Sarah was commissioned to paint an access door to an electrical box at the Napa Wine Company’s Cellar Door and made it look like a piece of art.

How does someone turn a dream and a passion into a business? Sarah started her business in Sonoma County, encouraged by her neighbor, designer Nora Russo.

“I was going to Sonoma State and was going to be an art and dance teacher,” Sarah recalled. “I started working for her since she needed an assistant.” After a while she had to ask herself whether she wanted to make money doing what she loved or go to school. “I have to say she was one of the reasons I started my business. She gave me a lot of insight and inspiration.” Sarah was 25 when she started and admitted being excited and a little scared. She said she has learned to “feel the fear and do it anyway,” which is the name of a book she recently read.

Networking

“I was taking a class at the J.C. and the lady said ‘for your homework you guys should go to a networking group.’ She said business was built by word-of-mouth and she encouraged us to see how many referrals we could get.” She joined a business-networking group in Sonoma for a year, but since she wanted to move her business to Napa, joined Business Network International.

“I got a lead right away when I came as a visitor and it went from there,” she said. “Since I was commuting from Kenwood, 45 minutes each way, I decided I needed to move here.” So in March of 2002 she packed up her paints and made the move to Napa.

“So I meet with that networking group every Tuesday morning at 7 a.m. at Marie Callender’s. I have to say that group increased my business by 75 percent. It really pulled me out of myself. Nora told me that to be a successful artist it’s 75 percent business and 25 percent skill. I’d have to say that there are a lot of talented artists but a lot of them are flaky.”

Creative entrepreneur

How do people take what they love and actually make money at it? “You know what? It’s really my faith. I have an incredible amount of faith in creating my world and the power of the mind.” A book that made an impact on her was Shakti Gawain’s Creative Visualization. In fact, she reads a lot on personal growth.

“I love to read,” she said. “I love philosophy and I love to grow myself. After I read this book, I realized everyone is given a talent. Some people do it as a hobby, and others take it to the next level and make money at it. That’s what I noticed. I had a talent and I just needed to go for it.”

She had a lot of fear going into it and there were some who didn’t believe she could do it. “You just have to put blinders on and cover your ears. My response was, ‘look, if I have to work three jobs for the rest of my life, as long as I can keep painting, I’m just going to do it.’ That was before I met my mentor. I just believe that if you work really, really hard and you’re honest — you can never lie — and you treat people the way you want to be treated” things will work out. “You have to work hard. You can’t just sit on your butt.”

She said there were times when she wanted to quit. Sometimes it’s feast or famine for her. She knows she could have a nine-to-five job with work that is predictable, but she said she is extremely happy doing what she loves to do. At first she envied her friends, but her friends have told her they envy her.

“You have to believe in yourself, all the time. Always keep in your mind what you want to accomplish. And if you are an artist you have to be willing to not have a lot of money for a while. I’d have to say I’m rich. I’m rich in happiness.”

There are many things she does to keep her dream alive. Her refrigerator door is covered with sayings and poems, some of which she has written. She also stays in contact with those who challenge her.

Nora told her if she sits there and worries about where the next job is going to come from it is only a waste of time and energy. She said, “If you let go of the fear and stop worrying and have faith, the jobs will come. And they will probably come in so fast you won’t be able to handle it. When I was first starting my business it was hard for me to see that and hard to hold that in my sights.”

What is in sight for Sarah is a picture of her dream — a dream she gets to live and a picture she gets to paint every day.