As I sit down to record this, our 2025 year was overflowing.
Between two “Five Cards in Five Days” challenges, three course launches, The Profitable Artist Summit and 24 new classes, 12 Template Club mini classes, and so much more education, I’ve poured my heart into teaching and supporting others.
Yet somewhere along the way, I lost touch with the quiet personal side of my art. When I decided to part ways with my licensing agent and start pitching my own work, it forced me to reflect on what a good life looks like.
I realised I’ve been running on momentum, saying I wanted balance but not living it. Looking ahead to 2026, I’m embracing slower days and simple practices. These aren’t resolutions; they’re anchors to keep me connected to what matters.
Guarding my energy
Endless planning, constant emails and notifications and even AI have become quiet thieves of my focus. I fell into a rabbit hole tweaking a sales page with AI and lost hours. How does that happen?
In protecting my energy, I’m also protecting my art. More closed tabs, more real breaks, fewer digital rabbit holes – these are my creative boundaries. And I am doing a real time audit to see where the problem areas are! Even though I now have several assistants helping me, it seems I have less time in a day rather than more!
Returning to journaling and sketching
In my most creative seasons, I always had a journal and sketchbook by my side. Ten minutes of drawing or writing was a way to process ideas and emotions.
That habit slipped away, and I miss it. I’m gifting my granddaughter her first art journal this Christmas and dusting off my own. This isn’t another task; it’s a way of thinking and feeling.
Reconnecting with nature
Nature resets me like nothing else. The light, textures and shifting seasons feed my imagination.
Sketching on the porch, walking without my phone, noticing shadows – these moments aren’t wasted; they’re nourishing.
Making space for family and rest
December is for family. After a year of output, I crave cuddle time with my grandkids and giggles with my sisters. We celebrated my Mom's 89th birthday in January as well.
January was my reset month for batching projects and
recording classes, giving me breathing room later. This rhythm keeps my work sustainable.
Honouring creative seasons
Creativity isn’t linear. Some seasons overflow with ideas; others are quiet. I’m ready for a refill season – reading, walking, resting and revisiting classes I’ve purchased.
A good life honours both creation and restoration.
Teaching remains one of my favourite resets. Seeing students break through reminds me that creativity is about sharing, not just producing.
I plan to keep making art for joy and for teaching; each nourishes the other.
If you’re feeling stretched thin, know you’re not alone. It’s okay to pause, reflect and rebuild on your own terms.
Let’s step into this new year with more awareness and space to let life feel like art again.
Resources or Businesses Mentioned in This Episode
- Two “Five Cards in Five Days” challenges – creative card‑making challenges
- Three course releases & membership – online classes offered by Delores
- Profitable Artist Summit – an event for creative entrepreneurs
Listener Support Note
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Some links in this post may be affiliate links, which means either Kaylie or Delores may receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you). We only share tools or products we genuinely love and use ourselves.
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TRANSCRIPT:
Delores Naskrent: [00:00:00] Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Creative Juggle Joy, the podcast where we talk about what it really takes to build a creative life that fits you not the other way around. Today, I'm your host. I'm Delores Naskrent. I'm an artist, educator, and creative business coach, and every week I share stories, lessons, and a little encouragement to help you keep creating with confidence and joy.
Today I wanna talk about something that's been sitting on my mind a lot lately. It's on how to find the real balance as a creative, especially when you're running a full-time art education business like I am. Or maybe you're just running a full-time maker's business, you're doing shows, you're busy with life, or you have small children.
It doesn't matter what it is. Somehow completely filled up [00:01:00] your life for me. This past year has been one of the busiest I've ever had. Between two five cards and five days challenges, three big course releases. The Profitable Artist Summit, this podcast, even the Black Friday sale and the membership. Also, 24 new classes released in total.
A couple of workshops that I've done in between, holy Cow, it's been full to the brim. I've realized that while I've been creating constantly for others, I've lost a little bit of connection to the quiet personal side of my art, if that makes sense. I recently decided to part ways with my art licensing agent that has stirred up a lot of reflection.
I still want to license my art. I wanna do it in my own way. So I'm really moving into a period of time where I'm going to [00:02:00] be pitching my own work directly and choosing projects that I feel really aligned with. The hard part isn't the art itself. It's more about the focus. It's been about sitting down to update my portfolio.
Rebuild by site likely, organize my assets and put energy towards something that doesn't have an immediate deadline. Honestly, I can make art all day, but carving out time for my own business foundation takes a different kind of discipline. And honestly, after this year, I guess nonstop output, I think I'm tired.
I think a lot of artists feel this way drained, still driven somehow wanting to slow down, but unsure of how. This morning I read a message from another artist that really made me stop. She was talking [00:03:00] about the idea of what makes a good life, not a successful one, not necessarily a productive one, but a good one.
That hit me because I've been saying for years that I want more balance, but. Honestly, I have not been living it. I've been running on momentum, imagining better without always taking the steps toward it. I know I'm not the only one that feels this way. I've had this chat with a few people recently, so I look ahead to 2026.
