by Rebecca Sciullo | Oct 7, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning
It’s time for another Artisan Advantage Book Club pick! Join me in reading Real Artists Don’t Starve: Timeless Strategies for Thriving in the New Creative Age by Jeff Goins.
Join the Club!
It’s easy. All you have to do is get your copy and start reading! Stay connected to the Artisan Advantage blog for posts about how you might apply principles from the book to your visual art business, as well as for opportunities to share your comments about the book with others.
Click here to read more about the Club.
Artisan Advantage is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
by Becky Sciullo | Oct 7, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning
It’s time for another Artisan Advantage Book Club pick! Join me in reading Real Artists Don’t Starve: Timeless Strategies for Thriving in the New Creative Age by Jeff Goins.
Join the Club!
It’s easy. All you have to do is get your copy and start reading! Stay connected to the Artisan Advantage blog for posts about how you might apply principles from the book to your visual art business, as well as for opportunities to share your comments about the book with others.
Click here to read more about the Club.
Artisan Advantage is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
by Rebecca Sciullo | Jun 14, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning
The latest book of the month is “Atomic Habits” by James Clear.
“Atomic Habits” is an easy to read guide to creating good habits and breaking bad ones. Clear shows how small habits can have a big impact on your life and how to implement those positive habits for positive impact.
Better habits for your art business.
Identify either bad habits that are affecting your art business, or positive ones that you might implement for success. What do you need to start or stop doing? Then, figure out a plan of action to change those habits.
Here are some examples of how you can set yourself up for success with better habits.
Design your environment for success. Want to paint more? Is your studio or work area set up and easy to access, so that when it is time to work you are ready to go, rather than wasting time setting up.
Put it on your calendar. Blocking your time out to include those positive habits that you want to implement is a much better strategy than saying “I want to” but without a defined time set to do it.
Take baby steps. Can you start doing the habit for two minutes a day? How about five? Get yourself into a routine.
Make the habit satisfying.
One way to make a habit satisfying is to use a tracker or tool that helps you to feel accomplishment.
One way to do this is with The Clear Habit Journal.
I use Michael Hyatt’s Full Focus Planner which has a “Streak Tracker” component that helps to tick off habits as you move towards specific goals.
There are also apps that can help you to stay on track with your habits.
Read “Atomic Habits” and get motivated to start some new habits to help improve your art business.
Stay on top of the latest Artisan Advantage Book Club pick by signing up for updates here.
by Rebecca Sciullo | Apr 11, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning
The latest Artisan Advantage Book Club pick was Karla Starr’s, “Can You Learn to be Lucky?; Why Some People Seem to Win More Often Than Others.” A theme that kept popping up in my mind while reading this book was control the controllable.
Takeaways
Taking action is the first right step.
Remember the Kettering Principle:
Keep on going and the chances are you will stumble on something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I have never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting down.
Be memorable.
You may not be able to control the order in which your work is juried or your booth’s location at the arts festival, but it is within your control to be memorable.
Don’t take it personally.
You don’t always know the factors that are involved when people are making decisions about your work. Choose to frame your losses as learning experiments.
Show up.
Woody Allen was right: 80 percent of success is just showing up
Act the part.
Be professional. Don’t unknowingly eliminate yourself with “weird online IDs, unprofessional looking websites or goofy profile photos…”
Be aware of yourself and others
Keep your eyes open for opportunities.
Focus on your own bright spots.
Don’t worry about or be envious of what another artist is doing. Focus on the positive in your work and world.
Always be improving.
Take a class. Clean your studio. Take care of yourself.
Have a vision.
Focus on what you have to do today to get closer to your preferred future.
Write your vision out and reflect on it regularly.
Overall I enjoyed the read and found it to be a good reminder of how while we can’t control everything, there are many small things that we can do to make a big difference in our success.
by Becky Sciullo | Mar 12, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning, Resources
If you joined in with the Artisan Advantage Book Club and finished The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People® I hope that you were able to learn something new to apply to your art business. There was a lot to digest, so I thought I would give you a bit longer to read it.
