Deadlines drive success

I'm a strong believer that some people work better under pressure. And as much as I'm an advocate for leisurely mornings, I'm beginning to recognize that due to the lack of pressure — I find myself floundering. Now, in case my current clients are reading this, you shouldn't be worried. I am in fact, on schedule. Perhaps even ahead of schedule. In the IDEA program (Illustration&Design: Elements and Applications) at Capilano University we were led to believe that such things were not possible... not even feasible. So what do I do now that the inconceivable is now reality? Well clearly I'm doing something wrong :) And the lack of money in the wallet proves it. Usually a good indicator.

The question is, should this worry me? Taking a poll of my graduating class (and by poll, I mean stalking them on facebook – obviously – that's how everything is conducted these days) there are a handful of us that are still in the struggling "starving artist" stage, others who have advanced to the "intern" stage, and yet others who have managed to become a "junior" something or another. So my question is, how to go from the bottom of the ladder to the top? Secrets? Tips?
I love it when I come across stories like this one: An Apps to Riches Story: How Lisa Bettany went from struggling photographer to app evangelist.

I can empathize with these sorts of stories when people share that they were relying on their parents to back their dream. Sometimes the paycheck comes a little later. So I press on. Maybe one day I'll look back on these posts and think "remember when?"