Art Lessons
BIO:
Jan McCarthy is a working artist, creative workshop leader, and champion and trusted advisor of entrepreneurial women. Her roster of roles also includes professor, television and radio host, author, blogger, and speaker. As a multi-faceted creative businesswoman, she believes in blending the left and right brain to achieve the most comprehensive result.
Q+A:
LR) You are often referred to as a multi-passionate entrepreneur. What exactly does that mean?
JM) I have several diverse businesses that I am passionate about and I have made a career out of them. I used to have three different business cards, and depending on who my audience was I would give them the appropriate one (I hoped). Eventually, I figured out how to merge everything into one! Everything I do is me, Jan McCarthy.
LR) How did you discover that your art, your business acumen, and your life experience could all intersect to create multiple revenue-generating ventures and/or creative outlets?
JM) Every time I created a painting, I would see valuable life and business lessons in what I was doing. I figured out if I was getting these benefits from creativity/painting/art, then others could benefit from it too. Here are a few of the ART LESSONS I have learned:
1. When I look at a painting from different angles, each vantage point gives me a different perspective. Similarly, there are times we have to view life, or our business, from different angles to get clarity.
2. Painting is all about problem-solving. And as we all know, life can require a little of this as well.
3. When I start a new painting, I don’t always know where I want to go, but if I trust my intuition, I’m usually happy with the result.
4. Painting is about risk-taking. No risk, no reward.
5. Painting is vulnerable. I'm sharing my feelings, my thoughts, and my viewpoint. Most of my best work comes from being authentic and vulnerable.
6. Most every painting starts as a blank canvas. It is up to me to create my message and craft how I want the world to interpret it. Ideas are the same. They begin with a clean slate, and as we add shape, color, and texture we better express ourselves.
7. When I am painting, I become entirely immersed in the process. I lose myself and can stay completely in the moment. It is essential to find something that transports you and gets you in touch with who you are. It is also nice to step away from checking your phone or computer screen every 10 minutes. When you have paint on your hands, trust me, you don’t want to be touching those screens!
8. Painting is a great stress reliever and can be very therapeutic. Who doesn’t need that?
9. There are no mistakes in painting. When I put brush to canvas, I get to try stuff. Like what if I put blue here? Don’t like it? Then I can change it! Paint over it or create something else or go in a different direction. Nothing is forever. Every problem can be solved.
10. Painting is a great way to get in touch with your creative side. If you are “stuck” in your business, one of the best ways to get unstuck is to do something creative, something that allows your mind to be freed up, to breathe, and to gain perspective.
LR) You came to painting later in life. What did you have to overcome, and what freedom did you find as a result?
JM) I had to overcome FEAR. Fear that I wasn’t as good as everyone else. Fear that I didn’t know how to paint or couldn’t learn. Fear that no one would like what I did. But once I decided I wanted to paint just for me, it allowed me to explore and experiment. I found the courage to express myself. I also realized it was up to me whether to share it with others. I think I was at a point in my life where I didn’t care what anyone else thought. There is tremendous power and freedom in trusting what you are doing.
Painting gave me a way to try stuff and to take risks. I realized that when we don’t like something, we have the power to change it or our response to it. There was so much freedom in that lesson. In one of my books, “A Month On the Run: Freedom,” there is a quote that says, “If you don’t like where you are, move. You are not a tree.” That’s powerful. Every time I paint I’m reminded of this truism.
LR) Do you try to strike a balance when creating a mix of ventures, some that generate an income and some that are for experimentation, innovation, or pleasure?
JM) No, I just follow my heart and passion. If something ignites me, keeps me engaged, gives me something back, financial or otherwise, then I’m loyal and give it my all. When or if it stops filling me up, then, I’m OK to let it go.
LR) You are always traveling, teaching, attending workshops, or launching new projects, and you keep a very social schedule. How do you do it all?
JM) Ha! Sometimes I look back and think “How did I do all that?” I try to stay focused, take action and not get too caught up in what I haven’t checked off my list. I LOVE what I’m doing. Creating art that moves someone in some way, sharing my passion and inspiring others is incredibly fulfilling. I believe we have an innate ability to juggle many things and often accomplish far more than we take credit for doing. It’s not always easy, but every day you decide to get up and put one foot in front of the other. Somehow, you manage to solve a few problems, do something to benefit others, and kiss your loved ones goodnight before they go to bed.
LR) What do you love most about being an entrepreneur?
JM) What I love about being an entrepreneur is having the freedom to create, make an impact, and forge my own path.
Interview by Nada Jones with Jan McCarthy