It’s no secret that if you find something you love to do, that can cover your costs and is of service to others, you have found the perfect job. Many of us know this and would like our income to source to be our art but many of don’t know where to begin. Here are some ideas to get you started offering you creative works as a service that can bring home the bacon.
Local festivals
Local festivals and showcases are a great way to expand your reach and get in front of audiences looking for something of interest. Not only are they a great way to in front people primed to receive your gifts but you will also network and get new ideas from other artists and performers. These festivals are often very supportive of emerging talent and booths are often very affordable. If you are a performer, there are often budgets that provide you enough income to cover your costs. Start local go regional and with any luck you may take your show on the road. Don’t forget business cards and the value of sharing your activity on social media.
Online distribution and sales
It is now easier than ever to prepare your art and creative/performance 
services for market online. Services like Etsy, Ebay, Google Play Music, Woo commerce, Thumbtack and Craigslist are great low cost ways to begin letting people know what you have to offer. Everyday there are literally millions of people online looking for something new, things you can offer them. Once you have chosen a platform that suits your purpose a little savvy marketing will help you standout from the crowd and begin cultivating leads and closing sales. Start be promoting to your social media and web outlets and expand by cross-promoting and commissioning with more established outlets.
Live demonstrations & busking
Everyone longs to be more creative and everyone wants to be entertained and intrigued. You would be surprised how many people would stop and watch you working if only they had a chance. You might also be surprised to know so many actually value this type of experience. Buskers are a great example of how this relationship works. We’ve all seen it, an artist or performer in the street or subway doing his thing and people passing by dropping money in appreciation. His bucket may be filled with change and small denomination money but we all know large sums of money are just accumulations of the small. In most cities and populated areas there are however laws and licenses that must be obtained so do a little research and find out how to apply. You may find there is much more to this than first appeared.
Workshops & educational
There are people all over the world that are just discovering a passion for what you do. These folks are constantly seeking opportunities to learn and expand their skill sets, why not help them? Teaching classes, programs & workshops are great ways to help out doing what you love and earn a little dough. You don’t have to be an expert to offer valuable insight to the beginner so don’t worry, if you have a body of work you have experience and knowledge that would be of value to someone getting their feet wet. Start simple with a bullet point list of topics you think are relevant and valuable and soon you will find you are on your way to the development of you very own program. Once you 
have this completed put together a promotional page that can be printed and handed out, talk to friend that work in education and college professors, they will provide you with relevant info that will lead you to earning through learning. Public libraries and community centers may also be good options for hosting your workshops.
Discussion boards and forums
What I have shared here is far from the be all end all of earning through the arts. These are just ideas to get the wheels turning and piont you in a positive direction. Many more great ideas and opportunities are out there for the ones willing to explore. Take a little time each week or day and invest in cultivating and discovering opportunities for yourself.
More importantly remember, money isn’t everything, sometimes non-paid endeavors are the ones that will introduce you to a life changing connection, help you develop rapport and can establish you as a professional in the industry. Do your work, share it through as many positive outlets as possible and know, there is much more at stake than just money.
Music educator Daniel Scruggs has achieved the impossible, or seemingly so. Daniel has developed a cultural education program that has kids excited about learning. His programs are energetic and interactive presentations that allow the kids to participate and share in his wealth of knowledge and instruments, collected during his cultural explorations. Seriously, this guy is like a musical Indiana Jones!
instruments while offering deep cultural insights in a way that keeps children intrigued and captivated. As a certified Montesorri instructor and experienced musical therapist, Daniel’s unique combination of skills, experiences and talents make him a superb educator and a perfect choice for institutions seeking diverse and engaging experiences for their students. Teachers and staff love him because they know their students are getting a qualified instructor with a quality curriculum. The students love Daniel, well, because he is a pretty cool guy that loves surfing and traveling and has the kind of heart that really connects with kids.
The underlying principal to enjoying your work and your life is enjoying yourself. That means more than being carefree. This literally means enjoying the space inside your mind, heart and body, not things of the external. Think about your internal dialogue, is it polite and enjoyable or are you constantly ridiculing yourself and others? Pay close attention to this and make sure it’s enjoyable, make it fun and kind and funny. Say things to yourself you wish people would say to you. Crack the jokes you would crack with your best friend.
something is not going the way you prefer, simply assume it is going in such a way that will lead to a better outcome than you had anticipated. THIS IS THE KEY TO EVERYTHING! You don’t need to know why or how, just know that it is and in time it will be revealed. How you experience things is 100% your choice and sole responsibility, this will not only determine your happiness but also your health. Stop choosing feelings, thoughts and experiences you don’t want, simply select another feeling and do what you love with the most noble and honorable intentions and of course a sense of humor, you will never fail!
As artists we love what we do, which is AWESOME! Some people have nothing they love to do and it wreaks havoc on their life and health. However, when you love what you do, you tend to do lots of it, often too much. When we burn the candle at both ends, it is impossible to stay fresh and inspired. What we once loved becomes a drudgery and task. To stay fresh and inspired you must force yourself to break routine and engage in other activities. I tell my friends to write their own eulogy and the things that you hope will be said at your funeral are the things you need to be doing on a daily basis. Seriously try this and you will see, you are living a more fulfilled and productive life and it will show through your work.
We often take for granted the brilliance of our own inspirations after time and begin searching for something more. We look to our past works or other people and artists to see how our works size up. While this can at times be helpful, it is often more detrimental than we are aware.
Please see, you are NOT your work. Your work is simply something you do and lets be honest, there are a lot of unproductive things you can be doing so, you should be proud of all of your works. Proud and content knowing you’ve invested your time in a well intended way, to better your world or at least make it more intriguing, this in and of itself is a noble cause. Allow your art to be what it is and appreciate it for that. Serving the creative process is a noble cause and the only way progress is ever achieved. Your work is a service to those who will experience it and an example of the respect an honor you have for the gift of creativity. You are NOT your work, you are simply an instrument of inspiration dutifully serving a noble cause. In this way you not doing a service just for yourself but for humanity.
When we have expectations of outcomes, we ruin the experience. You’ve heard it said and it is true “It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey.” For many artists once the piece is created and complete, it’s all over and we are back to square one conceptualizing the next project. Realizing this will help you to understand when we are working on something, we are fulfilled and in our highest form. When we have nothing to work on, we are longing and seeking. Slow down and quite looking at the end game, keep your eye on every nuance of the process, revel in the magic of inspiration and the transformation of your work. When you enjoy and love your work it shows in the end product, focus on loving and enjoying and the results will speak for themselves.
Ok, so you’ve had a creative movement and put in some work. What’s next? Most of us at some point begin being critical as we become desensitized by our own efforts. What was once a great idea we now ridicule and take for granted.
This may sound over simplified but don’t underestimate the power of self-care and your ability to deplete your health during the creative process. Artists are notorious for self-neglect. we’ve all the seen the cliche artists smoking cigarettes, with greasy hair, drinking coffee or booze, balling up papers and throwing them in frustration. This doesn’t have to be you! Making sure you are getting at least 8 hours of sleep each night and high quality raw foods will increase not only your energy but enhance the clarity you need to make your visions reality.
quality multi-vitamin and a full spectrum mineral. Grab some grey Celtic sea salt and take a teaspoon daily with water and get lots of healthy fats, these are brain foods. If you do this, in no time your brain will be firing like never before, you will have mental clarity and begin to more effortlessly perform and create.
please reach out to us and share with us any ideas how we may support. We offer a variety of services and are willing to try something new given the right opportunity.