What I Learned as a Freelance Artist in 5 Years

Being a freelance artist for five years has been a journey filled with growth, challenges, and unexpected lessons. When I first started, I had no idea what I was getting into—I just knew I loved creating art and wanted to make a living from it.

The Early Days

I started freelancing when my husband couldn’t work due to COVID, and money was tight. I decided to draw again, noticing that streaming was on the rise, meaning streamers might need emotes and other artwork. My first client was my friend, who asked me to create five emotes for RM300. It was a high amount because he lived in New Zealand, so I calculated the price slightly higher to cover PayPal fees. That first job led to more opportunities, especially when I started streaming on Twitch myself. Through mutual connections, I slowly gained recognition.

Learning to Adapt

Pricing was one of my biggest struggles. I doubted my own art quality and didn’t know whether I was charging too high or too low. Eventually, I based my pricing on the Malaysian economy—asking myself if I would pay for my own work at that price. I also realized that if I wanted this to be a full-time job, I needed to price accordingly. If it were just a part-time gig, lower prices might have made more sense.

The Challenges

There was a time I considered quitting. Business was slow, and I had to wait half a year for a single client. But I valued my customers because they chose me, so I always gave them my best service. During slow periods, I kept myself inspired by looking at other artists’ work and making sure I didn’t get stuck in an art block.

I also tried different platforms to get clients. I created a virtual business card through Carrd and even opened a Shopee store. Surprisingly, Shopee brought in a lot of customers. To avoid issues, I made sure to have clear Terms of Service (TOS) so buyers knew exactly what they were getting.

Different Types of Clients

Some clients make freelancing a great experience—especially those who give me creative freedom and time. I do my best work when I’m not rushed. I’m not an AI that can produce a drawing in one second.

Then, there are the difficult clients. Some demand too much and rush me, which led me to stop offering free sketches. I learned from other artists’ experiences and added a clause in my TOS stating that excessive revisions require additional payment. One of my biggest mistakes was accepting a job to create a 20-frame GIF for only RM50. If I had properly calculated my time and effort, it was worth much more. But because I feared disappointing my client, I just did it. This experience taught me that it’s crucial to discuss expectations with clients and know my own limits before accepting a commission.

I also had another bad experience with a client who made their own pricing. Besides art, I also do basic graphic design, and they wanted to pay me only RM200 for seven poster designs. It was frustrating because the amount of work didn’t match the price, but at the time, this was when I realize it's okay to decline a commission because you value your work and time. This was another lesson in knowing my worth and standing firm in my pricing.

Unexpected Client Gestures

One of my sweetest client experiences was on Shopee. I was selling premade panels for just RM3, and one buyer purchased another set just as a tip. It was my first tip, and even though it never happened again, I was really happy. Tipping culture doesn’t really exist in Malaysia, but I don’t mind. Whether a client tips or not, I feel blessed that they hired me and bought my art in the first place.

The Rewards & Looking Ahead

One of my proudest moments was setting my emote price at RM30 and having a client pay me RM500—the highest amount I had ever received at that time. That one client made me so happy. Although I haven’t had many clients, moments like that remind me why I love freelancing.

For now, I plan to continue freelancing until I save enough money to move to Kuala Lumpur for a stable job. Even after settling in KL, I’ll keep freelancing part-time. While I know my experience as a freelance artist may not help me get a traditional job, I still value the journey it has given me.

Final Advice

Make yourself clear and be firm in your own belief in your art. Don’t give false promises—if you can’t do something, be honest with your client. It’s not fair to them or to yourself. Having a solid TOS and knowing your worth will help you navigate the ups and downs of freelancing.

Freelancing isn’t easy, but if it’s something you love, it’s worth sticking with.

Taking Care of Business: An Unpaid Reality Check

Helping out in a family business feels like a privilege, especially when it’s your in-laws’ shop. I wanted to impress them, to show that I could run things smoothly. But I quickly realized that running a store isn’t the hardest part—it’s finding and managing the right employees. A shoe store needs active staff, people who can move, find stock fast, and handle peak seasons efficiently. That’s easier said than done.

The Struggles of Keeping Order

My role was mainly to supervise, making sure the employees did their work. If there were flaws—dirty displays, misplaced stock—I had to step in and guide them. But stock kept moving around because different employees had their own way of doing things. Now that I’ve been away for a while, focusing on my freelancing and housewife duties, coming back is stressful. Every time, I have to relearn where everything is and make sure they don’t undo whatever order I try to maintain.

Managing employees and organizing the store are the real headaches. It’s chaotic. They used to have multiple shops, but now, with only one left, all the stock from the closed locations got crammed into one space. The storeroom is a mess, so packed that you need someone skinny just to squeeze in and find things.

The Challenge of Family Dynamics

If my husband and I had full control, I know we could make the store more efficient. Right now, it takes too long to get things done. At first, I didn’t want to change much—I had to understand how the shop worked. But after 11 years, I see exactly what could be improved. The problem? My mother-in-law.

