At last. (Wait, did I just plant an ear worm?) Jazz in July has arrived in Iowa. Despite the mosquitoes, I will be at every concert every chance I get. Jazz in July is a month-long outdoor celebration here in Des Moines of one of America’s most exquisite art forms–JAZZ–where local musicians share their talents with our community for free. You cannot beat it with a stick. Well, maybe with a drumstick. Long live outdoor Jazz!

Music defines us. Our musical preferences resonate somewhere deep within our souls. Think about the first time you enjoyed a live concert. Maybe you listened to someone covering your favorite Beatles song, or tapped your foot to some Dave Brubeck, or sat breathless as a classical musician performed a Chopin Etude on a starry night. Think about the venue where this music was played. Think about who came to listen. Think about how people were dressed. Perhaps you were discovering this music for the very first time. Do you remember how pumped you were, and how excited you were to tell your friends about it the next day?

This experience can shed great light on how to build a strong Brand. Marketers and musicians have a lot in common. As with a famous music artist, a well-defined Brand attracts a certain group of people. Strong Brands also attract a certain crowd, display a certain character, and create an atmosphere. When you attend a concert, the presentation is more than just music–it is an experience. The way the music is delivered is almost as important as the music itself. Great brands do the same– they deliver an experience that is more than just product.

You probably have noticed by now that not everyone likes the same kind of music that you do. Music preference is a very personal thing. We often end up gravitating toward the same kind of music we were exposed to when we were kids. It is not required that you like every kind of music. But does it break the heart of a rock and roll artist if a classical music lover does not come to the show? Of course not. Brands are also very subjective. Not everyone is, nor will want to be, your customer. That persons exist who do not like your product is a hallmark of a strong Brand.

If your business were a song, which song would it be? Everyone has a song that only they can sing. It comes from a place deep in your head, heart, and soul. The important thing is to sing it out, loud and clear. When the hair stands up on the back of your neck, and it begins to move you, it will also move others. And you will know you are getting through when other people begin to sing along.

You owe it to us all to belt it out. Without your song, the whole world is an unfinished symphony.

There are things only you can do, and you are alive to do them. In this orchestra we call life, you have an instrument and a song, and you owe it to God to play them both sublimely. ~ Max Lucado

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All this month, we will be discussing music, and especially Jazz, as a model for Small Business management and marketing. Stay tuned, (pun fully intended!), for Parts 2-4, as we hone our chops, grow, and become the entrepreneur we were intended to be.  Etc Graphics is devoted to helping you, the small business owner, think more like a marketer.

Part V of V: The Shopping Cart Before the Horse

All this month we have been talking about how new Entrepreneurs can get the shopping cart before the horse. It is so easy to do. Entrepreneurs can booby-trap their own success, by:

In Part 1-Trying to increase revenue before providing more value.

In Part 2– Trying to sell your product before you believe in it yourself.

In Part 3– Investing in your business before investing in yourself.

In Part 4– Trying to succeed while ignoring essential tools.

In today’s final post we will tell the Tale of Two Startups:

Tom’s Story

Every time Tom had his friends over for dinner, he received glowing 5-star reviews. His friends said, “You know, you really should open a restaurant! This is fantastic!”. And Tom does love to cook. So on a wild hair day, he cashed out his savings and invested in equipment and real estate. A month before opening day, most of his start-up cash was gone. Because of this, he had no ability to decorate like he wanted or invest in an identity and advertising. But he was not worried. If his food were half as fantastic as his friends said it was, he would not have any problem getting people in the store. He was certain his classic menu would appeal to everyone. He would skip the logo and the website for now, and invest in those things later when he made some real profit.

The next week, a rush of people came in to check out the new restaurant in town. He was excited and encouraged. But after the first month, traffic slowed to less than adequate. Tom decided an inexpensive brochure from the local quick print shop would help, and hit the next chamber meeting. But six months later, he was still struggling to get people in the store. He tried a very different but a better-looking brochure. With only a little response, he had to lay off staff. Tom decided that advertising does not work and decided to stop advertising altogether. As a result, instead of providing a nice place to eat, the restaurant ate him up instead.

Dave’s Story

Dave also relished good friends and good food. His specialty was making people feel welcome. His friends also told him on a regular basis that he should open a restaurant. And on a wild hair day, Dave also cashed out his savings. But––Dave was determined to begin his restaurant in a different way than the way most restaurants start out.