I am wanting to make this year a year of creating a life that feels like art. A year that's more intentional, more aligned, and yes, just, just a wee bit slower would be nice. There are a few things that I quickly jotted down as things that I'd like to focus on for 2026. These are reminders I'm gonna [00:04:00] carry with me into the new year, not resolutions, but little anchors to help me stay connected to what matters.
First of all, I want to. Be intentional about protecting my energy. There are so many quiet theives of energy these days, the endless scrolling, constant notifications, and lately, even ai, don't get me wrong, I love what AI can do. It has saved me tons of time. It's powerful and inspiring, but it's also a rabbit hole.
You could spend hours exploring and. Testing ideas, suddenly your spark feels scattered. Recently I was working on a sales page. I could have been satisfied with the first iteration of it, but as I felt the power of the ai, I went down a rabbit hole of designing, designing a death [00:05:00] almost. Just redesigning, redesigning, adding little tweaks and touches, and it was amazing how much time that actually ate up when I looked at it.
At the end, what I'm trying to learn to do is to protect my focus, and that is really hard. Protecting my focus is the same as protecting my art. So in 2026. I wanna close more tabs, take more real breaks, guard my attention, like it's one of my best creative tools. One of the things that I used to really, really love to do is journaling and sketching.
When I look back on my most creative seasons, I was always journaling and sketching, and I was doing it daily. I literally had my tools right beside me all the time. That was a great way to not only process ideas, but also emotions. And I think it, it grounded me like it's like that [00:06:00] break that you take without it feeling like a break, but somehow when you're done, you feel better.
Somewhere along the way, that habit slipped away. I miss it. I really do miss it. That's one thing I wanna go back to. I've actually pulled out a couple of my journals because I want to share them with my granddaughter. I'm giving her. A journal for Christmas, a little watercolor kit, and a few other little tools, and I wanted to have a journal or two right beside me so that when she opens her gift, I can just show her and explain to her some of the techniques and things.
I was flipping through them. I was thinking, ah, this was fun. I wish I was still doing this. I'm bringing it back, not as a task, but as a way of thinking and feeling. Through my work, if that makes sense. Even 10 minutes with a pen or a sketchbook helps me reconnect to myself. It's one of the simplest ways to feel good and stay [00:07:00] creatively awake, and it'll be fun to share it with my granddaughter.
Now the next one, this is my number three, was to spend more time outside. I have always found that nature resets me in a way that nothing else can. The light, the textures, the way the seasons shift, the beautiful things that you can see when you go for a walk, the light, how it affects you at different times of day.
Like right now, well, shadows are long. It's a gorgeous day. So I've had my window open all day. I've closed it now just so that I don't get a train in the background of this podcast like I most often do. Anyways, nature, it has always sparked something for me. Every walk gives me a dozen new ideas. I sometimes listen to podcasts when I'm walking, [00:08:00] and even sometimes the time to think is just so, so rewarding.
In 2026, I wanna intentionally build that into my rhythm. Sketching on the porch, walking without my phone, noticing the details I rush past when I'm busy. These moments aren't time lost, they're time reimagined. So more walks are definitely in my future. I guess my number four that I quickly sketched here on my list was making space for family and rest and.
Like many of you, December is my month for family. It's when I pull everything back and focus on home. I am speaking, I'm decorating. I am simply being present after a year of constant output. I definitely [00:09:00] most definitely need that downtime and cuddle time with my grandkids and giggle time with my sisters.
Just a really nice. Period of downtime, that's what I need. And then January will be my big reset month when I batch projects, record classes for months ahead and get organized. I can think about that in January. That focused burst of energy gives me breathing room later in the year. Right now, I'm thinking family first and then the quiet planning.
That's become one of my favorite rhythms. I actually love. The fact that I have all of 2026 organized already. Ah, what's next? Yes, honoring my creative seasons. I have stopped expecting creativity to look the same all of the time. Some seasons for me, seem to be overflowing with ideas. Others are quiet.
Both [00:10:00] of them are valuable. For me, after this year of nonstop teaching and content creation, I'm ready for a refill for sure. I'm gonna call it a refill season, a time to read, walk, rest, take a look at some of those classes I bought this year, rebuild inspiration without feeling guilty about it. A good life for me is one that honors both creation.
And restoration, and God knows at this point I need that r and r just to gain that restoration. Teaching for me has always been one of my favorite forms of creative reset. When I teach, I reconnect with why I love making art in the first place. Seeing students have breakthroughs, watching their work evolve.
Reminds me that creativity isn't about producing. It's about sharing. [00:11:00] I love creating the projects for you. I love sharing those projects. Teaching fills me with a different kind of wellness, if that makes sense. And I wanna keep that balance. I want to keep making art for joy and making art for teaching as a way to stay inspired.
So that's where I'm at. Looking forward to and stepping into the new year with more awareness this year, I think, and more attention and hopefully more space to let life feel like art again and to make art feel like life again. If you've been feeling stretched super thin, I hope this reminds you that you are not alone.
It's okay to pause. Reflect and rebuild on your own terms. Really think it [00:12:00] through. Thanks so much for spending time with me today, listening to me. I'm not sure if I'm complaining or reflecting. I appreciate you listening. I want you to keep creating, keep juggling, and most importantly, keep finding joy in the process.
