Issue 127

October 26, 2005

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Changing Course is dedicated to helping you:

~Live Life on Purpose
~Work at What You Love
~Follow Your Own Road

Inside Today's Issue

Featured Article

Business Owners Offer "Been There" Advice on What It Takes to Change Course

Featured Resource

How to Feel As Bright and Capable Combo

The View From the Other Side

Bonus Article

The Myth of the “Starving Artist” How to Make Money from Your Art

Upcoming Workshops & Teleclasses

Resources for A Change

Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. ~ William J. Bryan

Business Owners Offer "Been There" Advice on What It Takes to Change Course:
Part 3 of 3

By Valerie Young

If you're thinking about becoming your own boss, learning from small business owners is one of the best ways to learn the ropes. In this last of this three part series of tips, you'll hear from four more of the inspiring entrepreneurs who so generously agreed to speak to the participants at the recent Work at What You Love workshop.  

Get By With a Little Help from Your Friends

Everyone likes to talk about the "starving artist." While it may not always be easy to turn your creative pursuits into income, working artist Bonnie Druschel is living proof that it is possible. But it wasn't always easy. At her lowest moments – those times when she'd say to herself, "This will never work" or "Who do you think you are?" Bonnie says her husband Tom was always there to cheer her on. And when she didn't have the money to travel to New York to attend her first art licensing trade show, it was her best friend Ann who stepped forward to lend her the money.

Then there's former British merchant marine Ed Cothey. After he fell ill, his mother-in-law gave him his first computer so he'd have something to do while he was recovering. This small gesture of support launched his first small business venture as a website designer. One thing led to another. Because the support he received had spawned his entrepreneurial spirit, a casual visit to a llama farm awoke in Ed an interest in weaving which ultimately led him to his current career as a weaver and fiber farm owner.

Former nursing home administrator Francis Mosea's life also changed largely as a result of the support of family and friends. But he didn't always welcome this support. It began with his wife telling him he was grinding my teeth at night. Despite this and other signs that his high stress job was taking its toll, he refused to listen to his body.

Then friends began urging him to sell his black eyed pea bean cakes, a delicacy he'd learned how to make from his mother back in Nigeria. But Francis says, "I was still firmly entrenched in my comfort zone." So he'd roll his eyes and remind his supporters that he was after all an executive – not a cook. Looking back, Francis realizes that wearing a suit and tie and having reached a certain level of success meant a lot to him because, as a Black man in America, he'd experienced first hand others making assumptions about who or what he was, most of which were not positive.

Then 911 happened. If it were not for a fussy daughter making his brother late for his job at the World Trade Center, Francis says his brother probably wouldn't be here today. It was this wake up call that got Francis to really listen to his wife, his friends, members of his church, his body, and his heart. In just a few short years, Francis has been able to assemble an impressive list of accounts with restaurants, gourmet shops, grocery stores, and colleges throughout New England. Today, Francis tells would-be business owners that "sometimes the best ideas are right in front of you. If," he adds, "you're willing to step outside your comfort zone."

Small is Beautiful or the Great Time vs. Money Debate

Potter Linda Siska likes to keep things simple. She doesn't even own a computer and only recently got an answering machine. "It's hard to stay small," says Linda, "because when you do, the prevailing assumption is that you're not successful." But, then again, that all depends on your definition of "success."

Despite pressure from friends, customers, store owners, and many of her fellow craftspeople to get a website, professional potter Linda resists. It's not like she doesn't know she could earn more money if people could order online. But to Linda, money is not the most important thing.

A guiding principle central to her life is what she calls minimalism. By leading a life of low consumption, by for example, joining a local food coop, repairing broken items rather than tossing them, and buying many things used rather than new – she and her partner Waino, a dairy farm hand and active conservationist, are able to keep their expenses low and their enjoyment of life high. It's not about being miserly. In fact, when you measure their level of contentment, Linda and Waino live one of the richest lives of anyone I know.

