What it Takes to be a Successful Artist - 25 Minute Read.

Some times it's hard to admit that you've been lied to. Earning currency or money as an artist is completely possible. Start off strong by learning 3 practical skills in order to set yourself dimensions above the rest.

In our rapidly STEM ( not steem ) based world, art has been getting less and less credit, however, art is incredibly important.

Artists in america contribute 763.6 billion to the economy. Apparently more than agriculture. Which is wild.

That's near a trillion dollars.

763000000000, that's how much cash is in this industry, just in America.

https://www.arts.gov/news/2018/arts-contribute-more-760-billion-us-economy

So, don't think as an artist there is no money available. Cause there is. And this probably doesn't include under the table money that's made through free lance work.

This is JUST for what the government has recorded.

I will be teaching you in this article how to follow your dreams while getting paid.

I am a great person to learn this information from because I lived it. This isn't from some text book that I'm regurgitating. I am saying a lot of this from experience. I know that these tips will work.

Here's a bit about me in as few words as possible.

I am an Artist, born and raised in Seattle. Lived in extreme poverty most of my life, 4000 dollars a year with a family of 4. Seattle median income is 81000 dollars. Art has always led me toward success. ( and I discovered entrepreneurship through art, but we'll get to that a bit later)

I went off to college to network (be around like minded people), be in the forest and flirt. 🤷‍♂️

I barely did my work the way the teacher wanted and got all of my credits. I spent most of my free time studying entrepreneurship and film skills. Including time that should've been used to focus on schoolwork.

I don't recommend this method for folks who are trying to become doctors, lawyers, etc.

I am utilizing college in a very different way then most people.

Anyway, long story short. I ended up learning film skills. Got hired onto the college's production team - it's a competitive job.

Many people on campus have told me "it's the best job" and I would agree, compared to sitting at a desk and answering phone calls ALL the time. During the precious younger years of my life when I should be exploring and utilizing my curiousity.

I had it good. I also got lucky because I had a lot of friends that already worked there so they brought me on early.

I realized that the folks that were supposed to be my mentors were jaded and hated their jobs, so I left. Except one person. His name was Patrick, he was like a happy little red haired elf that came from under a rainbow. He was also the youngest person, and the system hasn't fully wrapped it's tentacles around him and sucked the life out of him.

I am an optimist and visionary. If there is injustice I seek to change it, it's in my blood.

If I'm around jaded and bored with life people. I leave. I know that in the long run, being around an environment with driven folks will always pay off more then the risk of leaving a situation.

My best teachers are teachers that are either entrepreneurs, spiritual folks, Children ( children are so wise! especially when their social conditioning hasn't kicked in yet), and/or social justice leaders.

Institutional teachers never inspired me to go beyond and challenge myself. Because they are stuck in a system themselves. It's hard to teach about freedom when your mind has been put in a cage.

If you're young and you're told that you're naive for being a visionary and/or optimist. Keep doing what you're doing. It WILL pay off. Don't let your spirit get broken. We need more folks that have dreams in the world, cause that's how change is made. That's how the world is innovated.

I haven't dropped out of college. I created a class for myself that made it so I didn't have to be on campus in order to get credits and I left back to Seattle, the land of opportunity compared to Olympia.

I was VERY close to dropping out of collage because I was basically a weirdo among weirdo's. However, I know that a degree is a nice addition to my resume. EVEN THOUGH at this point, I know that I could get a job, based on how nice my resume is. It's just good to have that additional line of defense.

Moving back to my home city in Seattle was one of the best choices I made in my life so far. And the most risky. Because Seattle is expensive, and I didn't have a job when I moved back here.

As soon as I left small town Olympia and entered back into the semi-big city. My opportunities have exploded and the risk paid off.

Now I am a KEXP video intern.

KEXP is a radio station in Seattle that has become the gold standard of radio.

A guy walked in the other day and told our main audio producer that he models his radio station after KEXP.

And he is not the only one who has said that!

KEXP has become sort of like the Hollywood of the public radio world except KEXP is a non-profit and hollywood is a business that is definitely for profit.

The video team is what gave KEXP some of it's visible fame, with it's YouTube channel at 1.4 million subscribers.

