Artists and creatives face innumerable challenges given that their career path often doesn’t come with a playbook, a steady paycheck or any form of safety net. It’s definitely not easy and so we asked a few of the artists and creatives we admire to talk to us about why they chose to pursue an artistic or creative career.

Daphne Sumner | Style Coach

Honestly this career found me. When I left Corporate America I started a Virtual Assistant business. The majority of my background in Corporate was as an Administrative Assistant. Once I left Corporate America I had more time on my hands to do the things I wanted, as well as try new things. I joined a national movement that encouraged and promoted body positivity. Part of this movement was taking photos every quarter to promote the movement. This is where my knack and love for fashion formed. I was creating looks for the photoshoots, and began to help others create looks. I started researching and then took a few workshops on personal styling. The rest is pretty much history. My biggest take away from being a stylist is when my clients come back and say how confident they feel in their clothes, and how happy they are with their new wardrobe choices. Read more>>

Andre Oliver | Prophet & Fitness Coach

Initially, I’m not sure if many would consider fitness as art. However, the Bible says that we are the clay and God is the potter. That means, before pottery every existed,, we were actually shaped by God in the same way. I believe that is one of the reasons why we are His masterpiece. We are His art. I pursued this because it is an opportunity to bring out and unveil the beautiful creation in all of us, hopefully leading to others seeing themselves the way that God sees us. Read more>>

Kelly Smith Smart | Artist

I have been an Artist for as long as I can remember. I never really wanted to be anything else. For me; creativity is a staple of my life. If I am not creating; I feel incomplete and stagnant. Read more>>

Brian Shirley

I have always been creative and at the same time I love entertaining people. I found that I could also make a living out of being creative so once I got bit by the stand-up/acting bug, I decided to give it my all. Sometimes it’s a tough haul, but you learn that a career in entertainment has big ups and downs. The big thing is learning to deal with this and keep moving forward. Read more>>