How to Start Your Own Creative Business

The revision of my business plan book, Passion, Plan, Profit, is out!

The book teaches you how to start a creative business. You can check it out here.

We have new tools to help us start a creative business in 2020

In this version of the book, I updated some of the examples. In 2009 we were still talking about music CDs, cold-calling businesses was still do-able, if unpleasant, and social media advertising was complicated and expensive. How times have changed!

I rewrote the entire marketing chapter. Marketing tools are 100% easier to understand and cheaper to use. Tools to track your numbers are also much easier and cheaper.

And I gathered a new list of resources. You can download them here.

We Have Met The Problem And It Is...

I’ve worked with a couple hundred people since the book came out in 2009, and one thing comes through every time. Even though this is the golden (or maybe platinum or diamond) age to start a business--selling your art, making a day job, or just making a business out of an idea you have has never been easier--you’ll face the identical obstacle that has not changed.

Yourself.

Knowing Yourself is the Essential First Step

That’s the primary reason I updated the resource section. To give you tools to understand your strengths, and especially come face-to-face with your weaknesses. Your own human-ness, while your greatest strength, is also your greatest limitation. It’s good to make friends.

Are You Ready to Start Something?

If you are ready to start selling your art, download my cheatsheet: Keep Calm & Sell Something. Follow the directions in there, and tell someone else you’re doing it so you can be accountable to them.

If you want to make yourself a day job (which means starting a business), get Passion, Plan, Profit, and find someone, or better, three other someones, and go through the book together. The book tells you how to work in a group or in pairs, and you can download the worksheets in the book here.

If you want guidance, book a 15 minute chat with me here and I’ll get you pointed in the right direction.

But first, get acquainted with your key employee. Yourself.

Your work matters. Your art matters. In the comments below, let me know how you'll be getting your art out there.