I get to work directly with these entrepreneurs who started the video channel for KEXP, even though, they probably wouldn't admit to being entrepreneurs. They are pretty humble and film because they love it, not because it's getting them a bunch of money, or fame.

https://www.youtube.com/user/kexpradio

KEXP is also a great artist hub. A lot of my co workers are eager to connect me with their friends - which are among some of the top local talent right now.

I also get to meet a lot of local Seattle artists and artists from around the world. YAY networking.

Overall, this is one of the best opportunities a young entrepreneur and artist like myself could ask for. Especially because I come from a place of extreme poverty. I was able to break out of that cycle.

At the end of the day I consider myself very successful.

I'm among the few and fortunate young artists that are getting paid to do what we love. With money, opportunities and respect.

Story time is over now, here is how I got here and here is how you can find success in your own life regardless of your age or circumstances.

1. Clarity.

It's time to get as clear as a brand new window. Yeah sounds cheesy, but what's clearer than a brand new window? Air? I mean, with pollution... I don't know.

Ok how about the air on a mountain top. It's time to get as clear as the air on a mountain top. Without clouds. Or fog. Or snow. Just a basic good ol' fashioned mountain.

moving on..

First thing's first. YOU NEED TO KNOW WHAT KIND OF ARTIST YOU ARE.

Are you a painter? Digital Painter? Classical painter? Public artist that paint's on old warehouses? Illegal graffiti artist?
Synthesizer designer? Found object's sculptor? A chef that focuses highly on presentation? A busker in the streets? An indie hip hop artist? THE LIST GOES ON, and ON, and ON.

Once you decide what kind of artist you are. It's time to carve out a niche within that category.

Are you... a videographer that only shoots at night? A party photography that specializes in house parties and the underground? A commercial sound designer and audio engineer?

If you're just like, I'm a "photographer" or a "musician" and just starting off, you are setting yourself up to be forgettable.

There are million's of artists that are pursuing wide category niche's such as music, film, video, theatre. That's way too big!

If you lived back in the day when people used these

Giant machine's maybe you could have gotten away with being just a "photographer".

This is worth being said. If you're like me and you can't choose just one niche. You have to become a master integrator. You need to learn how to integrate all of your interests together in way that's is digestible by other people.

It will be easier if you focus on one thing such as gay wedding photography, or recording yourself singing to hummingbirds ( this is definitely more of a passion project )

If you enjoy shooting gay weddings, but you also really enjoy vintage photography and sound effects. You can integrate all of that together and become THAT person who make's those really nostalgic slide show's that can take people back to the 80's with wild cinematic sound effects while also being coined as progressive then everyone with a heart will love you.

Or you can become the sculptor who applies their sculpting skills to fashion design. Next thing you know you may be designing couture for the runway. Or collectibles for museums.

Next step in the clarification process is to recognize who your audience is and be where your audience is going to be.

A.K.A Networking.

Have a way to communicate who you are to your audience in a way that sticks. Like dog hair. Onto everything.

A.K.A strategy

You need to know your audience inside and out. Who will be engaging with your art? What do they eat? where do they sleep? who do they F....

Follow on instagram. What do you think I was going to say..

Where do they hangout? what do they do to relax? Just get to know this person like y'all are besties ( youngin speech for best friends) (Youngin is old speech for young)🤔

You need to know who your audience is.

How do they dress? Are they hip? Artsy? wear flannels everyday? Dress in a business suit and tie? No shoes? Leather straps? Do they shop at high end boutiques? Thrift shops? hand me downs?

How old are they? Who are their friends? What are their aspirations and goals in life? did they go to college?

By answering these questions, repeatedly, throughout your career you will curate a brand that matters.

What you want to do, is get really good at shooting your arrows right on the target.

A lot of marketers will try to share their content with anybody with eyes. Not everyone with eyes cares about the organic grass fed biodegradable wooden spatulas. What you would want to do is market to people who cook and care about the earth.

This can be applied to art. The amount of energy you spend depends on how relevant the person is that your energy is being spent on.

If your art is of embroidered hills and valley's maybe you wouldn't want to try and market it to a self proclaimed "City kid" who would literally bring their whole entire house with them camping.

Vice versa. If you make trendy sneakers or fancy diamond necklaces. Folks on the country side may be less inclined to buy it.

