Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Creative Thursday




Today I thought I would share a little story with you.

Once upon a time there was a girl called Emma who was looking for inspiration. It was one ordinary Wednesday afternoon when she decided to boot up the Google images home page and type "cute rabbit" into the search box. What she didn't know was that, that very small action would pretty much change her life forever. What did she find you may ask, well she found this:


A painting entitled "Yes" by Marisa Haedike of Creative Thursday. Emma decided to take a look at Marisa's blog and from that moment on found a new world of possibilities that she never even knew existed. She was not only incredibly drawn to Marisas's wonderful art but she also found herself hooked on Marisa's blog and her podcasts.



Emma found Marisa's story incredibly inspiring and the timing couldn't have been more perfect because she felt very lost in her career. At that time she was working full time at a design company and had done so for many years, but deep down she had also known for many years that what she really wanted to do was work for herself selling her art. She never really thought though that, that would ever be achievable. "I mean honestly" she would think to herself "who would buy my art?" "My work doesn't exactly resemble a Monet or Matisse! I just like drawing "cute" stuff!" But as Emma delved into Marisa's world she realised that not only Marisa but many, many artists all with different styles, were making a living selling their art on the internet via sites such as Etsy, Dawanda, Folksy & Art Fire to name just a few. "How could I have not of known about this?" "Perhaps I could do this!" Emma knew that maybe, just maybe her dream could be achievable! From that day on she saved and saved and saved all the money she could and then finally handed her notice in. This was such an exciting time for Emma but also a very scary one as the great unknown lay before her. Fortunately she had Marisa's podcasts to listen to and blog posts to read which gave her enough inspiration and courage to see it through. Not surprising then that Marisa became a very special lady to Emma as she had now taken her first step on the path she always knew she was meant to be on.

The End

If anyone reading this has also met Marisa (online) you will know that she is a very kind soul who always finds the time to answer an email and offer encouragement even though she is pretty much always an extremely busy bee. Not only did she reply to my emails and I did (although enthusiastically) go on a bit! She even (WOW) dedicated a podcast to me and another fellow artist! And I can't begin to tell you what that meant to me. Naturally her joy of offering encouragement and support to us "newbie" entrepreneurs has now led her to teach e-courses and of course I signed up for the first one immediately!


What I loved about the course was Marisa's teaching methods, she didn't just relay information to us which we then scribbled down, it was a much more personal experience and a much more supportive environment to anything I had ever expected. I was blown away by how much she truly wants you to succeed and how dedicated she is in helping you anyway that she can. 

Even though Marisa lives thousands of miles away from me and I've never met her in person, her genuine and caring spirit always seems to shine through in whatever she decides to do. I hope that if anyone reading this has a goal or a dream then you, like I, stumble upon your very own "Marisa" to guide you to it.

You can find Marisa and Creative Thursday here:

And you can find Marisa's Etsy shop here:

7 comments:

Dotty said...

what a lovely post and inspiring- you see dreams can come true !!!

linda said...

Thanks for sharing your story...I think there might be quite a few of us who found Marisa and boldly stepped out into our journeys, with her help and encouragement! I can't gush enough! :P I'm still at the beginning, but baby steps are okay with me! All the best!

jacqueline said...

Emma this is such a inspirational post! I am sooo happy we crosses each other's creative path and we are inspired by the very same dear person...sweet Marisa! I am also working and walking towards my creative dream direction hand in hand with you and other other wonderful supportive artistian! Have a lovely merry happy day and love to you! *hugz*

Marisa and Creative Thursday said...

Em ~ thank you so much. so proud of and inspired by all you've created.

Charlotte said...

Hi Em,

Thanks for sharing this, it's a lovely story. And all the better for being true!!

And it particularly made me smile because I spend a lot of my time googling 'rabbit' and various words!! Last night I spent a good hour on ebay having just typed 'rabbit' in as a key word, and have ended up bidding on a couple of bunny based goodies.

Love Charlotte
xxx

Cookie Cutter said...

Thanks for the inspiring post. I think it speaks to many of us. I have chosen a similar path and many times now I still look to the future in fear but it's stories like yours that keep us going.

Anna said...

Ahhh Em. I'm so pleased you're on your new wonderful journey and doing so well even though we all still miss you everyday at work. It was such a brave move and its worked out so well!! so proud of you. You are now also one of those 'Marisa's ' to me and inspiring me. My little journey is too now on its way and one day perhaps ill be doing the same. Little steps it is for at the moment. I will get there. I will have my own gallery, come workshop/studio where I can be busy creating and sell all my own things and I can't wait!!
big hugs xxx