The Founder Wellbeing Project Mental Health Support Business Owners

“I’m an artist, not a business person.”

I’ve always wanted to be my own boss and starting a business seemed a great way to make that dream come true. My business has taken many forms over the years. I started with the intention of working in the travel industry because I love to travel. However, it ended up taking all the joy out of travel for me so I tried a few different business ventures over time. Now I’d say it’s developed into more of a personal brand. Mostly focussing on creating art alongside some freelancing.

To be honest, running my business has more often felt tough than it has felt good. I have experienced a lot of doubt, frustration, confusion, excitement, thrill, and angst. It’s tough not knowing if it’ll be a viable business and earn you enough to exist. Some people would probably say that my attitude is what prevents my business from thriving, and maybe that’s true, but I’m an artist, not a business person. You can definitely be both, but I am not. I just want to do what I love. Create art, make movies, and travel but as soon as I monetize any of these passions, I start to hate it.

I was a student photographer at uni, and once I graduated, I hardly did any photography for the following few years. I was tired of it and frustrated. I felt like it had to look a certain way. There are added pressures and expectations of it being “good”. It became all about what others might like or how the images “should” look and not about the art and me as an artist.

I haven’t yet solved the problem of wanting to create on my own schedule while also being able to afford to live in the US. But maybe someday I will! I’m ultimately grateful I decided to give business building a go. Maybe one day I’ll gain a little more clarity on what The Wandering Swami is meant to be. I am done with trying to fit in places and be someone I’m not. And who knows–maybe someday I WILL have a thriving business. But, for now, I’m going to keep working on finding peace within myself and seeing where that leads.

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