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When you're an artist you are a steward of culture. You are playing with the human spirit. This is why art is incredibly important. In a lot of ways, and for a lot of people, it can be a direct connection with god. Or promote feeling's of elevated consciousness.

Art has a way with communicating directly to something inside of us that words and reason doesn't do.

1. NETWORK

sings Go out and make some friends. Don't - be - a - creep. Be authentic. Don't view people as dollar signs. Be genuine

song over

Are you shy?

It's time to get un shy and gain confidence.

I used to be EXTREMELY shy.

I got un shy by taking small steps outside of my comfort zone, slowly over time I started to gain confidence.

__

It's no surprise! you have to go out and meet some people.

Just like with your audience. You got to be clear on the type of people you want to meet and the ideal place's you have to go to meet them.

If you're an independent music artist. You need to go to the shows of the independent music artists of your town. And introduce yourself to those artists. Even better, offer to take their photo's. Do a little editing. And send the photo's a few days later.

Learn how to read body language and learn basic people skills. You can find these things using google. Or even steemit! The more you learn, the better you'll get. So just keep studying kids.

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People ALWAYS prefer being around positive people. Unless if they are energy vamps.

Positive people with a smile on their face, are more approachable, compared to folks that look like they're about to murder you

I've approached quite a few murderous looking people, and they aren't as scary as they seem.

They just have, what the youngin's call "Resting bitch face" :)

RBF is used as a layer of protection to ward off potential danger and shouldn't be seen as an actual threat*

*this obviously isn't always true. use your best judgement

Here are some tips to start off

If you decide to start a conversation with an artist you enjoy. Keep a smile on your face. Laugh a lot during conversation. If they want to leave, don't try to stop them. Don't be creepy. Don't follow them. Don't beg them for a phone number. LET THEM LEAVE.

I know that sounds intense. I'm saying this because people will try and corner in artists. Suck the living day light out of them. And gah, it's frustrating.

Please be respectful of people's space and time. Artists often have place's to go and people to meet. And while you think you're the shit, they have no idea who you are and will be bombarded with many people before and after their shows.

You may be wondering, how do I stand out among all of the ravenous fans and basic people?

There are so many ways to do this! so I am going to list some of them

• Introduce yourself to all of the artists friends. Make sure that everyone in that room knows who you are.

• Spark a conversation with the artist outside when there isn't loud music.

• Offer to connect the artist to someone you know that's high value.

• Offer your skills.

• If they are someone that's super famous/well known/ highly respected: Jokingly ask if they are taking interns and see where that leads

• Approach them with a light heartedness and humor. You never want to be too serious.

• Crack some jokes, make them laugh.

• If you have a high quality camera or iphone. You can take photo's of the artists, get their contact info send the photo's to them. People love having photo's of themselves doing cool shit to show of to their friends.

• Talk to as many people in the venue as possible. Especially the owners of the house or venue ( or gallery, or auditorium etc). Especially make friends with bouncers and staff members.

Here is something, that if done well, can be very effective:

It's better if you're able to pull away from the conversation with an artist during a conversation to convey that you're laid back and you have other things on your mind that's not just them.

Artist's are so used to people soaking up every last drop of their attention.

To clarify here is an example of what I mean.

Say you're talking to an artist, and you're in the middle of a conversation.

It's worth going "Yo, one sec, I need to let this person know how dope their shoes are"

or "This attractive person is catching my eye, I need to go see what they're about real quick"

It seems disrespectful, but what it really does is show that you're not needy, if done in a respectful way.

Also, whatever social skills most people are taught; they are typically not taught for success.

It show's that you value the conversation that you're having, but not to a point where you can't leave the conversation.

This show's that you have options and high status people have options.

Of course you need to gauge what kind of environment you're in and act accordingly.

Challenge yourself socially. Break out of your comfort zone. Take risks. Don't lose integrity. Stay true to who you are as an artist.

You're an artist. People expect you to be different. Take risks. Challenge the status quo.

You will get rejected. Every time you get rejected, use that energy as fuel to keep becoming a better artist. Don't worry about folks that don't want to spend time with you. Focus on the people that do. Focus on providing value to the people that care.

If an artist seems to in their head/ego, I recommend staying away from them.

Find artists that have positive energy about them. Find artists that make art for ART not for fame. The one's that can't help but make art.