By intentionally keeping her business small and avoiding the kind of time commitment that a website and staying on top of the onslaught of email requires, Linda gets to do things she enjoys. One of these passions is gardening. Each spring, Linda plants an enormous vegetable garden. The fruits of her labor go a long way in providing her and Waino food for much of the winter. Rather than squeeze in her planting each May, Linda made the decision a few years ago that she'd give herself a full three weeks off to devote entirely to getting her garden in. When was the last time you were able to take three weeks off for a labor of love?

Not only does she take off most of May, but since she's her own boss, Linda also takes the entire months of August and January as well. During her summer break, you'll find her reading, swimming, hiking, and relaxing at a secluded lake in Maine. In the winter, she spends her days cross country skiing and getting caught up on household projects after putting in a busy fall season stocking up pots for sale during the holidays.

Francis Mosea also thinks small is beautiful. He could distribute his Nigerian black bean cakes nationally but he says, "Like Linda said, there are benefits to staying small. I'm having too much fun making them and marketing them myself."

Staying small also allows Francis to enjoy more time with his family. For example, he took the entire month of August off for a three week vacation in Florida, something he says he could never done when he was in his corporate job, or if he decided to go big. "Life," says Francis, "is short."

Fail Forward

Bonnie Druschel is the first one to tell you that success is rarely an overnight thing. She began by telling the audience that Dr. Suess published his first book, And to Think That It Happened on Mulberry Street in 1937 – after 27 rejections. Twenty years later, he published his two block busters, Cat in the Hat and How The Grinch that Stole Christmas.

It didn't take Bonnie twenty years to succeed, but it did take a while. In 1987 she was working as a secretary in a Fortune 500 company. Despite a wake up call reminding her of her true dream of being an artist, it took another three years before she went back to school to earn her BFA. When she graduated in 1994, Bonnie began making her own line of jewelry. She landed some accounts but still it wasn't exactly what she wanted to be doing. To earn money, she continued to do temp work before going to work for a woman who designed inspirational posters. That's when she discovered the world of art licensing.

Despite those inner voices saying, "I'm not good enough" or "Who do you think you are?" Bonnie persisted. Today her business is thriving due in large part to a licensing agreement she landed with a giftware manufacturer. The company featured her artwork on a 33 piece product line that included mugs, votives, magnets, key chains, gift bags, gift totes, and jewelry pins, many of which feature inspirational sayings coined by Bonnie. Bonnie talked about what it takes to get your artwork licensed and how, one step at a time, she made her own dreams come true!

Bonnie Drushel passed on some great advice: Be patient, start small, keep your day job and build your business on the side, and to keep your momentum going, take one step every day. If I had to pick one message to zero in on, it would be that pursing a dream is a process of trial and error. Or as Bonnie put it, "It's okay to fail. Just be sure to fail forward."

Let those words sink in for a moment… fail forward. Despite having talked and written about the topic of failure at length, I'd never heard it put quite this way. The words have a certain kind of energy and imagery to them – don't you think? What would it mean for you to fail forward? Failing forward is all about forward movement. With action comes trial and error, success and failure. As the Soichiro Honda, founder of Honda Motor Corporation said, "Success is 99 percent failure." And look what happened with his dream!

If you want to learn more about the world of art licensing see this week's Featured Resource. To see Bonnie's new line of inspiration jewelry (also a licensed product) visit her virtual studio at SundazeStudios.com

About the Author

Off the beaten path career counselor, Valerie Young, abandoned her corporate cubicle to become the Dreamer in Residence at ChangingCourse.com, offering free resources to help you discover your life mission and live it. An expert on the Imposter Syndrome, she's presented her How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are program to over 30,000 people.

Find more articles written by Valerie at ChangingCourse.com/articles/

All men who have achieved great things have been great dreamers.
~ Orison Swett Marden

Featured Resource

What Every Woman (and Man)
Needs to Know About Competence, the
Impostor Syndrome, and the Art of Winging It

How to Feel As Bright and Capable As Everyone Seems to Think You Are
Handbook and CD Combo

Have you ever done a bang up job and while everyone is patting you on the back you hear yourself saying – “Phew, I was lucky this time,” or “Actually it wasn’t as good as it could have been.”

