We caught up with the brilliant and insightful J Puzzles a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
J, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Back when I was going to art school, I found it to be a bit pretentious to call oneself an “artist”. I always knew I had talent, and a skill, but was I an artist? In my circles, that title was known to be stereotypically reserved for those that had exhibits in galleries and museums. They mingled with stuck up snobs, and critics, and appreciated the finer things in life. They argued over the meaning of paint splattered haphazardly on a canvas, rather than a drawing of a super hero splashed across the page of a comic book. So naturally I found that moniker to be obnoxious. And I found plenty of that absurdity in college. There was this heir of gatekeeping that I just didn’t respond well to. Pieces got challenged on whether or not they were considered “art”. One starts to doubt themselves in art school, and you start asking yourself, “Am I good enough?” or “Do I even belong here?” I didn’t want to be associated with that “artist” title. But perhaps initially I had judged the profession unfairly because I wasn’t sure if I had what it took.
After art school, and several failed attempts at gaining employment in the creative industry, I still didn’t really consider myself an artist. The confidence and self-esteem was lost until one day, I started drawing again. Just for myself. Not for professors, not for a college, not for my peers, but for me. I wanted to be proud of something. So I went back to my roots, and started sketching. Those sketches eventually turned into drawings, those drawings turned into tattoo ideas, pop culture prints, and ultimately my business, Plugged Out Designs. From there with the help and encouragement from family and friends, I started to sell my work at conventions. And I realized, not only was I happy making them for myself, but I loved making art for others. I really enjoy the opportunity to create things. The process is fun, engaging, and I enjoy sharing my work. Art definitely has been a saving grace in my life. So now, I’m proud to call myself an artist.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
This quick little bio is from my business website, for Plugged Out Designs, which will be launching soon.
“I have been drawing cartoons since as long as I can remember. Daydreaming in class, and drawing in the margins since the late 80s!
Art has always been my outlet. I plug out from reality, and start designing. I figured out early on, I enjoyed drawing for myself, and drawing my own comic books. And that eventually evolved into a love for creating for others.
I’m a self-proclaimed nerd, an 80’s fanatic at heart, lover of movies, tattoos, and all things pop culture. I’m passionate about what others are passionate about, and I hope that comes across in the work that I provide my clients.”
I hope to eventually expand my business into selling t-shirts, possibly coffee mugs, stickers, etc. As of right now, I’m selling art prints in different sizes, some original, and pop culture influenced artwork. I have two conventions where I’ll have booths set up where I will be selling my work. One in the Monroeville Convention Center for Steel City Con, April 12-14th. The other is in Roanoke, August 3-4th at the Berglund Center. Website will soon be live with an online shop. I’d love to do more custom pieces for people and I’m hoping the website will be able to help with that.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Perseverance, discipline, and networking. The early stages of my journey was getting together a solid portfolio, not expecting sales and financial success right away. So those early stages were important to get my eventual products from sketch to print. Taking the time to get things right, and setting goals were essential. It took discipline to not take days off, but for an artist, sometimes, you need the days off too, to regroup and take a breath. Sometimes walking away from your work can be just as important as jumping right in. Discipline and perseverance can go hand in hand in the artistic process. Sometimes you’ll have artist block, and you’ll need time to get your vision down. And as frustrating as some pieces can be to get just right, I think having a mindset of not giving up can be really beneficial.
Besides perseverance, and discipline, I’d say networking is crucial to your success. Having people in your corner, your family and friends, can be so helpful. But also your peers. Your family and friends can sometimes tell you what you want to hear, but peers can tell you what you need to hear, whether it’s about constructive criticism about your work, or how you can improve on a skill, or what resources they know about that might benefit you as well. Networking affords opportunity, and growth to your business. The art community, in my experience, has been an absolute gift in this regard. Everyone seems happy for each others success, and development.
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
I’m still learning and growing, but I’d say I’m proud of believing in myself in the last year. I’ve always had the encouragement of my parents to lean into my creative side, to not give up my dreams. But I had to believe it. I had to believe it could be possible, and I’m learning to do that. I’m learning to not get down when something doesn’t quite work out. This whole venture into starting a business has been an amazing, exciting learning experience. I’m constantly learning new things at every exhibitor convention I attend. Meeting people at these conventions has also aided in my growth and development as an artist and entrepreneur. Getting out of my shell, and selling my work and believing in it, and introducing myself as the artist of Plugged Out Designs has been a very surreal experience. There was a time where I didn’t quite see myself doing this. But I’m forever grateful to those that encouraged me to take these steps, and go for my dreams.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/pluggedoutdesigns
- Other: website still in development, but will be live soon!