I don't view fame as bad. Fame is a great asset for an artist. ART should always come first though. If you're making art just for profit, you're going to lose yourself. Make your art first, then focus on money strategy.

I will talk more about ways where you can do your art and make money without selling your soul.

You will definitely be hearing more in depth networking tips in future articles.

Now I will move onto strategy.

1. Strategy

Strategy is a conscious effort. You plan out your days. Weeks. Months and years.

Strategy is flexible. Always feel free to switch things up. Yet always keep a game plan.

Find someone in your life that could be your manager. or wouldn't mind being accountability.

This will help you stay on track and get out of your mind. A social circle should help with this as well , which I will go over below.

If something doesn't work after a few weeks and you're not getting results. Drop it.

Know the rules of the industry you're playing in. ( so you can either break them or reshape them to better serve your artistic vision)

Know the artists you're trying to meet.

Know your audience.

This will all play into your strategy and ultimately into your success.

Do research, lots of research about your niche.

You need to become an expert in your field.

This is done through research and experience.

Don't just live in a computer, go out into the world and learn about your community by being apart of it.

The more expertise you have the stronger and more effective your strategy will be because you'll have more of a neural network of connections you can make.

Strategy is the hardest thing to teach because it's not a one size fits all.

Strategy is specific to the person or group of people.

Strategy is a game plan. You design it depending on the scenario, situation, and what you're trying to learn from those experiences.

An example of a strategy could be "Study sound design for 10 hours a week until I can create a whole entire song I'm satisfied with without using samples" You also need a why.

Why would you want to know sound design?

So you can make custom sounds for clients?

So you can make more original music?

Having a what and a why is important.

Another example strategy is "Go to every independent movie screening, get the contact information of the producer's and directors of my favorite films - offer to help out on set for free for the next film"

Why would you want to help out on the set of a film for free?

Networking. Exposure. Experience. You will most likely get credited and get your name out there.

Getting paid is always a bonus. Be service based. Focus more on giving rather than getting. People WILL reward you for it. I can't say whether it will be with money, resources, social connections, chocolate. Who knows! that's the beauty of life. Life is full of surprises.

Obviously we all have to pay bills. The strategy I am talking about exists in another dimension though. Even though practicality and logic is important. My personal strategy also includes a level of metaphysics and spiritual wisdom.

Here are example strategies that work for artists to find success!

SOCIAL CIRCLE

Develop a social circle that understands the importance of strategy when it come's to the arts.

Don't just "wing it" and "see what happens"

choose your friends wisely. Who you spend time with is incredibly important.

Your friend's need to know your visions and life plans and you need to be aware of theirs.

Support from a community is gold in this day and age. If your friend is coming out with a project. Supporting their project is going to shed light on you. It also just feels good being there for other people.

Make sure that the folks in your social circle have success on their mind.

Whether this is monetary, health wise, community oriented, whatever it is, it is necessary that the folks in your social circle have something that is driving them and have an intrinsic sense of "My life can always expand and be better".

A drive that wakes them up in the morning and keeps them up at night. They need to be busy people. They don't have time for petty drama. They have big visions and know how to choose battles wisely. They are respectful to other people. They are kind and compassionate. They work really fucking hard, yet treat their bodies right so they can tolerate it.

Artists are often associated with bad habits and eventually being depressed and losing it. It's time to build a new culture! we can't sacrifice ourselves for our art any longer. Art can be such a pleasure based career path. We need to learn how to balance pleasure with responsibility toward growth.

Ideal artists to be around are confident, charismatic, know's who they are, can defend their art, know for a fact that they can become successful artists as long as they work hard and know what they're doing.

MONEY STRATEGY

This is where being an expert in your field help's you out a ton.

When you're the only person in your city that know's how to make hand crafted boats.

Guess who people are going to go to...

You!

Get your name out there. The more people know you, the more people will want to know you. When people see artists getting paid, they typically want to continue paying those artists. That trust is already built.

If the mayor of your city want's a painting of his dog. He is most likely going to commission a well known painter, then someone that no one knows - unless if that person is recommended by someone he trusts/respects.

At this point it's not just about the art. It's about prestige, status and social capital. These are the realms that art can deal in and enhance for a person.

For some people art communicates that they have money and power.

If you've never made a penny in your life from your art here is what you should do.

• Create a minimum viable product (MVP)

This can either be a print of an original piece of art. Or the original itself.

