I made $27k last year

and it feels so good

In October of last year, my mom asked me what I thought my income was.

“Uhhh… no idea,” I said.

“Even a rough estimate.”

“Yeah I literally don’t know at all.”

Since getting laid off from my third and final non-profit in 2022, I’ve been doing this thing where I don’t keep track of how much money I make with the hope that somehow I will magically make enough to keep my bank account balance the same or maybe even more than it was before I left the workforce. Ok, that’s not true at all. I hadn’t kept track because I knew I was not making enough to keep the numbers the same (because they were going down), and I didn’t want to call my own attention to that depressing fact so instead I decided to ignore it.

“Maybe it would be good to get an idea of how much you’re making,” my mom said diplomatically.

I grumbled and whined, and then she pulled out the laptop and helped me make a spreadsheet called “2025 Income - Kelly” (that’s my first name for those who don’t know) and we combed through my Venmo and bank statements and input all the monies I had generated through everything from “1-1 creative mentoring with Tim" to “jacket painting” to “art modeling tip”.

The list went on and on. Through “canvas print for Michael”, “meditation facilitation consulting”, “art shop sale”, “painted pants”, “EP donation”, “voiceover video”, and “bi-coastal birthday event support”. Art modeling all over the Bay Area. Caroling all across Los Angeles.

We eventually had to stop cuz it was like midnight at this point. Yesterday, I finally finished the list. I added everything up and discovered that I made about $27,000 last year.

There are many ways one could look at that number.

$27,000.

That’s much less than I’ve made working any nonprofit job. It’s in the category of “very low income” in California.

How pitiful, I’m 35 years old and I’m only making 27k. Cue shame spiral!

But as commonplace as a shame spiral be for me, when I declare my 2025 income I’m surprised to discover that’s actually not what’s happening. Rather, I’m noticing a kind of savage pleasure arising. Maybe partly because I’m feeling triumphant that I’m living such a low-cost life. Like I should get an award for figuring that out from the Association of Recognition-Motivated Anti-Capitalists.

But also because dude, it’s actually pretty badass that I raised 27k from 120 unique exchanges with hundreds of people who all felt inspired enough by my art, my music, my being, to give me money. Nourishing, wholesome, and values-aligned exchanges that flowed to me naturally and easefully, without much marketing or hustle at all. This here is my material evidence that when I am in service to my art, things fall into place. I am taken care of.

Because they are and I am! It turns out that $27k was enough to afford me exactly the kind of life I want to be living, full of creative growth and fulfillment, love, exciting new experiences, fresh-cooked healthy food, and daily cold plunges. I’m low key amazed by it. Of course, this is only possible by the power of community: my co-op home, art models’ guild, and wonderful expansive network.

All that being said, I am down to make more than $27k this year. Maybe $37k would be a solid goal? With a little more, I could start building my savings back up and feel more spacious with purchases. I know I can do it. I’m not going to fixate on money making as my primary goal in life - I will continue to call in the opportunities that feel most compelling and exciting and allow me to be myself, and trust that money - and other forms of wealth - comes with that.

It’s been a week or so since I started writing this post, and I’m finding that even just setting the intention to raise more money actually is helping make that happen. Last weekend, I sold my Burning Man painting for $1111 in a beautifully cosmic way.

As I conclude this post, a part of me is feeling regretful that I didn’t write anything very funny after saying that I wanted to be funnier in my last post. If you came here hoping for humor, I’m sorry (and if you know how to make what is essentially a financial report funny, please let me know).

But on the bright side, after writing this I feel better about myself and you probably feel better about yourself, too, if you thought you weren’t making much money, because chances are it’s more than I’m making 🥰

(Another bright side is maybe this could help shift culture around money and how much needs to be made and if we can talk about it and what we define as wealth and blah blah u get it)

Thanks for reading if you got this far, and

Link to my venmo in case u wanna send me $10k 😘

^the above line was not my idea. it was my Substack friends’ idea. to be clear.

oook time to sign off