He started by planning the ultimate experience. He knew that personality and ambiance would provide the ultimate brand. He researched other restaurants in town–not to copy, but to figure out how to be different and better. He invested in a graphic identity and brand style guide that communicated this personality and set the stage for expectation. It was as good as done.

After creating the style-guide, every decision was easy from there. From this Brand vantage-point, it was clear how to create an atmosphere where young professionals would want to bring their friends and hang out. Even choosing the decor was easy. It either matched the style or it did not. He knew a great location that was already swarming with young professionals. He researched the price point they would be willing to pay. He then structured his recipes with a balance of flair and profit, topped with a spark of lagniappe.

Opening day, the store fit the vision and the plan inside and out. Everything matched the perception he wanted to achieve. Friends told friends. The waiting line on Saturday night wound outside the door. Because he had invested in branding first, his Visual Voice was consistent across his print collateral, website, interior, and brochures. He looked credible–and his customers had confidence and expectations of a good meal before they came in the door. His performance answered their expectations. And when it came to a choice of where to go out to eat, people started to choose Dave’s place.

The Moral of the Story

When you Advertise before you Brand, you get the Shopping Cart before the Horse. Nothing you do builds on any prior effort, creating minimal if any return. Every advertisement is like starting over. This is why advertising does not work. If your advertising is yielding minimal return–“Stop. Do not pass Go! Do not collect $200.00.” Back up and start with your Brand. Branding builds upon your vision. It creates an experience. It answers your customer’s questions. It solves their problems. Branding helps your messages resonate with the right customer. Begin with everything that touches the customer. When you have a strong Brand, you have a strong stand. Your advertising builds momentum. The return increases exponentially because it is memorable and consistent.

Branding is not just a first impression or the logo above the door. Branding is the way you take the whole journey. Brand first, and prepare yourself to be pleasantly surprised.

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Why do we, a graphic design / and advertising company, care about the way you run your business? Because no matter how beautiful your external graphics, they will never be stronger than your internal management. If your management is strong, so are your communications. Since entrepreneurs are famous for getting the cart before the horse, all this month, we have been discussing five of the most common ways that entrepreneurs are hitching their horses incorrectly. Since this is the new millennia, we have updated the idiom. The vehicle of commerce is now a shopping cart. Either way, wooden or metal, horses still do not know what to do when the cart is in front. Our desire is to help you, the small business owner, think like a marketer.

John and Graham Ottley, California 2010

Getting the Shopping Cart Before the Horse- Part IV

Even though my friend John Ottley lives in Tennesee, this flatlander relishes a chance to do some mountaineering. John’s Frequent Climber Card has a few more punches than the average adventurer. (Too bad the tenth climb is not free!)

John was once part of a team led by his son Graham, then Program Director for Summit Adventure*, to climb to the top of Mount Rainier. With a mixed team of experienced and non-experienced climbers, preparation was key. No margin of error could be allowed.

Graham gave detailed packing lists to each member. It could prove disastrous for any member to attempt ascent without the Ten Essentials (example list). He called a meeting at base camp, and the entire team was required to explode their packs. Exploding your pack means that every team member must disassemble their backpack, and a verbal roll call is taken of each and every essential thing. Why? In the middle of your trek, should you find yourself literally at the end of your rope, it would be too late to send someone back to your car to dig that essential tool out of your trunk. The missing tool could forfeit the whole trip for everyone. You would not be the life of the party. A good time would not be had by all. “Wishing you were here” postcards would not be sent. The last chapter of your story might be too sad to read, as real-life mountain adventures often end quite differently than the standard goose-egg in a Looney Tunes cartoon.

The exploded pack

Seasoned mountaineers know that every climber’s life depends on every other climber’s ability to do what they have set out to do. The team will only be as strong as the weakest member. By accepting your place on the team, you are accepting the obligations and responsibilities belonging to the Brotherhood of the Rope. In other words, if you are not prepared for the journey, everyone else’s adventure–and lives–are at risk. Therefore, you have a serious obligation to take care of yourself, and to train daily, because you are holding someone else’s rope.**

Mountain climbing is not a new allegory for small business management. Wharton management professor Michael Useem wrote an entire book on the theme. Scaling sheer cliffs has many parallels to Entrepreneurship. So why is it that so many entrepreneurs will begin their journey without double-checking their pack for essential gear? Without training? Without thinking about what might go wrong? With the odds against small business, you would think every Entrepreneur would triple-check their pack.

Every industry has its own base level requirements without which you will never reach the Summit. Every industry has its own Ten Essentials. A wise entrepreneur will examine their preparedness. What are your survival essentials? