Let’s be honest: Most artists are poor. Yes, there are a lot of people out there who make a ton of money doing what they love, but we are not one of them. If we could, we would live paycheck to paycheck, but the truth is, there is no paycheck at the end of the month. And there is one question that keeps us up at night: how long can we keep going like this?

Saving money is crucial

How long can we afford to be artists, dreamers, doing what we love? Many people give up on their dreams because they realize that they just can’t afford to live the life they want to live. Being an artist is a commitment for life, and there is usually nothing coming back until we are almost halfway through it. Can you wait for the payout until half your life is over?

I think I can.

But how can we afford to live like this without a side job or any regular income? Well, it turns out that there is a very simple rule:

The more money we spend, the less we have. It’s that simple. If we spend more money than we make, we will never have any.

Now as an artist, there is a problem with making more. In many cases, it takes decades to become good enough to actually charge a decent rate. Nobody is going to pay $800 a day for something that just isn’t good enough yet. So, for the time being, in the decades it needs for us to become competitive artists, we only have one choice to keep going: spend less.

Here is what we can do

Here is a list of the 10 most important things I do on a daily basis to save money. Without them, I would not be where I am and I would not do what I do. I would have given up a long time ago.

1. Stop spending your money the minute you get it.

Many of us won’t admit it, but we actually like to be poor. We like to struggle, that’s what artists do. We are used to it, it’s a habit. And like any other habit, it is hard to change. Whenever money comes in, we make sure that it goes out of the door as quickly as possible. It is an obsession that we can’t control. I got a payout of $1000 dollars a few weeks ago. Not only have I thought about 250 things that I could spend it on, it also makes me weirdly uncomfortable to have that much money in my bank account. Also – I kid you not – I am worried that it might just not be there anymore tomorrow. It sounds ridiculous, but we need to get used to having money.

2. Only buy what’s absolutely necessary.

There is a difference between “nice to have” and “I need this to do a good job and develop as an artist”.

3. Sell what you don’t use.

If I haven’t used something in two months, there is no point keeping it. “maybe I’ll need it in the future” is an expensive excuse to keep something around that we don’t need and can’t afford.

4. Buy used.

We don’t need the newest tool. We need what works. Let’s spend some extra time on eBay, Amazon etc. to find what we need for half the price. I have not bought any new equipment, phones etc. in many years, and saved thousands of dollars that way.

5. Avoid loans and credit cards.

We are dreamers, but we are not stupid. We understand that there is no actual difference between paying $30 a month for 40 months or paying $1200 now. Let’s not fall into the trap of buying things that we can’t actually afford, unless we can’t live without them. If we can’t afford $1200 now we shouldn’t commit to paying it, period. Loans, Credit Cards, payment plans etc. are a very easy way for companies to sell expensive products that we don’t need. As a result, half the world has become slaves in a never ending circle of working to pay off bills for things that they couldn’t afford and didn’t really need in the first place.

6. Eat cheap.

When we go out and order food or drinks, we can be more considerate. No, we don’t only eat at home and become nomads. Instead, we look at the menu more carefully and order one of the cheaper items and a glass of water. I know, we have worked hard, we have earned our night out without thinking too much about the costs. But really? We have struggled so hard for an extra portion of shrimps and an organic chai latte? EVERY TIME I go out with friends I pay half of what they pay. Coincidence?

7. Don’t buy what you want, buy what you need.

From now on, “I really want this” is not a reason anymore to get something. The only reason is “I really need this”. We don’t need to get the premium extra 30 TV channels or another monthly subscription of really anything.

8. Always research cheaper options.

EVERY TIME I am about to spend money, I take at least 15 minutes to research if there is a cheaper option that would still give me what I want. My friends want to see a movie and spend $14.99. I spend $1.50 and take them with me. Yes, I do want to see the newest Transformers movie RIGHT NOW. But you know what, for $13.49 I am happy to wait two weeks. Following a hype is expensive and not necessary.

9. Limit your lifestyle.

I don’t need to live alone. Yes, it would be nice, comfortable and probably appropriate for a 31 year old man to live alone (or with a partner), but the amount of money I save on rent every month by living in a shared apartment gives me the freedom to go on as a freelancer. Living alone in a nice apartment for two years equals living in a shared apartment for 3 or 4 years. That means two more years to develop as an artist and become better at what we do.

10 Treat what you do as a business.

If we ever want to actually have money, we need to learn how to make it, handle it and keep it. Essentially, we need to occasionally take a step back from our precious art and simply run a profitable business. This includes, for example, not spending a week on a job that pays $50. It also means looking at every “opportunity” as an investment of our time and energy if we don’t get paid. Any investment needs to be well thought through and in line with the general direction and goal we are working towards. If it doesn’t match, a simple NO is always a very professional answer.  

Stop believing in fairies and miracles

Now: what if all this just doesn’t matter because we suddenly land the gig of a lifetime and make millions of dollars?

Let’s be honest:

The hope to get discovered and the dream of overnight success is the number one reason why many of us artists just don’t care about money. We believe in miracles. But should we really make our life dependent on something that is less likely to happen than winning the lottery? In reality, 98% of us are not as talented or lucky as we think we are.

Spending less money is hard in the world we live in. All the values we live up to are somehow connected to financial wealth. It is not only difficult to not make as much money as everyone else, it is even harder to spend less than everyone else. The whole world wants us to spend money. Let’s just flow against the flow for once. We are artists, we are dreamers, we can do that!

Do you follow any of these suggestions already? Do you have any other experiences that help spend less money? Let me know in the comments!