AUTHOR: Alisha TITLE: Goal Setting - Timelines DATE: 3/06/2006 06:40:00 AM ----- BODY:

I just returned (As in, my plane touched down just hours ago!) from another successful weekend Arts Business Institute workshop in North Carolina. We had a smaller group than in past years, but every, single student was dedicated to their goals, devoted to their artmaking, and inspired by the synchronisity of the group. Something amazing happens when artists gather their hope together and start opening up, sharing and learning with one another. Our weekend ended like every ABI workshop ends... a sea of a better prepared creative minds, each with a very long list of things to work on! So, where do you start? Where do you dive in and begin? Last week I gave my top tips for identifying and reaching your art goals. This week I have two more tips to add to this theme, and I hope any ABI alumni now reading my blog will consider today's post as a springboard for getting started. Take a moment today to sort through the long list of things you learned and can't wait to work on... and SEGMENT A TIMELINE. Start with one item on your list and ask yourself: "How long will it take to build/create this?" Create a notecard for each task associated with your goal and write how long you will give yourself for task accomplishment. You may actually take a longer or shorter time period, but before getting started you should make a realistic estimate of the time it could take. If you were building a home, wouldn't you do a budget and timeline? Doing this for each of your larger goals gives you perspective, focusing your expectations on what is actually attainable. After attempting this exercise, you will have an idea of how long it could take to formulate your art business identity, to develop a line of work you feel is priced and designed competitively, promote yourself, or market your art. With big goals like these, it's hard to have any real concept of how long the road to success will be. But, looking at the time it takes to manage each tiny task toward a big goal, well this will put your mind at ease.

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