Understanding Money and Its Leverage on Our Creative Mental Health
At a Glance
Today, we’re talking about one of a creative’s most feared topics—money.
Money can become a stressor that will ultimately lead to poor mental health and burnout, especially for creatives.
Stay tuned for a Money Tip from friend and Engineer turned Financial Planner Ryan Sullivan.
Let’s discuss how money can adversely affect creativity and some tips for how to improve our relationship with money.
There’s an old joke in the Architecture profession, “Architects are bad with money.”
Well, I guess it’s less of a joke and more of a frustrating punchline.
By nature, creatives are thoughtful, passionate, and innovative humans. Most of us who label ourselves as “creative” didn’t get into the professions we love for the money.
I certainly didn’t.
The world never stops.
And it doesn’t run on passion.
→ It runs on money.
In concept, money for the individual is pretty straightforward.
Goods and services cost money. You provide goods and services in order to get money. You spend that money to buy more goods and services for you and your family.
The cycle continues.
→ In the best-case scenario, you make more than you need and save it.
→ In the worst-case scenario, you make less than you need and scramble to make ends meet.
Survey Says… Everyone is Worried About Money
According to a survey in 2023 by Bankrate, “money” was found to be the clearest cause of stress for most Americans.
Specifically, the survey asked a simple question:
“Which, if any, of the following have a negative impact on your mental health?”
The results:
Money (52%)
My Own Health (42%)
Current Events (41%)
Health of Family / Friends (36%)
Relationships (32%)
Work (31%)
Something stood out to me about these findings in particular. When I typically talk to people about burnout, they often cite work overwhelm and stress as the main culprit. But this kind of data suggests that money (and the fear around it) could be an equally harmful stress to our mental health.
People are worried about their debt, inflation, lack of emergency savings, paying for everyday expenses, housing, and other factors specific to their lives—all around money.
For many, money is a stressor. It’s a catalyst that causes stress. That stress lingers over time and becomes burnout when it’s left to its own devices. It adds to an already heightened mental health crisis and takes away the joy creatives have in their work.
My Personal Financial Crisis
Back in 2010, things were rough.
The Great Recession had been ripping apart businesses and lives for a few years. Entire generations left the construction industry never to return.
As a then-emerging professional, I was in the precarious position of finding my way through the first years of post-college life. I was simultaneously navigating through one of the worst financial crises the world had ever seen.
I wasn’t living paycheck to paycheck, but it was close.
Student loans, rent, food, and a meager social life made it tough to make ends meet for a long time. Not to mention the overwhelming fear that anyone at any time could lose their job with no warning at all.
One day, I opened up my bank account on my computer to check something. I almost lost my sh!t. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. The screen showed my balance at something like “-$1,900”.
To some, two thousand dollars under might seem like a sum that could be easily weathered. But in that moment, when you have a razor-thin margin and a bill you can’t pay for another two weeks, everything feels like it’s crumbling around you.
My anxiety spiked.
I had no idea what was happening. All I knew was that I certainly wasn’t playing Jeopardy in real life. I should have had a few hundred dollars at minimum in my account.
I called the bank. I called again. No one could give me a straight answer.
After several maddening phone calls, I realized what had happened. A payment was taken out too soon the night before by our car insurance, placing the account into overdraft. Every bill and transaction after that moment was hit with a hefty overdraft fee.
The really messed up part: I had looked at my account moments before the insurance transaction. Everything was fine. But then, I got some gas, some dinner, and some snacks (as one does on a weekend). What would normally be $50 in charges became $2000 in less than 24 hours.
Luckily, the bank did waive the vast majority of the fees, but it still cost several hundred dollars to get back to even.
I’ve had a fortunate life. But I also know what it’s like to feel like you’ve been shoved into a corner financially with nowhere to turn.
It makes you want to do absolutely anything else other than create.
Once the issue was taken care of, I had a lingering feeling of inadequacy, shame, anxiety, and depression over when (not if) something like that would happen again.
I started doing odd jobs here and there to try and make more money. I started making websites for people as a side job. I tried to make money in any way I could to get out from under the clutches of the financial cloud.
It’s taken time, but I feel a bit more comfortable today with money. I experienced tough times, gained an awareness of my options, and made the choice to become better with money.
It’s not easy. And there’s no silver bullet solution. As in all things, you simply need to learn, execute, adjust, and keep going.
I’m not a financial expert though.
So I asked my friend Ryan Sullivan from Off the Beaten Path Financial what he’d recommend as a simple way to make sense of our day-to-day money. Ryan is an Engineer turned Financial Planner. He understands what it’s like to be a designer trying to balance creativity and money.
A Money Tip from Financial Planner Ryan Sullivan
Money can be overwhelming.
Do I have enough?
Should I be spending less?
Can I spend more?
How can I know?
One of the best strategies to feel more confident when it comes to your money is to separate your spending into different buckets.
Saving (10-20%)
Investing (10-30%)
Debt (0-15%)
Fixed Expenses/Bills (25-40%)
Variable Expenses/Spending (20-35%)
Add everything up and see what percentage of your post-tax income goes to each area. This can help you easily see if your money is going to the right places. From there you can take it one step further and use different accounts for different objectives.
Each saving and investing account should have a different goal and intended timeline.
Retirement (20 years)
Down payment for a house (5 years)
Big trip (1 year)
General savings for miscellaneous (unknown)
Your expenses should be separated too.
Fixed Expenses (Bills) Checking Account
Variable Expenses (Spending) Checking Account
Your fixed account is easy to predict. Expenses and transfers are consistent both in time and value.
Your variable expenses account is for everything else. Groceries, gas, shopping, etc.
Following this structure provides clear insight into where your money is going, what it is for, and how much you have available for each thing. Stop worrying about having enough money. Set up an automated cash flow system so you always know exactly where you stand and what you can/can’t do.
Creatives and Money
People go face-first into a profession they think will protect them once they leave, but as they say, “Architects are bad with money.”
Student loans, housing, social life, and all the other expenses feel like a giant weight crushing your creativity.
When you’re trying to be creative, this weight can start to taint and cloud everything you love. Art is no longer about the creative process. It’s about sales.
How do we manage the balance between the necessity of money and the art we love to create?
When I look at work/life balance, one of the things I think about is how every part of my life affects the other.
Each component is in a dance with the next. When things are in harmony with one another, everything works smoothly. You build up internal resistance against unforeseen problems. When part of your life is in crisis, you’re less likely to resist the problems. In turn, the problems become more heightened and cause you more stress.
Years after graduating, I had the crushing realization that designers, architects, and creatives don’t naturally make the money we need to be at our best. At least, not right away. If money was taken out of the equation, I wonder what our creative world would look like. I wonder.
Final Thoughts
As in anything, awareness is the first step to growth.
You need to understand the problem and learn more about it before you can take action. Then, you take action based on what you’ve learned. You make mistakes and adjust. Eventually, the thing that made you nervous became second nature.
Finances are that thing for me.
I bet they could be for you too.
Even in my late thirties, I realize how much there is to learn about topics like these. Money can greatly affect the quality of our lives and, in turn, the quality of our creative process.
Don’t let it anymore.
TL; DR
Don’t let money ruin your creativity or art.
Money isn’t evil, but it can be a powerful stressor.
Not enough money leads to stress and burnout.
The path to financial literacy starts with awareness.
A creative life can only thrive when you choose to become better at all aspects of your life, including finances.
Learn from others who understand money. Take what they know. Apply it to your life.
Quote of the Week
Motivation for the days ahead of you.
“Money isn’t everything. But everything needs money.”
— Anonymous
That's all for now.
Stay creative, my friends—and have a great week!
