Communication Styles for Creative People

Creative right brain people communicated differently than left-brain business people. A right brain creative person uses language in a different way and for different purposes. A creative person uses the spirit of the word while a left-brain person uses the exact meaning of a word. A businessperson is usually more of a left-brain thinker who uses logic to make decisions while a creative person is more likely to make an emotional decision. When a creative person talks to a businessperson, it is important to think of communication styles. Communication styles can effect the business decisions that are made regarding your career. 

A creative person may need to think more like a businessperson in order to make the best publishing deal. When you are creating a contract with a publisher, you will need to leave your personal emotions at home while sharing your passion for the work. You want to sell your product but you do not want to take suggestions or rejection to heart. Publishers are making a business deal and the bottom line is how much will it cost to produce, will it sell, and will they make a profit. The creative person will have to sell their abilities, talents, and proven record of accomplishment in meeting deadlines. The publisher is not going to allow too many excuses for not having work done on time because for them it is a business deal and not a personal transaction.  

The creative person can get the best deal if they are informed of business practices, so they may want to read the latest news on publishing and read several business books. The best deal can be made if you estimate how well similar books have sold, approximately how much it cost to make, what the author was paid, and how much profit there was. You can find out the cost of publishing a book by calling publishing houses and asking appropriate questions.  

Remember that business people use the exact meaning of a word and not the spirit of the word; when you are making a deal, think about the words you use and their exact meaning. Be alert to any communication difficulties in the beginning and correct them immediately. A businessperson is thinking of profit and financial success and not the emotions you have when you sell your first art book or novel. I hope this article helps you to think about communication styles before you make a deal with a publisher.

If you are looking for Creativity Coaching then email me at terricreativity@yahoo.com  for a discounted price during the month of September 2008. Act now before it is too late.

Artist Day Jobs

Making a living as an artist is not easy and many artists maintain a Day Job to be financially secure. The important aspect to keep in mind is how much energy your day job will contribute to your creative life or take away from it. Some day jobs can increase our creativity by providing us with ideas to express while others become emotionally and physically draining. Day jobs can drain us of the energy we need to create ideas, painting, or sketches. 

Day jobs are often an evil necessity, which we use to help pay the bills, provide us with medical insurance, and savings. Day jobs can provide us with positive experiences including contacts, which may lead to other contacts, art shows, or a chance to teach a class on the weekends. Artist can use them as a branch in their networking system.  

If you are a salesperson, waiter, server, or a house painter, find out what your customers their profession is, and what their creative needs are, and what they participate in during their spare time. Perhaps, in a causal conversation while building a relationship with your customer you will find a hidden lead to a new gallery, a new job, or an art show. Building a relationship is like putting money in the bank, the more you build, the more you can count on or withdraw from when you need to market and sell your work. Carefully listening to the people around you will help you build positive relationships and build contacts.  

If you work in a creative field during the day, your inner well can fill up with ideas for your own art while you are creating work for them. You may be able to receive discounts on art supplies, graphic art projects, brochures, business cards, or other printing needs.  

When you choose your day job take a piece of paper, divide it in half, and write the pluses on one side and the negatives on the other side. When the pluses out number the negatives then you may have found the right day job for you. I hope you can cut back on the hours you spend at your day job in a few years and invest more time in your creative life.

If you are looking for a Creativity Coach to help you brainstorm, increase your self-confidence to approach publishers or galleries then email me at terricreativity.com for a discount price during September 2008. Act now before it is too late for a discount.

Creative Job Hunting Tips

Creative Job Hunting Tips

 

Employers are now receiving hunders of job applications or resumes for each job they post on job bulletins or in the newspaper; therefore, each of us needs to be creative and stand out among the applications. The perspective applicant needs to market and sell their talents and abilities. I decided to engage in a marketing experiment because it is an employers market and I needed to find a unique way to grab an employer’s attention. I took my brief resume format and created a brochure with the information in it. I also discovered that in office supply stores you could find magnetic sheets to print a business card on. Most people will take the magnet and put it on their filing cabinet in their office. This gives the job hunter the advantage of being notice in the future even if they do not have the right job for you now. You can come up with a special slogan and use bright colors to make it stand out. The brochure and magnetic business card can be created using publisher or Microsoft word. I placed my brochure, magnetic business card, a regular business card, a cover letter, and a three page resume in an envelope. I also created a thank you card and then added Magic Cards. Magic Cards are a deck of trick playing cards. For my slogan, I wrote “Hire Terri and watch the magic begin.”  I then suggested they take a break from their stressful job and have some fun with their team using the Magic Cards.

  

Another creative job hunting technique, which is presently being used, is to create a web site about yourself, your talents or abilities, and add a video resume and a written resume. Some employers are looking for web sites for perspective talent employees. There are several free web sites and I have used freewebs.com, which does not cost anything and is easy to use if you follow their directions. All you need to do is create two to three pages about yourself and then you can up load your website free on to search engines by following the directions. If you are afraid of computers or creating web sites then ask your teenager to create it for you.

 

 

Remember that your job is to market yourself to prospective employers, that your first line of action is a cover letter highlighting what you can do for the employer, and then create a professional resume. Read the employer’s advertisement, underline their action words and keywords, and use as many action words and keywords as you can in your resume and cover letter. If you want to be creative, try a brochure, magnetic business cards, or even a web site. Think about how you can stand out from the crowd. If you have tried everything else and still do not find a job then try to increase your experience by volunteering a few hours a week, which will help you network with people and find a job. In addition, if you have a dream and want to fill it then try writing a grant and create the job you want. I wish you the best of luck trying to find your dream job. You can forward any questions or comments to terricreativity@yahoo.com. Terri is a private Life Coach and Creativity Coach.