She’s the reason things stay messy. My husband has argued with her, asking her to focus on accounting and let us handle the shop, but she insists on being involved. Instead of letting us fix one problem at a time, she adds extra tasks and derails our focus. She also wrongly scolds employees for things that aren’t really their fault. Since she’s family, I usually keep my mouth shut, but her way of doing things makes life harder for everyone. Ironically, she’s also the one who forces lazy workers to find stock, which is sometimes necessary. Some employees deliberately put shoes in the wrong boxes or hide stock to avoid doing work, which creates more confusion.

What I’ve Learned About Business

One thing I noticed about handling customers is that it follows a pattern. At first, I wasn’t sure if I was giving the right answers, but over time, I realized most customers ask the same types of questions. As long as you know store policies—fixed prices, one-day exchanges, no bargaining—it’s easy to handle them. after all, we have to keep the shop open, put food on the table, maintain a roof over our heads, and pay our employees. We don’t waste time on customers who keep second-guessing their purchase when there are others who need real assistance.

Through this experience, I’ve learned that I could do better if I had control. I can’t predict every challenge, but I know I’d focus on making things easier—better layouts, efficient stock management, and proper organization. Right now, things are unclean and cluttered, which I hate. A clean, organized shop means faster service and less stress.

The Reality of Working Unpaid

I help out because of my husband. But he doesn’t take the business seriously. If the shop is busy, he works. If it’s quiet, he disappears—going out for smokes instead of using the downtime to clean or reorganize. He blindly scolds employees like his mother does, instead of handling issues properly. It’s frustrating to watch.

If this were my own business, I’d do things differently. Realistically, I can’t start a business with no money, but I’ve thought about what I’d do if I could. A well-planned layout, an easy-access storeroom, proper labels, and minimal clutter so customers focus on the products. Since shoe boxes always get dented, I’d find a way to store them better, maybe with proper racks.

No Regrets, Just Experience

Even though I don’t get paid, I don’t regret helping. It’s all experience. One day, when I move to Kuala Lumpur and look for a job, this will help me land a retail position. Maybe one day, if I have the income, I’ll open my own business—a laundry shop instead of retail.

For anyone who finds themselves in an unpaid family business situation, my advice? Do it for the experience. And if nothing else, it shows your in-laws that you’re not just sitting at home doing nothing.

Minimalist without a choice.

Minimalism is often seen as a lifestyle choice, owning fewer things, decluttering, and focusing on what truly matters. But for me, it wasn’t a choice. It was a necessity.

Why I Have to Be a Minimalist

Money. It all comes down to money. My husband and I rely on a single income, his job at his family’s company, where he has no fixed off days. If he skips a day, he loses RM50, and to make things worse, the company car (which is also his family’s car) is often unavailable, making it hard for him to work consistently. His income is usually lower than RM1500 because most of the time, he can't even go to work. At our lowest, we only had RM500. We’re lucky to still live with our parents, but as parents in our 30s, it feels humiliating.

The Impact on Daily Life

I have to make conscious spending choices every day. I love buying things I want, but now it’s all about survival. Do I need this or not? Skincare is a must for me because without it, my dry skin leads to inflammation and itchiness. My daughter’s school expenses also take priority, with sudden fees appearing out of nowhere. We get by without worrying about food or shelter, but I truly wish we could stand on our own two feet with a stable lifestyle.

What I Had to Give Up

The biggest sacrifice was traveling. My husband and I once saved up and went on a backpacking trip to Bangkok. We were proud of how we managed everything on a budget, making it a fun and rewarding experience. But now, travel is out of the question. I also stopped buying clothes. My daily wear consists of torn clothes, but since I work from home, I don’t mind. I have two decent outfits for going out, so I basically look like a cartoon character repeating the same clothes. Luckily, my husband isn’t materialistic and doesn’t care how I look most of the time.

The Hardest Part

The hardest part is not having the money to regain our independence. We used to live on our own before we got married, renting a small place and working retail jobs. We were so happy and free back then, but we were childish with money. Looking back, we regret not saving more. We now realize that living simply while saving a little could have made our lives happier in the long run. The best feeling was knowing we did it on our own.

The Plan to Escape This Cycle

Right now, our goal is to save enough money to move to Kuala Lumpur and work hard to build a better future. The plan is for my daughter to stay with my parents in Sabah while we find stable jobs in KL. Once we’ve saved enough and she finishes high school, she can move in with us and continue her studies there.

The Biggest Challenges

Finding work and a place to rent will be the hardest parts. Food isn’t a major issue, we can survive on cheap meals, and honestly, I see it as an opportunity to lose weight. But we need jobs that pay well enough to sustain us in KL and allow us to save for the future.

The Mindset to Push Through

To succeed, we need to be independent and stay focused on our goal. Life in Sabah has been relatively easy, but we know that moving to another city means working harder and proving ourselves. We are ready to push through the struggles, knowing that one day, we will stand on our own again.

Minimalism isn’t a choice for me, it’s survival. But with the right mindset and determination, I hope that one day, it will no longer be a necessity, but a choice we make on our own terms.