more desire you have, the less questions you ask and the more actions you take – this is true of anything.

Comfort is something so many of us strive for yet can become a sort of prison if we’re not careful. It can breed fear and laziness by tricking us into thinking we can’t risk. When it’s at that very moment we should.

Women today make up nearly half of the total workforce in [the U.S.]. Over the past thirty years, women’s income has soared a dramatic 63 percent. Forty-nine percent of all professional – and managerial – level workers are women. Women bring in half or more of the income in the majority of U.S. households – a growing trend that made the cover of Newsweek and was front-page news in many of the nation’s newspapers. Women-owned businesses comprise 40 percent of all companies in the United States. There are more women than ever before who can count themselves among the country’s millionaires, more women in upper management, and more women in positions of power in the government.

Ninety percent of women who participated in a 2006 survey commissioned by Allianz Insurance rated themselves as feeling insecure when it came to their finances. In the same survey, nearly half the respondents said that the prospect of ending up a bag lady has crossed their minds. A 2006 Prudential financial poll found that only 1 percent of the women surveyed gave themselves an A in rating their knowledge of financial products and services. Two-thirds of women have not talked with their husbands about such things as life insurance and preparing a will. Nearly 80 percent of women said they would depend on Social Security in their golden years. Did you know that women are nearly twice as likely as men to retire in poverty? – Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny by Suze Orman

So there you have it – both the good and bad news about women and money. We’re making more of it, there’s more opportunity out there for us, it’s just when it comes to keeping it, making it grow, or getting more of so many are failing.

Often when there’s talk of making a living as an artist, the focus is on how you feel, the journey, the blessings. Art and money seem to be exclusive of each other for so many people. Not for me. I want to be creative but I also want to make a great financial living as well as have a great retirement income. Being happy drives me, doing what I love drives me, but if I do not financially make it, if I do not look after the money I make and invest it wisely, than I will not be happy and I will most likely lose the ability to choose what I do for a living. I think a lot of women – especially creative women – don’t look at it that way.

My first year as a writer, I made hardly anything because I focused so much on feeling secure as a writer and getting my head space wrapped around that. Besides, all the books I read on how to write, be creative and be happy never talked about money. They never told me how to make it, keep it, or expand it. It was as though the majority of these books were just to make me feel happy about being creative and broke! So my first year was financially tough.

That first year I was also extraordinarily wrecked with guilt and fear because I knew that I could not sustain myself with the low amount of money I made. And I didn’t even know what to do with that low amount of money except just worry about it and that bothered me. Just getting by wasn’t good enough for me. Worrying about every bill was not fun. There came a point that it didn’t matter how great it felt to write something wonderful, worrying about rent always had a bigger place in my mind and heart.

It was during this first year that I contemplated going back to the 9-5 grind and working in a job I didn’t really like but I knew would pay the bills. But then I realised that I could make money on my own if I learned about money, took it seriously, invested, thought long-term and worked my ass off in jobs I loved. So that’s what I did and now I make several times what I would have made had I taken a corporate job that first year.

I’ve written before about my lifestyle and how that contributed to my financial success but there’s more to it than that. It’s understanding banking, investing, questioning fees, looking into retirement, asking the right financial questions to the right financial people, not underselling myself, not giving up my talent for free (unless it’s for charity – I still donate time and efforts to two different charity groups a year).

Money and art should not be exclusionary whatsoever. Because I bet you, you cannot be happy with a painting, with your store, with your jewelery, with your book, if you are stressing financially everyday. You do not have to be a millionaire to not stress – if you take charge of your life financially you can be OK with $30K a year. You just have to make decisions that are sometimes tough and scary. But you do need to look at your financial picture.

When I talk to women about business, money hardly ever comes up on their end. I bring it up – a lot. I want women to be financially responsible for not just their families, but for themselves. I don’t want women to just financially survive – I want them to flourish. I do and not with a cost. I don’t do work I don’t want to do (being financially savvy has allowed me to really choose projects I take on), I don’t have to cheat any financial system, I don’t have to go without, I don’t have to have a part-time job so I can be creative. And this happened that second year of me being on my own financially just as it does in my 6th year – because it’s not necessarily the amount of money you make but what you do with it. And I always ask women what they do with their money just as I ask what they do with their hearts.

