
You guessed it, I was about to say "NOW". But, realistically speaking, you might not want to drop everything. I knew for a good two years that I would drop everything (day job) one day. However, having been a grownup for several years, I knew that when the job stops, the pay stops too. And, while it's really true that we can put our faith in God, it helps to have an emergency stash. (In my experience, God sometimes operates on a different time schedule... probably based on a higher set of values that don't take into account rent payments.)
Anyway, once I acquired the desire, the will and the courage to start down the art road, I had to acquire a stash. Notice that desire is first on the list. In my opinion, once you've settled on your desire, Life/God is put on notice. Not that a desire is a demand but more like, the macrocosm is present 24/7 in the microcosm, and notices a new necessity, if you will. Or maybe, the macrocosm feels it's time for a change in location X10 of the microcosm and arranges for a situation that will ease or cause the necessary change. (It's been 13 years and that memory is somewhat fuzzy.) Anyhow, whatever the order was, I found this great book: "Your Money or Your Life" (YMOYL) by Joe Dominguez and Vicky Robin. Even though I didn't follow their plan completely, it changed my life. The otherwise thrifty (cheap?) person who could never manage to save more than $500, post-YMOYL managed to save $5,000 in two years. That's the benefit of YMOYL-clarity.
More money might have been better but that was the amount I set my mind on. Anyhow, the person who has planned out his whole life has not yet been born. So my advice is, once you're sure of what direction you're headed (and you're free to change your mind later), decide what amount will keep the heebie-jeebies away. Then go for it. Step 2 will present itself soon enough.
Anyway, once I acquired the desire, the will and the courage to start down the art road, I had to acquire a stash. Notice that desire is first on the list. In my opinion, once you've settled on your desire, Life/God is put on notice. Not that a desire is a demand but more like, the macrocosm is present 24/7 in the microcosm, and notices a new necessity, if you will. Or maybe, the macrocosm feels it's time for a change in location X10 of the microcosm and arranges for a situation that will ease or cause the necessary change. (It's been 13 years and that memory is somewhat fuzzy.) Anyhow, whatever the order was, I found this great book: "Your Money or Your Life" (YMOYL) by Joe Dominguez and Vicky Robin. Even though I didn't follow their plan completely, it changed my life. The otherwise thrifty (cheap?) person who could never manage to save more than $500, post-YMOYL managed to save $5,000 in two years. That's the benefit of YMOYL-clarity.
More money might have been better but that was the amount I set my mind on. Anyhow, the person who has planned out his whole life has not yet been born. So my advice is, once you're sure of what direction you're headed (and you're free to change your mind later), decide what amount will keep the heebie-jeebies away. Then go for it. Step 2 will present itself soon enough.