AUTHOR: Alisha TITLE: It's That Time Again! DATE: 10/05/2004 07:01:00 AM ----- BODY:
I woke this morning with a frosty nose and the sound of geese out my window. This is a time of year I can't help but relish in... The beginning of Fall and the exit of Summer. It's a great time to turn on the heat, clean, re-organize, set a schedule, and raise the bar. The single best thing you can do for yourself AND for you art career at this time of year? Time to make a list!! Here's my quick 'how to' to propel you into action:
  1. Grab a pen and paper and cut out other distractions. Turn off the radio. Turn off CNN. Don't you dare answer that phone!
  2. Start by drawing three, vertical columns on the paper.
  3. In the far left-hand column, begin listing your accomplishments over the last year. Include things you intended to do alongside successes you didn't plan for, but achieved nonetheless.
  4. In the right-hand column make a list of what you hope to accomplish in the future. Don't just list what you think will be reasonable within the next year. Include a few outlandish 'pie in the sky' goals. Where do you want to be in 5 years or 10? Who do you want to have sold art to? How do you want people to talk about your work?
  5. Now, you have a remaining center column that is empty. Look to the left. Here you have where you have been. To your right? Where you want to go. Weigh them both and begin listing in the center what you actually hope to accomplish by this time next Fall. Some of these items may already be on your list at right. Or perhaps you note a scaled down accomplishment that will set you up to get closer to one of your 'pie in the sky' goals.
The point of all this? You can't decide how much you want to sell and then set out to sell it, if you haven't first taken stock of what you have already sold. Setting goals is not just an exercise for kids, it's a real part of feeling a sense of accomplishment and reaching higher throughout life. And yes, artists need to set goals too. Decide how much work you want to produce, what skills you want to gain, how many pieces you want to sell. It's the perfect season for it now. Fall is the time to dig in deep.
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