I also make no apology for wanting money. I often hear women do this or not even mention it at all. They just want to be happy and creative but I tell you, nothing sucks out happiness and creativity more than stress. So I work very hard to cultivate financial success and that means on choosing a certain lifestyle, being selective about where I work, and creating a great financial portfolio so that bills now and in 40 years from now are taken care of.

It’s not that I want a mansion or 4 cars (just a small place and a prius please!) but I don’t want to ever have to take on work that I know isn’t something I don’t want to do. I don’t want to worry about my health, or not being able to travel. I don’t want to not be able to help my family or give back financially. I don’t want to stress or worry about my life. Working in jobs I love and really having my financial act together prevent all those things from happening.

I encourage you right now – whether you make nothing, $15,000 a year or $500,000 a year, to look at your financial situation. Do you understand it? Do you have it together? Can you do better? There’s so many self-help books out there to make you feel good but unless you take actions in other areas, you can’t ever have the whole package. And I really, really want you to have the whole package.

Because I sincerely believe you can have the career you want and have the financial life you want if you take charge of both. Even if you won the lotto, if you don’t have your act together that lotto money will mean nothing. Money doesn’t solve money problems and pretty pens and books with colourful writing doesn’t solve life problems. That’s all up to you.

These three books I believe are the only one’s you’ll ever need in terms of getting your head out of your ass, understanding money, and then knowing what to do with it once you make it:

• Awaken the Giant Within : How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny!
• Your Money or Your Life: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence
• Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny

How I financially survive is probably the second most common question I’m asked. I do not have a sugar daddy (you wouldn’t believe how many people think this!), I do not have a trust fund, I do not have parents, and I don’t have lotto winnings. So how do I survive financially?

Here it goes:

In 1999 when I moved to America, I literally lived off $7,000 for the entire year – and that was with a boyfriend! So, I started off with very little. Then, I got a corporate gig and began to make really good money. This combined with a very, very simple lifestyle allowed me to save funds easily so that when I quit my corporate gig to write, I had savings to back me up for awhile. Which was good because the first year I made very little money. In fact I made such little money that about half-way into the first year, I spent a week interviewing at Helly Hansen for a top-level exec position which I ended up getting. On my first day of work, I walked into the lobby and stood there for a moment. Then I ran to the washroom where I threw up. Having that reaction I knew I couldn’t go back and without checking in, walked out and declined the job.

After that, I worked my ass off to make money.

Every year I made a little bit more money so that last year, I had an excellent financial year in which I made more as a creative entrepreneur than I did at my corporate job.

However.

Before I make it sound all easy and glamorous I feel I must disclose how I live because I think my lifestyle is a huge reason why I was able to develop savings and live off of it for awhile and I think it’s also crucial to how I survived the first two years especially as a self-employed soul.

I live very simply. I haven’t lived in anything larger than 800 square feet and currently live in 600 square feet. I’ve always paid a lot for rent (my current rent is $1725 a month) for a little space (I have no parking, no dishwasher, no washer/dryer) because this allows me to live in an area where I can walk/have safety and just enjoy. Because I walk so much, I very seldom use my car (which is a 2004 Toyota Corolla – nothing fancy but dependable and a great car). Not driving so much allows me to spend about $20 a week on gas. I don’t have air conditioning (which last week when it was 110 in my flat with 80% humidity I wish I did) and I don’t use a lot of energy so my electric bill is around $25 a month and I don’t pay for water.

My flat is simply furnished (I confess, too simply at the moment). I have a mattress with no bed frame, a small Ikea wardrobe, a couch I paid for with cash and got a major discount on, a TV stand I also paid for cash and got at a 70% discount from Pottery Barn (LOVE THEIR DISCOUNTS!), a desk and an ottoman – that’s it. They’re all things I adore and things that are high quality so I don’t have to worry about replacing them every year. Buying smart has allowed me to buy well. My TV is about 9 years old and cost about $100 and I don’t pay for cable but I do pay for Netflix, a $20 a month movie service because I do like movies. I don’t have a stereo system and I don’t really buy music or DVD’s. I also don’t smoke or buy alcohol which saves a tonne of money. I get to go to premieres and concerts for free thanks to working in Hollywood and having good connections.

True, I shop at Anthropologie but most of my things are marked down – I rarely pay full price and I don’t own very many clothes (they take up about 1/4 of space in my wardrobe). I have four pairs of shoes and I have four plates and four bowls. I have one credit card, no debt, I don’t consume very much and I own even less.

