Do What you Love: An Interview with Patricia Zapata

Our next interviewee up in the Do What You Love series is the lovely Patricia Zapata. She is a graphic designer who also wrote the book on paper crafting (literally- it's coming out this summer!) She was one of the first indie business owners I "met" years ago when I opened my first little jewelry shop and she's been a constant source of inspiration, both in how she conducts herself and how she manages her business. I think she's also our first mom in the series, so you'll be able to get a little insight into how she runs a family and a home based business at the same time! Let's meet her!

What do you do for a living?

I am an independent graphic designer and I own two businesses. I design corporate identity and collateral materials for small to mid-sized businesses for my Zapata Design clients. Through A Little Hut, I sell paper illustrations, wall art, design stationery, printable PDFs and block printed note cards. I’m also the author of Home, Paper, Scissors, a papercraft book, which will be published in August of this year.

How long have you been self-employed?  What made you decide to take the leap?

I left my design job when I had our first child. It was a leap of faith and a choice purely inspired by the fact that I was a new mom. After being a full-time Mom for a year, I realized I needed to work creatively again. I felt my artsy neurons demanding some exercise again. I’ve been self-employed since 2001 and I haven’t looked back since.

Do you work from home or have a studio/office elsewhere? 

I work from home because the cost of an office isn’t possible at this time. Even if it were within the budget I don’t think I’d change my location. My sofa, my kitchen table, my desk and sometimes even my bed are comfy and plenty enough for me.

Do you have a partner or assistant, or are you going it solo?

It’s just me. I’m the design, production, mailing department, and errand woman, all wrapped into one.

How do you organize your days?  At what part of the day are you most productive?

I’m definitely most productive in the mornings. I start out with emails and coffee and continue with any design work I have pending. After lunch, when I’m in a slower mode, I sketch out ideas and work on production tasks. An ideal day will run like this but some days the scheduling goes out the window.

On weekdays, after 3pm I’m in full-time Mom mode because I pick up the kids from school and the whole afternoon revolves around our homework-dinner-bedtime routine. After the kids are in bed, I either read, surf the internet or squeeze in some urgent projects or mindless production work. I used to work at night a lot (I’m a night-owl at heart) but after having kids that has been harder to keep up.

I try my best to keep my Fridays free from client work and open for personal projects. Weekends are mostly off limits too. They are for family time, unless there’s a work related fire to put out.

When the summer rolls around all of the above completely changes. Since the kids are out of school, I work either really early in the morning or at night. During the day I try to only handle emails and phone calls.

How do you keep procrastination and distraction in check, and stay motivated to get things done?

To-do lists and deadlines are big motivators. Aside from that I try to set monthly goals that are reasonable but flexible at the same time. I do own two businesses but I am also a mother of two, so you never know what will overlap with what.

Distraction is very easy when you work from home. My biggest distraction is my own house. I’ve finally learned to leave all big house chores for the weekends or Fridays and only do a super quick daily maintenance just after the kids are on their way to school. Some days I find that I’m so distracted that the only way to get back into it is to leave the house to run a quick errand. When I get back I feel like I’ve hit the reset button.

Procrastination is something that I battle with more times than I care to admit. It is often related to things that I don’t like to do. It just gets to a point that I have to grit my teeth and just get it all done.

 
How many hours do you put in per day?  Do you work on the weekends?

I work about 8 hours a day. I try my very best not to work on weekends but that doesn’t mean my mind isn’t going, going, going. Sometimes I wish I could turn it off. Since I can’t, a sketch book is always within reach.

{Patricia's upcoming book, available for pre-order now!}

How do you handle a non-steady income?

I am fortunate enough to have a very supportive husband that understands the nature of my businesses. We’ve learned to be conservative when the need arises. When business is slow I take the extra time to create new ideas and products. I also revamp my web site, blog and redesign anything that needs a fresh look. 

What do you think is the most difficult part about being your own boss?

With Zapata Design, I find that the most difficult thing is not having co-workers to toss ideas around with. Because my work with A Little Hut is more personal, I find that developing a thick skin and being more sure of my design decisions has been the hardest thing to do. Little moments of doubt sometimes try to creep in.

And the best part? 

Flexibility. No doubt about it. I can work from home or the nearest coffee shop. I can decide to take the day off. I don’t have to call in sick if I am. I can take the day off to volunteer at the kids’ school. I can run errands at any time. My schedule is completely in my hands.

How do you reward yourself for a job well done and keep yourself from getting too burnt out?

Getting out of the house helps reward and keeping me fresh at the same time. My favorite thing to do when I’m stuck or just would like some fun time on my own is to head to the nearest bookstore. A cup of coffee in hand and flipping through books is the best!

Would you say you're making a living doing what you love?

Yes even though things have slowed down a bit this year. That doesn’t worry me much because I earn so many intangibles. The biggest ones are the joy and satisfaction of having a family, raising children and doing what I love all at the same time.

What is one nugget of wisdom you can pass on to someone who is desperately seeking to get out of the 9-5 grind and follow in your footsteps?

I left my full-time position for personal reasons and had the full support of my husband. I wasn’t really planning on becoming a business owner. I was very fortunate that it all worked out the way it did.

My advice would be to work for someone who is in the field you’d like to pursue. I started out with my design business because that is the type of work I was doing as an employee. Most of what I learned about the business of design was acquired during that experience. If that isn’t possible, then I’d say do a lot of research before taking the leap and be very realistic about your financial situation. Having a plan in place will save you many headaches.

Learn more about Patricia on her sites below:
main :: shop :: graphic design :: book :: twitter :: flickr

>> you may also like: Do What you Love: An Interview with Abigail Percy