Meet Sarah Shearer

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sarah Shearer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sarah , thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

My resilience comes from adversity. Surviving severe depression, an abusive family, addiction and eating disorders didn’t leave me broken. During the most traumatic chapters of life I often wondered “Why me?”. Many years of self work and wisdom from mental health professionals led me to understand that everything in this life is not justifiable.
“The only way out is through.”
This phrase has been a key to overcoming my trauma.
When you do the work of accepting and healing from adversity, your pain becomes your superpower. Your spirit expands to accept the sadness- but that expansion can also hold the greatest joy, the biggest accomplishments, and a life beyond your dreams!

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

Like many imaginative kids, I drew endlessly. As far back as I can remember, horses, unicorns, cartoon characters, and fairy tale illustrations were subjects in heavy rotation.

My family always had pets and they were among my best friends. From Snowball the Hamster to Mandy the Collie mix, the bond of unconditional love anchored me . This early connection to animals- combined with my love of playing with color and creating visual stories continued well beyond childhood. The introductory art classes I took in high school fed me but weren’t enough to keep me satisfied. I knew I had to pursue art; it’s who I am! I completed a degree in fine arts at Belhaven College in Jackson, MS. I’ve been inspired to create professionally for 25+ years and counting.

Working as a full time artist progressed organically to launching my current pet focused brand, Painted Paw Studio. The studio is located in Vieques, P.R. where I focus on creating pet portraits by commission. While the majority of my client base is in the United States, my work ships to collectors world wide. Other creative pursuits include teaching “Paint Your Pet” classes, creating custom murals and book illustration.

Recent illustration projects include the innovative “A Day in the Life of Your Dog”. Author Diana Feliciano dreamt up this project specifcally with dogs in mind! It is full of interactive pages like bacon and peanut butter scents, a mirror page, noise buttons (squeaky ball & doorbell), and a reflective photo page. Every page features full color illustrations in addition to these super cool sensory elements. Following it’s success, Diana and I are thrilled to annouce a second book in the series. “A Christmas Day in the Life of Your Dog” arrives September 2025!

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?

Looking back on my journey, I see three qualities that shaped my business. These are mindset, community and education.

I believe educating oneself is a key to growth- constantly seeking out new mediums and skills to learn. Offering new products keeps my buisness fresh, and gaining back end skills consistently improves customer service experience. I’m a firm believer that when you stop moving forward, you begin going backwards.

Community is EVERYTHING. I truly wouldn’t be where I am today without the support of the people who believe in me. The clients who spend their hard earned dollars with me, allow me to live out my childhood dream. Community support has also allowed me to add a newer dream- giving back to animal rescue non profits. Every quarter I utilize my work to fundraise for at least one deserving organization. Fostering connection is at the core of my brand. As the saying goes, “It takes a village!”.

Finally, mindset matters. Flexibility and optimism will take you far! I embody the mantra “Keep your standards high but your expectations low”. Always striving to be your best, while allowing room for error and the unexpected will keep you on track.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

Being diagnosed with neurodivergence as an adult shed light on the overwhelm I regularly encounter as a solopreneur. Sustaining small businesses where one person wears all or most of the “hats” is likely to frustrate anyone, really. The top three strategies that help me overcome this are: mission mantras, structuring for success and accepting the need to reset. I’ll share briefly what these mean to me.

1. Mission mantras: when you’re feeling swamped and frazzled, negative self talk can worsen the situation. Instead of internally beating yourself up, work on shifting your mind to a calmer state. Choose a mantra like “I am the kind of person that follows through.” My personal favorite is “Done is better than perfect.”

2. Structuring for success: as much as possible, set up your day in a way that serves you, rather than works against you. Pair boring tasks with a reward. For instance, I loathe bookkeeping- so when I knock out big chunks of work in that area, I reward myself with a “fancy coffee” (iced matcha, cappacino, etc). Do the most meaningful work during your peak energy hours. Set mulitple reminders for deadlines to create urgency. Intention is key!

3. Accepting the need to reset: sometimes forcing ourselves to sit at our desks when struggling with overwhelm causes further set backs. At worst, it can lead to total burnout. I’m tempted to think I can power through anything- but reality has shown me otherwise! I make an effort to notice the signs that a break is necessary, set aside guilt, and actually step away.

I hope you find some, or all of them, to be useful!

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