My money is spent mostly on food. I shop exclusively at Whole Foods because I really believe in that company and want my money to do more than just buy things. I also have an allergy to gluten (anything made with wheat, rye, barely, citric acid or vinegar) so I have to really read labels and watch what I eat or I’d be dead. So, shopping for food isn’t cheap – about $250 a week I spend. Although, I do go to my favourite cafe for brunch every Sunday and I do also adore the Beverly Hills Hotel and the chef at the Ritz understands my gluten-free needs so I love dinner there. So food is where a lot of funds go because it’s both a necessity and something I enjoy.

My money is also spent a lot on travel – sometimes for work and sometimes for pleasure. I’ve stayed in some of the world’s best hotels which are sometimes paid for and sometimes not. I’m OK with spending $350 a night for a room and I’m also OK with paying for a first class or business flight although because of the home buying thing, I’m taking less trips because I’d rather have an office with a desk than extra leg room. About 75% of my travel in the past two years has been work related so that’s when I get to travel the real high life without making a huge dent in my pocket book. I’m taking a trip next week for three weeks across Canada. My accommodation, transportation (except air fare) and gas are all paid for. I have to pay for my own food and activities which might be reimbursed by my editors down the road. Getting paid for this assignment won’t happen until the fall when published and that’s the only other incoming cheque I have waiting for me this year since I haven’t been working for two months. My money has also gone to healthcare since I have a genetic auto-immune disease which had me really ill for the past three years. Before proper diagnosis I had spent close to $9,000 on medical bills which was no fun (and I had good insurance).

I’m in the process of looking to move to another state which won’t be cheap and I’m looking to buy my first home, also not cheap especially considering the area and type of house I wish to buy – my mortgage/taxes/insurance will be more than my current rent and insurance. So I do spend money but only on things I think are important to me and I can afford- and not on the things I just want. This is not always easy especially since there are always things I want. For example, getting a house is terrifying because of all the things I’ll need and don’t have. There’s all the appliances (which must be top notch, energy efficient) a mower, garden tools, a kitchen table, a bed frame, dishes! I’d love to have a shopping spree at Anthropologie and buy everything I adore. There’s books I want and gifts I’d love to give and so on.

The wanting never stops but I have to balance the wanting with the needs with the money. I use the program Quicken to manage my money so that I always have my bills paid first, then I have savings build and then what is left over I can use for the wants. This way I don’t have so much fear or guilt over money because I’m in control of it at all times – regardless if it’s a lot of money or very little. This way, if I choose not to work for two months – I can. I can’t live all glamorous and carefree for two months because I can see, using my money program, how much I have and what bills are coming up. This allows me not only to survive the dry spells but to continue to live well with all my needs met which is very important to me.

Even though I’ve made more money each year, this career is not financially stable. I don’t know when the next cheque will come in or who will hire me or pay for my work. It’s always a financial challenge no matter how much the pay cheques are. I think that’s really important to know. Money doesn’t solve money problems. If you spend on things you don’t need or you don’t know how to balance your cheque book, then being your own boss is not for you because you will have financial problems and you’ll have even more if you make money. I don’t know one creative person or entrepreneur who does not have financial challenges. And it doesn’t matter if they make $100 a year or $100,000! The uncertainty of being paid is always hard so we have to plan so much more than someone with a steady pay cheque.

I fear sometimes I might make everything sound too easy or as though I have unlimited funds in which money is not an issue and is falling at my feet. But the reality is I love where I am and how I get to live so I sometimes don’t see the “problems” as “problems”. There are challenges for sure but I think because I get to live the life I want, I’m OK with those challenges, especially the financial. You work through them. You decide what is important to you so that you can make your life work. Being my own boss and working on things I love is so much more important to me than a Cuisanart or new shoes (ok, this is true 99% of the time!).

I think sometimes when one is unhappy, especially in America, they look for a “quick fix” to feel better. For a lot of people, shopping is this quick fix. But if one keeps spending money on “quick fixes” then you don’t get a long term solution. So many people want to quit their jobs to be self-employed but say that they hold back because of finances. They think if they just read a book on how to be creative that should be enough or if they “just give to the universe” that will make everything alright. But becoming self-employed requires changes both emotionally and financially – especially at first. This is why I always ask people who want to be self-employed what are their finances like. Do they spend money they don’t need to? Could they live with one car or commute? Could you shop less? Could you travel less? Do you have Microsoft Money or Quicken to track what you make and spend? What are their values? Why do they want to make money? How confident are they in not only making money but keeping it?

