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From Art to Life: Lesson Learned in 2025

Let’s just start here: 2025 was a hell of a ride.

If I had to describe it in one word, it would be uncertainty.

Uncertainty in relationships.

Uncertainty in business.

Uncertainty in where the hell I even wanted to live.

There were days I woke up feeling grounded and grateful … and others where I thought, “What the actual hell is happening?”

But as I was looking back on it all … and reflecting on what this year taught me … I realized uncertainty wasn’t my enemy. It was my teacher. 

In this episode, I’m reflecting on the book, Worthy by Jamie Kern Lima, a surprise run in with a con artist (yep, really), and the four beliefs that helped me stay grounded when everything around me felt uncertain.

Lessons Learned in 2025

I learned that uncertainty isn’t punishment. It’s actually a transformation. It’s the classroom where growth happens. 

Here’s what 2025 taught me, and what I’ll carry forward into 2026:

The universe is always conspiring in my favor.

Even when things look like they’re falling apart, they’re actually falling together. Every curveball, every heartbreak, every “WTF” moment … it’s all part of the plan, even when I can’t see it yet.

Fear can ride, but it can’t drive.

Fear is loud and bossy, but it doesn’t get the wheel. I’ve learned that courage isn’t the absence of fear … it’s making choices in spite of it. Fear can sit in the back seat, buckle up, and keep quiet while I move forward anyway.

Joy is my North Star.

Joy isn’t some extra credit emotion. It’s direction. When I follow joy, I feel aligned, authentic, and alive. And every single time I choose joy over obligation or worry, life opens up in the best ways.

Serving others brings peace.

When anxiety tries to take over, I turn my focus outward. Helping someone else … even in the smallest way … brings me back to center. It reminds me that I’m part of something bigger and that love always multiples when we give it away.

When life gets chaotic, those four beliefs remind me who I am, what I’m worth, and why I keep showing up … not just as an artist, but as a human figuring it out right alongside you.

Here’s what you’ll take away from this episode:

• The difference between confidence and self-worth
• How to find peace when everything feels shaky
• Why following joy is a spiritual practice
• Four beliefs to ground you through chaos

Until next time, y’all!

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Have a question for Jodie? Ask it here: https://forms.gle/hxrVu4oL4PVCKwZm6 

Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review so I can keep bringing peeps all the need-to-know about Honest Art®. We artists have to stick together, right? 

Interested in being a guest on a future episode of Honest Art®? Email me at amy@jodieking.com!

Resources Mentioned: 

• Extended! You can snag the Color Course for Rebels Bundle until January 1st. Enjoy the Color Course for Rebels 101+102, The Mother Color™ Course, and Instagram for Artists for just $207:  https://www.jodiekingart.com/offers/FtkRAtLt/checkout  
• I do these episodes each year! Listen to Episode 94: From Art to Life: Lessons Learned in 2024
• Read the book that changed my mindset this year: Worthy by Jamie Kearn Lima: https://amzn.to/48UPS46 
• Interested in attending a live workshop? Stay up to date on my 2026 in-person workshops here: https://jodieking.com/workshop  
• I highly recommend reading The Alchemist by Paul Coelho: https://amzn.to/48VYNlX  
• Don’t create in isolation. Join a community of artists with the Honest Art® Society: https://www.jodiekingart.com/has

• Have a question for Jodie? Ask it here: https://forms.gle/hxrVu4oL4PVCKwZm6 
• How are you liking the Honest Art® Podcast? Leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform and let us know!    
• Watch this full episode on my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMquJfuMsSg0fr46BRdia1cWd-81GThzF

Want more from Jodie?

Learn from Jodie:

🎨The Color Course for Rebels: https://www.jodiekingart.com/ccfr  

🎨Honest Art® Society: https://www.jodiekingart.com/has 

🎨Studio Elite: https://www.jodiekingart.com/studioelite  

See some of Jodie’s favorite resources:

✍🏻Check out my free guide on how to hang and wire a painting: https://www.jodiekingart.com/how-to-hang-a-painting 

✍🏻Get my top 10 studio tools here: https://www.jodiekingart.com/10-studio-tools-opt-in 

✍🏻Learn 5 things they don’t teach you in art school: https://jodieking.com/work-with-me#free-rescources.0  

✍🏻See Jodie’s favorite things: https://www.amazon.com/shop/jodie_king_ 

🧘🏼‍♀️Guided Meditation for Creative Clarity: https://www.jodiekingart.com/guided-meditation