Meet Lauren Horn | Art Teacher, Author, Creator of This is Not a Sketchbook

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lauren Horn and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lauren, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Being a public school teacher comes with a natural drive for a side hustle, and I come from a entrepreneurial family so I feel like I was always looking for creative ways to make money.

When my social media accounts started gaining this huge following, with people asking for an art course, I knew there was an opportunity there. However, I had done courses online before and ultimately felt like they could be more effective.

With little kids, and a husband gone with the Army, I was unwilling to take on anything that took more time away from them, or anything that added complication to my schedule. So those became my goals – how can I effectively teach, passively, and create this better balance for my family?

Knowing it would take some time away from them upfront, but would lead to this life where I could be close to them – be on the field trips, pick them up after school (no after school care) and just overall have a life where they are not being constantly rushed or pushed to fit the bustle of parents with multiple jobs. That was the goal. Figure out how to do what I love, and what I’m good at, and share it with the world while giving them a childhood similar to what I had.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
It was an uphill battle, but you know what? The whole time I had this excited little buzz pushing me forward. I just had faith in this idea, and I had to learn patience, but every day I accomplished something in the direction of my vision kept me going.

The transition from “side hustle” to full time was the most challenging part. I loved teaching, and my students, and it felt crazy to walk away from something I loved so much. I’m not great with change, so that resignation letter was a big deal to write, but I don’t regret it. I was doing three things at 60% – teaching, parenting, and running a business. It made the most sense to drop teaching.

Was it easy? No. But here is the biggest takeaway from this experience. No one is better than you. No one is smarter than you. No one is more talented than you. The only difference in successful people vs “unsuccessful” is work ethic. You just have to do it. Take that step, take a risk, and realize that failure is a necessary part of the process. Failure, and the process of accepting it and learning from it, is key. If you can get over seeing failure as an end to something, and start viewing it as a lesson, you’ll keep pivoting your way towards something that works.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m such a neighborhood homebody. I live in Fairmount, so walking down to Magnolia is really my go-to. I don’t think you can get better than Salsa Limons El Capitan Pastor Tacos, and I basically live in Cherry Coffee- 90% of the book was created there.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The list is long, and very female. When I started pursuing this idea, I was reaching out to all the friends I knew who went into business for themselves. Every single one was extremely generous with their time and encouraging, When I started building the pages – Becca Waugh of Sleepy Panther Design Co not only designed them, but talked me through printers and the logistics of getting an LLC. When I had to build a website, I went to Esther Miller, founder of Gifted, who spent hours with me setting up a Shopify site. My good friend Christine Azcona, in St Pete, Florida started a salon (The Palm) the same time I was starting my business and through an experience of hers I established my trademarks and copyrights.

And man… my husband, Dillon. He was so quickly and enthusiastically on board with the sketchbook. He also helps me with everything financial, and taxes. He did all the red tape leg work of getting on Amazon. Basically all the tasks I hate, he takes on for me. We have 3 kids, and that alone takes a lot of coordination, and communication, and patience. He has a full-time civillian job, is in the National Guard, and coaches our kids wrestling teams. I was teaching full time, making and selling art, and building the sketchbook/business. We we’re often ships in the night navigating our lives and he really is the family coordinator that keeps things moving.

Website: https://Thisisnotasketchbook.com

Instagram: @Thisisnotasketchbook, @LaurenHornArt

Facebook: This is Not a Sketchbook

Image Credits
Kinsey Linnae