If you’ve ever felt that your success is a fluke… if at any moment you’ll be uncovered for a fraud, join the club. Valerie Young is one of millions who has experienced these feelings. Is it insecurity? Lack of confidence? No. It’s called the Impostor Syndrome…

And at workshops across the country Valerie has helped more than 20,000 people overcome the anxiety to embrace all of their accomplishments and truly enjoy them. Now, for the first time ever she’s distilled her life-changing workshop down into a program that can help everyone who’s ever doubted their competence…

You’ll discover how to own your successes and build on them… erase the stress of taking risks… stop beating yourself up over every little mistake … and finally see yourself as the bright, capable person you really are! You can learn more about this phenomenal program and save $10 on for this combo by clicking ChangingCourse.com/cmd.php?ad=173339
 

Don't be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated; you can't cross a chasm in two small jumps. ~ David Lloyd George

Good timber does not grow with ease. The stronger the wind the stronger the trees.
~ Williard Marriott

The Changing Course Newsletter
Copyright 2005
Lisa Tarrant, Editor
Valerie Young, Publisher
info@changingcourse.com
www.ChangingCourse.com
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Montague, MA 01351

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Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use. ~ Earl Nightingale

Bonus Article

The Myth of the “Starving Artist” How to Make Money from Your Art

By Valerie Young

President Harry S. Truman offered this bit of parental wisdom during a television interview, "I have found that the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it.”

How many of you were encouraged to go after your early dreams? I know one kid who isn’t. Tom is the ten-year-old son of an acquaintance. Tom loves two things: drawing and baseball. When I spotted a particularly nice piece of Tom's artwork featured on his family’s refrigerator, I told young Tom that maybe he would grow up to be a famous artist.

You would think Tom's mother would have been beaming with pride. After all, I'd just paid her son a compliment. Instead though, she shot me a disapproving look and said loud enough for Tom to hear, “We’re trying not to encourage him,” explaining, “there’s no money in art.”

Pablo Picasso once said, “"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Artists, performers, musicians and other creative types are routinely discouraged from pursuing their passion into adulthood. After meeting a local artist named Bonnie Druschel, I’ve learned that this whole “starving” artist mindset is largely a myth. Not only do many artists make a decent enough living from their art, lots of them make an excellent living. How? Through a relatively little-known phenomenon known as “art licensing.”

About eight years ago, I ran a course sponsored by a local bank on taking your business to the next level, and Bonnie was one of the participants. She may not have been a starving artist, but she was definitely a struggling one.

Fast forward five years. I ran into Bonnie at a local restaurant where she was celebrating landing a contract with a manufacturer to license her art for their product line. The company paid Bonnie to use her art on a line of gift bags, coffee mugs, key chains, votive candles, and refrigerator magnets. That was just the beginning. This past year, Bonnie negotiated with a jewelry manufacturer to license her images and inspirational messages.

Some of you may recognize Bonnie’s work. She generously allowed me to use it as the official image for the Making Dreams Happen workshop (where she also shared her remarkable journey as a guest speaker). Today I’m proud to display Bonnie’s inspiring image on the cover of the Making Dreams Happen CD set. To see more of Bonnie’s work “stop by” her studio at SundazeStudios.com

Bonnie made both of her licensing connections at a big tradeshow called Surtex (Surtex.com). Held twice a year at the Javits Convention Center in New York City, this event is a key place where artists come together with manufacturers who are looking for art to adorn their products. The spring show is probably the best place for a new artist to start out. Begin as Bonnie did just by attending, walking the floor and seeing what it’s all about.

What is Exactly Is Art Licensing?

Maybe I should back up and explain exactly what art licensing is. Or better yet, I’ll let art licensing expert Michael Woodward explain it. Michael describes art licensing as “the business of leasing a copyrighted or trademarked art work by means of contractual agreement (a license), for a specified product, promotion, or service for a specific time period, in an agreed upon territory, for an agreed upon fee or royalty.” Walk through your local Target or Sears and start observing the images on various products. Everything with a design on it was created by an artist – the vast majority of whom are independent and have licensed their art to the manufacturer.

