We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kate Moynihan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kate, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Working as a registered nurse, I married a field engineer which meant we moved to different states every year or two. At the time, in the hospital system when I applied for a new job, I was always low seniority therefore I rotated shifts doing routine blood pressures and temperatures.
Looking for more variety, I left my usual crafting of sewing, macramé, and other projects where I followed a pattern, and took a watercolor class. Instantly my life changed. Being captivated by the uncontrollable media in which the paint flowed wherever it wanted to go, I continued with classes and soon had a collection of paintings. Enough to try to sell them. With a make-shift booth I did my first outdoor local art fair with some success.
Encouraged, I pushed ahead trying a variety of selling opportunities. Some immediately went on my don’t-do-that-again list, but luckily many had positive results. This challenge of pursuing art as a career sparked a determination in me having found my purpose. Two years later I left nursing and became a full-time artist. That was 30 years ago.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Choosing to leave my steady paycheck from being a registered nurse to becoming an artist meant juggling more than painting pretty pictures. It was learning how to be a small business entrepreneur. In the beginning, I handled every challenge from creating a simple business card to complex tasks like marketing and paying itemized taxes.
That’s the short story. The longer version is in my memoir, A Lone Birch, My Artistic Journey.
Using the birch tree in the title of the book is symbolic for me because in my thirties I was uprooted from my family. Unexpectedly living alone I had to confront rejection and embarrassment while overcoming shame and guilt. To do that I had to stop being a people pleaser. And like the birch tree’s rough and craggy bark, I had to stand tall and accept my flaws.
The book, A Lone Birch, My Artistic Journey, is available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Be a decision maker: Procrastination can be deadly. Not deciding unfortunately is a decision. Make the best decision with the information you have at the time, then act, and remember to measure results and re-evaluate. There are no mistakes. Just experiments.
Tenacity: When presenting a proposal, I learned that hearing the word ‘no’ meant ‘not right now.’ The negative response doesn’t mean to quit. It has a lot of explanations such as: the company may already have a similar product, the idea might be ahead of the company’s present needs, or perhaps, targeting the wrong audience. Developing a thick skin against criticism is crucial. Growth happens by listening to other’s insights and perspectives.
Get curious: Ask why, what if. Reach out to someone who has been successful ahead of you. Learn from their experience. Surround yourself with people who are talented in areas that you’re weak. It makes you stronger.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Being an oil painter, I love collaborating with interior designers and architects.
I can mix paints to match Pantone Color of the Year, no matter which year! I’ve created more than a hundred paintings for the interior designers at Studio 84 in Long Beach, California, and Business Images in Chicago, Illinois, allowing me to become a wiz with color mixing.
My most popular image is the birch tree painting them in a thousand shades kaleidoscopic colors. The bigger the canvas the better.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.katemoynihan.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katemoynihanartist/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katemoynihanartist/?ref=page_internal
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kate-moynihan-93a133bb/
Image Credits
Photos are from my personal collection