Working on your own is financially tough, I’m not going to kid you. But it’s totally possible if you make the right choices and commit to being financially responsible. It takes work, it takes daily management and it often takes guts to go without. But would you rather have things you don’t love and a lifestyle you hate than put some effort into working with money?

It’d be a hell of a lot easier for me to go and get a job at Helly Hansen and make X amount of money for certain each year. I’d perhaps indulge myself more in basic things, I wouldn’t freak out over buying a house, and I could buy a book without thinking of how I’d rather have a bowl of organic strawberries instead. Sometimes I’m frustrated with having to manage money so much and wish I could just go on auto-pilot and enjoy spending more without having to save for three months down the road. But, like I said, there’s a price to pay for that and it’s much higher than I’m willing to go.

If you want to be self-employed you must make choices and perhaps in the beginning, sacrifices. I don’t think I bought one thing the first year I was in business which was hard and terrifying! I’m not longer in that position but still, money has to be managed so that I can take this time off and that I can still eat well and get a check up and buy a latte or three without worrying.

I make no bones about wanting wealth and working hard to achieve it. It’s why I don’t just work for a pay cheque but why I also spend a lot of time learning about investing, learning about real estate, learning about what to do with money once I get it. I want to build wealth so that I can afford a certain lifestyle of having a home in a nice area, of eating well, of having health, of being able to entertain friends and to travel. Those are the things that are important to me and are why I work hard and why I don’t buy so many things. Perhaps I’ll one day become that bazillionheiress and able to have my needs met plus unlimited Anthropologie shopping trips but until then, I live simply so I can live well financially, emotionally and professionally.

I don’t want to ever struggle financially, of not being able to pay bills, of not being able to buy at Whole foods, of not being able to live well and enjoy life. So I make sure that I work hard and make great money and then I follow that up with spending and saving wisely. It’s the only way for me.

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. Anais Nin

Every few months I seem to develop a theme that encompasses a lesson I need to learn. It usually takes awhile for me to discover that I�m in the midst of a theme and what it is, but once aware, I notice examples of the theme all over.

My current theme is learning how to be ok with being shiny as my friend Julie Valentine calls it. But I’ve discovered a second theme which really isn’t for me, it’s for whoever needs it, and it’s based on an idea I’ve been talking about over and over on this site the last month.

It has to do with beginning something in any way you can despite any fear that may be there. It�s to become the butterfly, become the forest, become the blossom. It’s going in the direction of your creative dream because the pain of standing still is greater than the fear of moving forward. It�s believing that a dream mixed with action equals reality.

Mostly, it’s the theme of being who you really are meant to be.

I firmly believe that in each of us lies an authentic self that is happy only when we unleash our dreams and become who we should be. Happiness isn’t based on how much money you make, how many fans you have or all the limo rides you get to take. It’s about going to bed content because you know you’ll wake up tomorrow with a life that you want (even during rough patches).

People often hold back because they want to know how to pay the rent and that’s one of the worst reasons to hold back. If money is a concern, work around it. Keep a regular job and paint at night. Go part time at the office and full time as a writer. Get a grant, a loan, a patron. Save your pennies whilst figuring out your dream at night. Cut back on shopping, get a smaller flat, explore free galleries instead of renting 7 movies a week. Get creative about money but don’t get creative with excuses as to why you’re holding back.

Speak your truth and bloom, right now. It’s spring and you’re ready.

This year I’ve taken a lot of time off; there was 6 weeks out of the summer I closed my work doors, a two week fall break and now comes the winter one. I find it essential to give myself as many of these breaks as possible so that I can continue to enjoy writing but also, so I can continue to renew myself.

There was a point when I first started that I was so afraid to stop that I worked myself into oblivion. But I realise now what I do is a lifestyle which means to me that I don’t have to do everything right now. It can wait.

Waiting is hard at first but when you’ve been at it for awhile patience kicks in when you gain a certain sense of accomplishment and calm from your work. Also, this year has been wildly successful for me, which I think helps me to feel as though I’ve earned every break I take.

I should, however, like to share what my definition of success is.

Although I was published like mad this year, sold over 200 prints (this after failing art 3 times in school!), created several web sites, had drawings published in newspapers, was up for a huge design award, made good money throughout the year and created a book (details to follow at a later date), those things (while wonderful and wanted) aren’t what made me feel successful.

