Proven tactics to make more time for art right now

THE TIME IS NOW

It always seems like there’s not enough time for art. Life gets in the way. School, work and family take up so much of our time, no matter how great our desire to create more, accomplish more, BE more.

The truth is, you can’t keep doing the same things and wait for the free time to just show up in your life. You have to act. Even the smallest changes can make a big difference in your artist career.

Below are some strategies that are guaranteed to free up time for art if you take them seriously.

CARRY A SKETCHBOOK

There are small pockets of time hidden in every day. We just don’t see them if we’re not looking for them: Sitting in a waiting room at the doctor’s office. Showing up to class 10 minutes early. Calling a customer service rep and getting put on hold for practically an eternity.

In all of these situations, we usually sit and wait patiently, or scroll through our feed aimlessly. But what if you could pull a small sketchbook out of your purse and scribble down some ideas during that time? Instead of waiting those 30 minutes or however long, you could be sketching the plans for a new drawing or putting the finishing touches on a full-fledged illustration.

Pro tip: If your purse or backpack is big enough, add more than just pencils to your tool stash. Try colored pencils, markers, or other lighter supplies.

GIVE SOMETHING UP

You have the same 24 hours in a day as Banksy does and as Frida Kahlo did. Each day has the same amount of minutes in it for every person — but what do you do with that time? What does Banksy do differently in that time to become successful?

To increase time for something, you have to decrease time for something else. So you have to give something up. The easiest thing for me to give up? Sleep. Wake up an hour earlier every day and designate the time specifically for illustration — you’ll be amazed at how much more you can accomplish.

But if sleep is non-negotiable for you, there are a few other things to consider giving up:

• Watching TV
• Scrolling endlessly on your phone
• Chores
• Other hobbies
• Social outings with friends
• Extra beauty habits like curling hair or painting nails
• Working overtime

Not all of these sound fun or easy, but to make time for art you’ve got to sacrifice your time spent doing other things. Remember to choose what you want MORE, not what you want NOW. It may sound relaxing to sit in front of the TV and melt the stress of work off your mind, but would you truly rather check some episodes off your binge list, or make progress on your newest painting? Choose with your heart, not with your temporary wants. If you need more motivation for this one, check out my blog post on productivity as a creator.

Ask yourself right now and make a list of your own: What can you make less time for and get away with it?

EXCHANGE MONEY FOR TIME

It’s one thing to say “make less time for chores” and another to be sitting around the house with dishes filling the sink and dog hair collecting in the corners of the room. Some things are harder to sacrifice than others. (whoops!)

That’s why it’s important to know that if you have extra money, you have extra time.

Instead of spending an hour mopping, hire a cleaning service and pay someone hourly to do it for you while you paint.

Instead of spending 40 minutes cooking, only to spend 20 minutes cleaning up, order take out.

Got kids to juggle? Hire a babysitter one night a week and dedicate the time to your creative goals.

You can outsource so many things in life that will give you loads more time for art.

CREATE QUICKLY

As a recovering perfectionist, I understand the need to tweak and change and correct until you’re blue in the face. This habit affects my art style, how quickly I can put out new work, and ultimately my time spend creating (and not just critiquing).

Prolific artists are just as successful as talented artists. You can choose insane quality and detail, or you can choose insane amount of finished work. Of course there’s a happy medium here, and that’s where you should aim.

It could be that you have a decent amount of time for art, but if your creative process is slow, it will never seem like enough time. Try to draw something in half the time you normally do. Practice a few times and see if you’re still happy with the style and finished piece. You may be surprised how great your art looks without a perfectionist’s touch.

INCORPORATE ART INTO YOUR SOCIAL LIFE

Multitasking is a well-known time saver. The next time your friends want to hang out, suggest that you grab a bottle of wine or a six-pack and create your own freestyle paint and pour session at your house. You can relax, catch up with your loved ones, and catch up with your creative workload, too.

If your friends are artsy, you can even invite them to make a collab piece with you. Collaborating with other artists helps both parties grow as creatives and grow on social platforms too, assuming you both share and tag.

TAKE A CLASS

Signing up and paying for a class will help motivate you. There’s something about feeling obligated to go once you’ve paid for a course and then being inspired to do your best work in a room full of other artists. Social pressure is a beautiful thing. A class also creates a designated space each week for you instead of trying to find time on your own. No interruptions will plague you in someone else’s classroom like they do at home.

It’s also guided usually, so you won’t have to spend time brainstorming. The instructor usually will give prompts so you can get started right away.

Pro tip: Make sure the class is tailored to your preferred medium because you might learn a valuable thing or two! And you’ll be sure to meet people with the same interests, struggles, and desires as you — so bring your business cards just in case.

GIVE YOURSELF DEADLINES

Set a date for each piece to be done. Estimate how long you think it’ll take of pure work — six hours straight of painting? Two hour pencil drawing? — and then schedule blocks of time to work on it. Set a firm deadline date.

If you’d like to add a challenge, set a final date and give yourself NO wiggle room. Put the pressure on. Tell yourself if it’s not done by deadline, it’ll be considered finished no matter what stage you’re at on it. No tweaking after that. Tell a friend, someone in one of your online art groups, anyone. It helps keep you accountable to this goal, knowing if you’re late someone will be paying attention. Some artists are best under pressure and constraints, and this tactic does the trick.

You’ll MAKE time if there are consequences for not doing so.

What also helps with the deadline strategy is having a planner. That way you’ll remember the dates you set and can write in blocks of creative time. Personally, I use a combination of Google Calendar and a lined notebook for my to do lists, and it works fine — no fancy planners are needed. Just plan it out on paper so you can see your deadline looming.

BE HEALTHIER

This trick goes for anything you want to make time for, not just art. Eating more veggies and lighter meals will keep you from feeling weighed down and sleepy. Exercise — even walking your dog once around the block — will give you more energy. More energy means you’ll wake up earlier, be quicker to accomplish things and ultimately have more time for art. Or of course you can use the good ol’ shortcut for energy: caffeine 🙂

The harsh truth is that you make your life what it is and you carve out time in your life for what you really value. If you want to create more, you have to value your identity as an artist more. Practice practice practice and really take pride in your craft. If you don’t place value in being an artist, you’ll wind up wasting away in front of the TV — consuming other people’s art instead.

Take these tips to heart and really map out how you’ll use each one to make more time for art. Here are some quick goals to meet this month if you need a little direction:

• Schedule one art hang out with your friends this month. See what you can create together!
• Give up two hours of your time each week this month doing something else, and draw instead. What will you choose to give up?
• Purchase a sketchbook, and stuff it into your car, your purse, or anything else so that you take it with you everywhere. See how often you end up using it.

If these tips helped you, let me know in the comments! If you’ve got suggestions to add on how you’ve been making more time for art, feel free to leave those too.