This week I’m talking to the fabulous and my now-friend Katie Vaz. Katie is an illustrator, author, and graphic designer living in Upstate New York with her husband, Joby, a puppy named Tater, and a cat named KittenFace. She is the author of the adult coloring book Don’t Worry, Eat Cake (which was featured on Canada's Biggest Bestseller List at Chapters Indigo), the book Make Yourself Cozy: A Guide for Practicing Self-Care, and more recently The Escape Manual For Introverts, which was just published on August 6, 2019 (all three by Andrews McMeel Publishing). She also designs her own line of greeting cards, prints and other stationery products, which are sold both online on Etsy and in brick and mortar shops across North America. She also works as a freelance illustrator and graphic designer with a variety of clients on branding, packaging design, and illustration projects. Katie’s work has been featured on sites like BuzzFeed, Woman’s Day, POPSUGAR, Real Simple, and HuffPost. When she’s not working, Katie likes to spend her time cooking and baking, tending to her plants, reading fiction - Harry Potter is her favourite), learning embroidery, and walking her puppy Tater.

Today’s episode is just a really refreshingly honest conversation about the struggles that so often accompany being a creative woman, from self doubt and comparison to owning the things that make you different and dealing with expectations and disappointments.

We have great discussions about making space for the unexpected, focusing on your own work and not comparing your work to others, external versus internal motivation and the power of recognising and exploring your fears.

We also dive deep into owning your experience as an introvert and highly sensitive person and finding like minded people.

If you ever wanted to be a fly on the wall of a really intimate and vulnerable conversation between two creative women who are just laying it all out there, this is the perfect episode for you!

And if you struggle with people pleasing, anxiety and imposter syndrome, let this episode serve as a reminder that you are never alone.

I am sure that you will, as I have, fall in love with Katie and really enjoy this episode!

So enjoy the show!

About Katie

Katie is an illustrator, author, and graphic designer living in Upstate New York with her husband, Joby, a puppy named Tater, and a cat named KittenFace. She is the author of the adult coloring book Don’t Worry, Eat Cake (which was featured on Canada's Biggest Bestseller List at Chapters Indigo), the book Make Yourself Cozy: A Guide for Practicing Self-Care, and more recently The Escape Manual For Introverts, which was just published on August 6, 2019 (all three by Andrews McMeel Publishing). She also designs her own line of greeting cards, prints and other stationery products, which are sold both online on Etsy and in brick and mortar shops across North America. She also works as a freelance illustrator and graphic designer with a variety of clients on branding, packaging design, and illustration projects. Katie’s work has been featured on sites like BuzzFeed, Woman’s Day, POPSUGAR, Real Simple, and HuffPost.

Website | Etsy Shop | Instagram | Facebook

Things We Talked About:

• making space for the unexpected
• putting your blinkers on and focusing on your own work
• comparison and social media
• external versus internal motivation
• expectations we put on ourselves
• reframing fear as fuel
• the power of recognising and exploring your fears
• keeping a list of scary things you’ve done
• imposter syndrome
• experiencing life as a highly sensitive person
• Katie’s advice on people wanting to create something but it feels too big and too scary
• find beauty in the mundane
• meeting like minded people

About Meg & That Hummingbird Life

I’m Meg and I’m the host of Couragemakers and founder of That Hummingbird Life. I’m an INFJ creative and multipassionate who has a bit of a notebook and post-it note obsession, loves foot-stomping country music and likes her hot chocolate with way too much chocolate.

I started Couragemakers because I wanted to create a platform for passionate and unconventional women to have honest conversations and to share their stories, struggles and dreams. The intention behind this podcast is to inspire and encourage creative and mission-driven women to live a wholehearted life and follow the beat of their drum.

When I’m not recording episodes, writing bullshit-free, very vulnerable and encouraging Sunday emails to fellow couragemakers (join the party here!) or making new friends with the wonderful guests, you can find me working on all manners of magic over at That Hummingbird Life. THL is the online home for unconventional creatives and multipassionates who want to show up unapologetically and intentionally as who they are, and really own, live and share their many stories. It’s made for couragemakers who have so much great shit to give the world and want to leave their mark but have too much self doubt standing in the way!