One response that I received about the book I think sums it up well.
What I am enjoying most, is this book is NOT a “quick fix” that is very popular in the business/marketing information that is out there these days because it deals with the person, which means it will have an effect on the artist’s entire business, as the artist is his/her business.
With respect specifically to a visual art business, here are some takeaways that came to my mind.
Takeaways
Be Proactive. How can you take responsibility for your art business? Make sure that you are acting proactively vs. reactively as you plan and work.
Begin With the End in Mind. Do you have a clear written vision for your art business? If not, this should be a priority. Once it’s written, make sure that your actions are aligning with your vision. Review this vision on a regular basis to ensure you stay on track.
Put first things first. Are you focusing on activities that are bringing you closer to your vision for your art business? Can you discern between the urgent but not important versus the important but not urgent tasks? Can you identify busy work that really isn’t getting you where you need to get to?
Think Win-Win. Whether it’s a collaborative project or participating in an event with an artist organization, can you work to build relationships by finding solutions and agreements that benefit everyone involved?
Seek first to understand…Are you taking time to listen to clients and customers before moving ahead with a commission or project?
Synergize. Can you find ways to participate, contribute and interact with your community?
Sharpen the Saw. Is there balance in your business and personal life? Make sure you are taking time out for other hobbies, family, exercise whatever it is you need to maintain your overall health and relationships in the long run.
Find more Franklin Covey resources at www.franklincovey.com. If you haven’t had a chance to read the book, that’s ok. There are no rules are requirements for the Book Club! I encourage you to read at your own pace. Take what you need, lose what you don’t.
I’d always love to hear your thoughts or a book recommendation at becky@artisan-advantage.com.
March’s book pick will be announced tomorrow. In the meantime, sign up for my newsletter here. I randomly select one subscriber every month to receive a free copy of the book for that month.
by Rebecca Sciullo | Mar 12, 2019 | Artisan Advantage Book Club, Learning, Resources
If you joined in with the Artisan Advantage Book Club and finished The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People® I hope that you were able to learn something new to apply to your art business. There was a lot to digest, so I thought I would give you a bit longer to read it.
One response that I received about the book I think sums it up well.
What I am enjoying most, is this book is NOT a “quick fix” that is very popular in the business/marketing information that is out there these days because it deals with the person, which means it will have an effect on the artist’s entire business, as the artist is his/her business.
With respect specifically to a visual art business, here are some takeaways that came to my mind.
Takeaways
Be Proactive. How can you take responsibility for your art business? Make sure that you are acting proactively vs. reactively as you plan and work.
Begin With the End in Mind. Do you have a clear written vision for your art business? If not, this should be a priority. Once it’s written, make sure that your actions are aligning with your vision. Review this vision on a regular basis to ensure you stay on track.
Put first things first. Are you focusing on activities that are bringing you closer to your vision for your art business? Can you discern between the urgent but not important versus the important but not urgent tasks? Can you identify busy work that really isn’t getting you where you need to get to?
Think Win-Win. Whether it’s a collaborative project or participating in an event with an artist organization, can you work to build relationships by finding solutions and agreements that benefit everyone involved?
Seek first to understand…Are you taking time to listen to clients and customers before moving ahead with a commission or project?
Synergize. Can you find ways to participate, contribute and interact with your community?
Sharpen the Saw. Is there balance in your business and personal life? Make sure you are taking time out for other hobbies, family, exercise whatever it is you need to maintain your overall health and relationships in the long run.
Find more Franklin Covey resources at www.franklincovey.com. If you haven’t had a chance to read the book, that’s ok. There are no rules are requirements for the Book Club! I encourage you to read at your own pace. Take what you need, lose what you don’t.
I’d always love to hear your thoughts or a book recommendation at becky@artisan-advantage.com.
March’s book pick will be announced tomorrow. In the meantime, sign up for my newsletter here. I randomly select one subscriber every month to receive a free copy of the book for that month.
