Jobs, Creativity and Balance

soldering production pieces

How does one find the time to work in the studio... to have the creative energy.... after being stuck at work in a JOB all day?
One of my friends online asked today about how anyone finds the time to do work in their studio after they do their job...and if anyone else had to take boring jobs to get by while they still wished they could be creative and working in the studio...

the BZ family was founded in a Café, over espresso...

Boredom on the job??
that's pretty much how I've always made my bread and butter- just farming out my skills- as a set of hands...no creativity, I've worked as a production jeweler in various jobs- making silver forged chain, piecing together castings, cabs, and beads, making mokume, sizing rings, and now, when I am feeling strong enough, I make silver and gold pendants and earrings for a local gem cutter. Pretty stones, real pretty stones, but I'm not doing MY work, and that just irks me.

Yawn, but no coffee
Boring, yes, but I'm able to work in my field of interest, and it beats the heck out of working in cafés.(which is what I would do when I couldn't find a metals job) Working in these jobs also gave me experiences that I wouldn't have encountered if I just stayed with doing my work- I learned much about production work, about technical prowess and keeping my workspace organized. As a Barista I know how to make a pretty decent cappuccino, and I DID meet my husband while working in one of those cafés...so I guess that more than makes up for the boredom in that job...

How do I deal with the lack of time??
well. time can be pretty elusive.while I am super busy I try to do things that fit my lack of time- a couple years ago I made a series of tin foil brooches while I was too busy with everything...and my son thought that it was just brilliant, so I felt good that I inspired him in the process...

I guess there isn't really a single way to answer these questions- It's all about keeping on your toes, trying to learn something useful even when you don't see anything redeemable about the situation.
It's that Balance thing again. keep moving and adjusting to your reality- No resting on your bonny bon doon!
ciao- M