Prints can be automated, which is cool ( ideally in a way that's sustainable to the planet, put people before profit yay!)

If it's an original piece, price it higher. Don't be afraid to attach a hefty price tag to your art work. If you make nice art that comes from original thought and captures your uniqueness.

Sell a high price. In this case you need to find the part of your audience that has higher access to capital to invest in your art.

You can also consider having different access points.

$25 dollars for a draft of a painting.

$175 for original painting of dog

$400 for 10 x 10 inch oil on canvas ( over 30 hours spent on this painting!)

etc.

OR you can just brand yourself as an affordable brand, or a completely expensive brand.

If you have a logo, you can put it on cups, t shirts, stickers, pins etc. People can support you that way. This isn't necessarily your art, it builds culture though and is free advertising!

• be a good storyteller.

You need to be able to convince people that they should trade their currency for your art. Essentially you have to convince them that your art is going to make their lives better.

You don't just say "My art will make your life better" you have to communicate this information with emotion through photo's, video's and writing.

This is where networking, social circle, and strategy comes to play.

You have to be smart and creative. I recommend studying creative marketing and creative branding.

As an artist, you want to be well known in your city for what you do. Storytelling is 80% of selling.

Of course be genuine.

My approach is offer a lot of HIGH VALUE free things.

Like this article. I genuinely strive to give you the cream of the crop, because I care. I genuinely care. I feel like I'm apart of this bad ass mission sharing information that's been kept secret, sharing it with the masses.

It's like a good kiss from your crush. If that feels so nice, you begin to wonder what other experience's are like.

Also, a lot of people are more than willing to spend money on art. Near a trillion dollars worth of money on art apparently

So don't think that people don't want to buy your art.

They will, if it carries energy.

• education

I encourage artists to learn how to offer classes to teach other's how to do your art form.

If you are a videographer you can create entry level classes 4 classes for $100 bucks

If you're a musician you can teach music theory.

Of course, be unique.

I stand out in the music industry because I've studied electronic instruments in depth. Mainly synthesizers. Most people are clueless when it come's to synthesizers and how to work them.

I'm talking about these kinds of synthesizers

not this

Even though midi keyboard's can get complex depending on what you're trying to do with them.

That's why I stand out. Not very many people can teach or do sound design.

I can confidently turn a car engine hum sound into a kick drum. Or the sound of a hummingbird chirping into a bell sound.

"How to make any sound from any sound"

That could be the name of one of my classes...

When it comes to education you can stand out through your teaching style.

A lot of teachers are extremely boring.

If you can be interesting and keep your students excited, you're already standing out.

Of course, mixing a unique subject with an engaging teaching style will always be the best.

• learn entrepreneurship

I like this guy on youtube his name is Sevan Bomar. He is a spiritual person, yet also entrepreneurial. He is making large amounts of money/currency by staying aligned with his values.

Here is a good podcast from him that really opened up my brain.

Learn from entrepreneurs and people you can trust.

It's not always the biggest face on YouTube like Tai Lopez or Gary Vaynerchuck.

Those are general type of entrepreneur guys.

Find someone that speaks to you in your specific niche that may only have 20,000 subscribers.

For me, it's folks like Sevan Bomar, who also speak's about the nature of reality and esoteric ideas.

For you it may be someone that talks about sports cars and women ( hopefully in a uplifting way )

Or politics and social justice.

Maybe the environment and our economy!

If you get a gut feeling that you shouldn't be listening to the information someone is sharing, or you can't trust the source.

Skip it. Find new information.

Google a.k.a Technological God.

Will find you who you're looking for.

You just got to keep researching.

...

Read a lot of book's around entrepreneurship and your medium of choice.

"How to make it in the music industry"

"How to be a backup vocalist"

Go to work shops in your town.

Learn as much as you can!

Even if you reach expert level where people are constantly seeking your skills, still stay humble and keep learning, there are always higher level's to reach.

CONCLUSION

This is plenty enough information to start with.

Rather than skimming through this, go apply it to your life.

Action and application is where the magic happens.

Mental stimulation is just mental stimulation. Activate your whole body. Just like you probably do with your art.

Be the person that turns dreams into reality. ( of course, what is reality)

Be the happy person despite of circumstances.

Be the artist that makes an impact.