Margo has a wonderful conversation with visual artist and cat lover Terry Runyan where they dig into the inner critic conversation that comes up no matter how experienced you are and granting yourself permission. For many years, Terry has lived with a very strong inner critic and tied her personal value to the art that she created but deep into her career at Hallmark she realized how greatly this affected her own well-being and her art. Today, she still has an inner critic (as we all do) but she’s learned how to navigate those negative thoughts gracefully and disassociate herself from her work, allowing her to live more joyfully.    Margo and Terry discuss:  Terry’s creative career path and what having a creative mother instilled in her Her time at Hallmark and how it allowed her to see the value in diversification Letting go of self-judgment and the moment she realized her work doesn’t correlate with her personal value Conditioned and programmed thinking How she’s expanding her skill and broadening her comfort zone Leaning into the play aspect of creating and not treating everything as though it’s an assignment Stepping into joy   Terry is a creative encourager and loves sharing with others about creativity and being an artist. She sees creativity as the means to connect, communicate and share with each other! In addition to her YouTube channel, she has several classes available on Skillshare from discovering your art style to learning the Procreate app. She lives in Kansas City with her two sweet kitties Rylee & Tucker, who are a huge inspiration in my work.   Mentioned in this episode: Liz Steel   Connect with Terry: https://www.terryrunyan.com/ https://www.instagram.com/terryrunyan/ https://www.facebook.com/terryrunyancreative/   Connect with Margo: www.tantaustudio.com https://www.instagram.com/mtantau/ www.instagram.com/windowsillchats https://www.instagram.com/relishyourcreativity/ https://www.relishyourcreativity.com/

This week, Margo is joined by illustrator and business owner Sarah Watts. Sarah graduated from Ringling College in 2008 with a BFA in Illustration but not without overcoming many struggles as a child including poverty. Luckily, her upbringing is what shaped her desire to have a creative (and successful) career. She landed her first job at Carter's/OshKosh, and then went on to design for International Greetings. In 2011, Sarah left the corporate world to pursue her work in art licensing and book illustration. She has collaborated with over 30 major clients ranging from brands like American Greetings and Hallmark, to publishing houses like Penguin Books and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Margo and Sarah discuss: How her childhood shaped her career and why she knew she always wanted to making a living as an artist The people that have shaped her within her career Why Photoshop is such a big part of her process The need to be willing to break rules Dismantling everything you were taught Incorporating fun into the workplace Her long term goals And much more! Sarah's current work is focused on teaching Photoshop and drawing online, designing fabric for Ruby Star Society and running the stationery brand called Craftedmoon. She lives in Georgia with her husband and two daughters. Sign up for 2021 From Paint to Pattern with Sarah Watts Sign up for Explore Photoshop with Sarah Watts Connect with Sarah: sarahwatts.com www.instagram.com/wattsalot schoolformisfitmakers.com Craftedmoon.com   Resources Mentioned: Atomic Habits by James Clear

Margo goes solo in this episode and shares all about niching down. From practicing what you like, to understanding what you’re good at, finding success in your creative career will require a niching of some sort. Margo dives into the many challenges of feeling novice in your business and how niching can actually help you expand as well as ways to reflect growth and the old adage, practice makes ‘perfect’. Niching down is one of the many topics discussed in the Relish Your Creativity membership community which you can join today!   Learn more about Relish Your Creativity   Connect with Margo: https://www.instagram.com/mtantau/ https://www.instagram.com/windowsillchats/