Anyone who thinks they can’t make a living as an artist better think again because Heather Allen is not only here to prove that old myth false, but she’s ready to share common sense on being an entrepreneur and how. make a career out of your passion.
As a freelance author, I wish I could have read this book when I started supporting myself through writing and related activities. Let Your Creativity Work for You is the perfect guide for anyone who wants to start a business, who wants to make a living from their artwork, and who isn’t afraid to make money or be successful. It’s time for people to stop thinking that being an artist means having to starve in an attic. Great artists deserve to be appreciated and have a viable life, and the world deserves great art to make it a better place.
Heather initially approaches this subject through one of the many artists she interviews, Jason Hoelscher. She states, “They didn’t have career development classes when Jason Hoelscher was a college student. In fine arts studies courses, the notion of combining artistic skill development with career and income opportunities remains, as it has historically. , out of limits”. However, Jason reveals that independent entrepreneurs can be successful by doing three things:
1. You must be strategic in your approach.
2. You must do your research.
3. You must be in this for the long haul.
From this inspiring and down-to-earth beginning, Heather guides readers through everything imaginable that a businessperson and artist needs to know. Chief among them is setting goals and then making them achievable through five-, two-, and one-year plans. She includes goal sheets and other activity spaces throughout the book for the reader to complete and do exercises to motivate and apply the book’s advice.
From there, Heather gets involved in some of the essential aspects of running a business, including tracking mileage for travel, accepting credit card payments, and using a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) program. client). But she never gets so caught up in the details that she misses the big picture of being an artist in need of income. She discusses how to balance producing your art with the details of running a business, how to create multiple streams of income, the importance of branding, how to use social media and websites to promote your art and your business, and one of the most difficult of all topics: how to set boundaries with clients, be upfront about expectations with them, and even maintain a waiting list for your services.
Personally, I particularly enjoyed the interviews Heather conducts with successful artists from various mediums, both in terms of their artistic processes and their approaches to running a business and maintaining a successful career. Through these diverse perspectives, readers learn what it is to be an artist, what kinds of joys and hardships to expect, and how to create a business that is full of values and principles as well as fun, nurturing their artistic souls. without turning her artwork into drudgery to please customers. I especially appreciated the discussion of principles. Here are some principles he suggests artists can incorporate into their businesses:
– I will treat others as I would like to be treated.
– My collectors are my most valuable business partners.
– If I say I’m going to do something, you can count on me to comply.
– I will commit 100% to the projects based on the joy and/or income they bring me.
– I will donate works of art to organizations that support ____.
– To honor my collectors’ investment, I will not donate or discount my work.
– Once my price is set, it can only go up, never go down.
Most importantly, Heather reminds artists to be true to themselves. As gallerist Michael Foley states in the book, artists must ask themselves: “Does the work mean something to you? Is it passionate about you? It has to be your personal meaning to you, as opposed to what you think it will sell.”
Anyone who dreams of becoming an artist or is already an artist trying to make a living needs to read this book. I would love to see this book adopted as required reading in all college art programs around the world, and probably in music and creative writing and other art fields as well. It really contains what people are rarely taught in school. Heather Allen has learned all of this information through experience and consulting with creative entrepreneurs for several years. I’m sure that countless artists like me will appreciate her now sharing all the valuable information about her in these pages.