What made me feel successful this year was the fact that each day I was in love with my life; even during the messy and overwhelming bits. I was able to bring dreams to fruition and realise new ones. I became involved in an amazing community of women and met a whole bunch of fabulous new ones. I was able to give back with mentoring, volunteering and donating money. I created a beautiful and massive painting that hangs in my living room � something I had always wanted to do but was terrified. I learned to garden and spent a great deal of time outdoors. I feel like I woke up each day and did what I could do and went to sleep rather satisfied. I travelled a lot and realised a new direction for my writing. I overcame writing challenges and ideas. I sought out help and received it. But most of all, I think I was successful this year because this year I felt particularly useful to others which is my goal.

Most people who write me want to know how they, too, can be successful but what they�re really asking is, “How can I make a gob of money and have a flashy lifestyle?” Truth is, you can do that with writing and art if you want to. There are many books on writing that show you the ways to sell your articles and books for the biggest buck. However, for me, that is not important. I have a quiet, simple, happy lifestyle which affords me lots of luxuries that don’t require money and so my needs are different. Besides, I think when you do something for the sole purpose of money, you miss the point of living and growing.

And this year, I grew a whole lot which I think is also a good way of measuring success.

I’d like to share a poem which I think sums up this long-winded entry rather nicely:

Success by Ralph Waldo Emerson
To laugh often and much,
To win the respect of intelligent people
And the affection of children,
To earn the appreciation of honest critics
And endure the betrayal of false friends,
To appreciate beauty,
To find the best in others,
To leave the world a bit better,
Whether by a healthy child, a garden patch,
Or a redeemed social condition,
To know that even one life has breathed
Better because you have lived,
This is to have succeeded.

I’m a firm believer that you must support others who do what you wish to do. For me, that means that supporting small artists, writers and magazines instead of large chains. I find that by buying goods from these places, I help keep the industry going so that I can continue to thrive in it. Also, it means something to feel connected to something when I buy it, rather just mindless stocking up on things I don’t need or have no benefit.

Recently I went through this process when I purchased two beautiful designed and made Christmas stockings from my friend, Alicia who runs a fabulous little boutique in Portland OR called Posie: Rosy Little Things. In need of a pair of stockings to hang, I didn’t want to buy a generic red felt stocking from the local chain shop. Christmas, for me, has lots of meaning, tradition and ceremony and is a very simple, sweet and restful time. I wanted something that would add to that, not take away. When I saw Alicia’s stockings, I knew they were perfect. Knowing that someone would sit to make them for me and knowing that person to boot, made it easy to make the purchase.

Yes they might be a little bit more than one’s found in the store but the return on the value is so much more. Because when I look at the stocking when they hang in my flat, I’ll smile. I’ll know where they came from, I’ll understand the meaning behind them and I’ll know that I supported something I want to participate in. Instead of having something in my home that has no meaning, I have something that does, and that is almost priceless.

This is the same reason why I’ll be heading down to Portland to celebrate her special Holiday Bizarre come December. Wading through artist’s goods, chatting them up and perhaps indulging myself in an item or too, is just a brilliant way to spend an afternoon. It certainly beats rushing in and out of chain stores, fighting lines filled with cranky souls and checking off lists of gifts that don’t mean anything.

Other great artist shoppings sites/lists:

1. Another Girl at Play Catalogue
2. Soap Box Girls Buyers Guide
3. Keri Smith’s List
4. Christine Castro of Maganda’s List

I know I used to be afraid of talking about projects for this very reason until I had ideas and projects used despite trying hard to hold them in. I realised that in order for something to take wings, you have to give it room to move. Holding on too tight doesn’t work.

I wrote a response to her question and this is what I wrote:

A good resource for information on privacy and collaborating: Writing-World.com.

I believe that with all that I’ve received – support, friendships and the ability to make a living at what I love – that I have to give back. Today I did just that by giving ducks, trees and small monetary donation to a charity that I feel was in-line with the goals of Girl at Play – to help others help themselves and be the most kick ass they can be.

I’ve been fortunate in that when I wanted to make my dream come true, I could. I had access to tools, people and funds that I needed. Some people don’t. And although I wasn’t giving out writing tablets or art supplies, I was giving a choice to someone by giving them the ability to look after themselves and become whatever is their passion.

It’s important, I believe, that when you have the chance to do something, you should. Whether it be for yourself or someone else.