( 
)Many of us are mad working fanatics with OCD tendencies...
The clicking sound of our laptops and it's artificial glow jarring our loved ones awake from their sound sleep. Piles of papers in "organized chaos" sitting patiently on our tables, are getting in the way of family dinner. Even when we get a little time off, we manage to find something new to do. Vacations are mostly spent checking our blackberries (or iPhones you silly tech junkies!) at the pool, or firing up our comps to do some "quick" work in the hotel room. God forbid if we leave any of our "tools" at home!
It's business 12-18 hrs per day, maybe 24/7 on the hour, every hour.
I can hear someone telling me, "You don't know what I GO THROUGH! I have to do EVERYTHING in this business!"
I hear ya. I do. I really do.
On top of creating art, I take the photos, do the editing, web design and graphic design for all of my sites, campaigns, marketing, auction planning, blogging, shipping, customer service, bookkeeping, errands, and so forth. *A good example of some hard-working artists is EC Stewart and her wonderful husband, of Creative Goddess blog. They have an exhaustive list of work they do on their own. And I mean, they do EVERYTHING!
According to the US News, being a small-business owner is one of the most OVERRATED careers. It's one of the most difficult things in the world to take on. Alot of blood, sweat, tears, and money to get something up and running, in hopes that not only will it work, but that it will be enough just to pay the bills!
So, normally, we artists/art business owners are a one-man show, doing all of the work and on top of that, providing a hand-crafted product/art that has to come from some place within ourselves. In order for that to take place, we must possess great creative, mental, and physical energy and inspiration to do so! It's not as simple as simply putting together some everyday product to place on the shelf. This is something that has to be high quality, unique, attractive, and sellable. The irony! Art that is not only unique and quality, but something you can SELL! Sometimes great art isn't meant to be "sellable".
So here is where we begin our dilemna...
Self-representing artists probably already have aLOT on their plate:
-family/friends
-work/school
-community/church work
-home responsibilities/chores
+ADD+ that to these 3 loaded tasks:
-business management
-business production
-business marketing
Is there anywhere left in our entire being to create!?
Finding our center is about finding the energy, inspiration, and emotion to create the art we are selling. We aren't a factory popping out paintings everyday. We are creating art that is going to last, in whatever form or function that is meant for your work. The question is, How do we find that center? How do we remain true to our art, remain inspired to create amidst all the new work we must do to promote and offer that art? It's heavy sometimes, but it's possible.
You will find your center.
Ways to Keep From Overworking and Stressing Yourself Out:
-RELAX - go to your peaceful place. take a bath. do some yoga. exercise. do things that are going to release that stress and restore you, not contribute. I really don't believe shopping is really "therapy" girls. All the driving and searching is NOT relaxing. You will see what I mean if you try it. I've found it only complicates the stress.
-HAVE FUN - do something that doesn't make you lethargic mentally. give your brain a rest. all that work and mental exercise you do each day is tiring and can cause you to burn out, break down, become depressed. do something that doesn't require you to think!
-RECONNECT - spend time with people that make you happy, that encourage you and inspire you. keep connected to the human race! we tend to lose touch with humanity through all this work and technology.
-FORGET - leave your cell phone at home for a day and don't even THINK about picking up that paperwork. If you keep your workdays organized, you should be able to let go of work when you are at home, or away from the office, enjoying life. Remember what it was like to live without all that junk and forget about working, for once!
The reason many of us chose to own a business rather than work for one was for that freedom
to NOT work when we wanted to, and ENJOY LIFE!
The clicking sound of our laptops and it's artificial glow jarring our loved ones awake from their sound sleep. Piles of papers in "organized chaos" sitting patiently on our tables, are getting in the way of family dinner. Even when we get a little time off, we manage to find something new to do. Vacations are mostly spent checking our blackberries (or iPhones you silly tech junkies!) at the pool, or firing up our comps to do some "quick" work in the hotel room. God forbid if we leave any of our "tools" at home!
It's business 12-18 hrs per day, maybe 24/7 on the hour, every hour.
I can hear someone telling me, "You don't know what I GO THROUGH! I have to do EVERYTHING in this business!"
I hear ya. I do. I really do.
On top of creating art, I take the photos, do the editing, web design and graphic design for all of my sites, campaigns, marketing, auction planning, blogging, shipping, customer service, bookkeeping, errands, and so forth. *A good example of some hard-working artists is EC Stewart and her wonderful husband, of Creative Goddess blog. They have an exhaustive list of work they do on their own. And I mean, they do EVERYTHING!
According to the US News, being a small-business owner is one of the most OVERRATED careers. It's one of the most difficult things in the world to take on. Alot of blood, sweat, tears, and money to get something up and running, in hopes that not only will it work, but that it will be enough just to pay the bills!
So, normally, we artists/art business owners are a one-man show, doing all of the work and on top of that, providing a hand-crafted product/art that has to come from some place within ourselves. In order for that to take place, we must possess great creative, mental, and physical energy and inspiration to do so! It's not as simple as simply putting together some everyday product to place on the shelf. This is something that has to be high quality, unique, attractive, and sellable. The irony! Art that is not only unique and quality, but something you can SELL! Sometimes great art isn't meant to be "sellable".
So here is where we begin our dilemna...
Self-representing artists probably already have aLOT on their plate:
-family/friends
-work/school
-community/church work
-home responsibilities/chores
+ADD+ that to these 3 loaded tasks:
-business management
-business production
-business marketing
Is there anywhere left in our entire being to create!?
Finding our center is about finding the energy, inspiration, and emotion to create the art we are selling. We aren't a factory popping out paintings everyday. We are creating art that is going to last, in whatever form or function that is meant for your work. The question is, How do we find that center? How do we remain true to our art, remain inspired to create amidst all the new work we must do to promote and offer that art? It's heavy sometimes, but it's possible.
You will find your center.
Ways to Keep From Overworking and Stressing Yourself Out:
-RELAX - go to your peaceful place. take a bath. do some yoga. exercise. do things that are going to release that stress and restore you, not contribute. I really don't believe shopping is really "therapy" girls. All the driving and searching is NOT relaxing. You will see what I mean if you try it. I've found it only complicates the stress.
-HAVE FUN - do something that doesn't make you lethargic mentally. give your brain a rest. all that work and mental exercise you do each day is tiring and can cause you to burn out, break down, become depressed. do something that doesn't require you to think!
-RECONNECT - spend time with people that make you happy, that encourage you and inspire you. keep connected to the human race! we tend to lose touch with humanity through all this work and technology.
-FORGET - leave your cell phone at home for a day and don't even THINK about picking up that paperwork. If you keep your workdays organized, you should be able to let go of work when you are at home, or away from the office, enjoying life. Remember what it was like to live without all that junk and forget about working, for once!
The reason many of us chose to own a business rather than work for one was for that freedom
to NOT work when we wanted to, and ENJOY LIFE!
Guide created: 06/12/08 (updated 08/11/08)
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