I was really drawn to art education because of my experience taking art classes in the public schools. Somewhere along the way, they were probably taught that because their pictures didn't look like the teachers example, that they didn't have art ability. Or they had their creative ideas squashed at an early age. In general I don't think there is enough freedom in many public school's art classrooms. I honestly believe that every person is creative, and can create beautiful art.
People have a natural ability to create beautiful things.
It's just a matter of helping them along in developing confidence in their art ability, and learning how to use the tools. I really try to be as encouraging as I can of peoples ideas and style, and not let my personal taste affect how I help a student work on a piece. I have also been doing a lot of ad banners, which I find to be really fun. See my portfolio to check this all out. I still definitely use Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator for small things, but have found Fireworks to be a tremendous timesaver.