Successful Artists know who they are and what they Stand For
Do you know who you are and what you stand for?
If you want to sell your art, you must!
Why? Because artists are thought leaders and we are in the business of selling emotions.
We don’t sell paint stuck on canvas, musical notes hanging in the air, or moves on the dance floor.
How do I know that we are thought leaders?
Because during political revolutions we are the first to be commissioned and we are the first to be executed. Revolutions are led by the emotions evoked by thought.
Do you have unique talent and something to say to the world?
Then you must make art.
Do you want to be heard?
Then you must sell art.
Truth be told. Some artists get stuck on what they want to say to the world or how to articulate it because they don’t know really know what they feel deeply about.
This is a big problem.
Actually, it’s HUGE.
Why? Because everything stems from this, everything.
To borrow a “Commandment of Biz” from my friend Jonathan Fields, “Thou shall do EPIC Sh*t that actually matters.”
Your mission has got to really matter to you if it is ever going to matter to someone else.
MAKING Art/Making MONEY students must define their mission on the first line of their one page business plan.
Your mission must be convincing and clear before the rest of your business plan can be constructed.
Your mission is the “why” you are selling art.
The answer is not to make money. If that’s the only thing you can come up with, you’re screwed. You need to dig deeper. You can’t fake it.
The next line on the one page business plan is the “vision.” The “what” you are building.
How can you know “what” if you don’t know “why?”
Put aside your art for a moment. Think about you, not the artist but the human.
Be vulnerable. Be honest.
The answer to “why” is grounded in your deeply held values and emotions.
Your most deeply held values and mission is most often illuminated by your most painful life experiences.
Your mission statement is not just snappy copy and you cannot borrow it from someone else. Your mission is your compass.
Action step. Why do you make art?
Put art completely aside. What really pisses you off? What gives you great joy? What’s most important to you? And “why?”
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Comments (3)
Tina Amidon
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I find this 10 commandments of biz is fabulous! I have finally realized the only job/biz I want doesn’t exist and that I need to create it. I have read every one of your mentoring emails and feel this should be a wake up call for every artist. Thank you!
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Kaye
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hi,
Powerful message today, I really like it
I bought his book Uncertainty, it’s been helpful to me with creating my work habits and self care habits.
Kaye
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Carol
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I have had a mission statement for many years. It is a process much like painting. A year ago I finally came up with one that I love and it keeps me on my artistic journey. Artists often look at me funny when I say I have a mission statement and can say it easily.
I highly recommend it!
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