How Much Money Can You Earn By Licensing Your Art?

How much you earn varies depending on where your art appears and on how many items are sold. The royalty for images appearing on T-shirts ranges from 8-10%, posters range from 7-10%, mugs pay a 5% royalty, and royalties on limited editions will net you between 10-15% of sales. Product sales from Bonnie’s first licensing agreement were $800,000 of which Bonnie earned 10% or $80,000. Over the past 30 years, artist, licensing guru, and course developer Michael Woodward has licensed over $600 million in retail goods. You do the math.

Michael sent me the complete The Licensing Course to review, and I was genuinely impressed. The course includes a 200+ page manual, a DVD of an 80-minute seminar presented to hundreds of artists and crafts people wanting to learn about marketing and promoting their work, and an invaluable guide called Art Licensing 101: Selling Reproductive Rights to Your Artwork for Profit.

A Success Story

When she was young, Mary too was told that being an artist was not a realistic way to make a living. Not one to be easily discouraged, Mary says, “I believed in myself and now I’m living my dream.” Is she ever!

In 1977, Mary’s dream was to illustrate children’s books. So she mustered up her courage and headed to New York to show her portfolio to some publishers. When one art director suggested she try her hand at illustrating greeting cards, Mary says she was “kind of crushed.” But she took his advice, and a few months later, made her first licensing deal by selling three card designs for $150 and signed a short-term contract with another greeting card company.

The list of Mary’s successes since then is impressive indeed. She saw her original dream of illustrating children’s books come true when, in 2001, her debut book The Night Before Christmas spent 11 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list and then went on to become an animated film. She also launched a national decorating and lifestyle magazine called Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion and Mary Engelbreit Studios now has licensing contracts with dozens of manufacturers, who have produced more than 6,500 products. Sales total nearly $100 million annually. Now what was Tom’s mother saying about there not being any money in art?

After reading through the entire Licensing Course, talking with Bonnie, and seeing the phenomenal success of people like Mary Engelbreit, I’m a convert to art licensing as a viable way for artists to earn a part- or full-time living that allows them to do what they most love – make art.

You don’t have to be a “fine artist” to have your work licensed. Some of Bonnie’s work is done with markers. And now that you know about art licensing, there’s no reason to not earn a living as an artist. “Proper timing is overrated,” says Mary Engelbreit. “There’s always a reason not to do things – it’s too expensive, or it’s not the best time, or this, or that – but I believe there are wonderful opportunities sailing by, and you have to be ready to grab them.”

To read my complete review of The Licensing Course, visit ChangingCourse.com/artlicensing.htm

About the Author

Off the beaten path career counselor, Valerie Young, abandoned her corporate cubicle to become the Dreamer in Residence at ChangingCourse.com, offering free resources to help you discover your life mission and live it. An expert on the Imposter Syndrome, she's presented her How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are program to over 30,000 people.

Find more articles written by Valerie at ChangingCourse.com/articles/

The greatest secret of success in life is for a person to be ready when their opportunity comes. ~ Benjamin Disraeli

Upcoming Workshops & Teleclasses

Changing Course Newsletter Archives

Did you know that the 126 previous issues of the newsletter are available for your review? If you're looking for information about a certain topic, search the archives and the ChangingCourse.com website simultaneously to find helpful articles and resources about a variety of topics. Visit us at ChangingCourseArchives.com

Resources for A Change

Be a Motivational Speaker – and Get Free Presentation Skills Training

Do you dream of being a professional speaker but need more experience? The Making a Difference organization is actively recruiting people to be trained to deliver motivational presentations to high school and college students. You'll receive first-class speaker training in a small group setting, receive $100-$250 per presentation, and gain significant speaking experience in front of large audiences. Learn more at Speaker.MakingCollegeCount.com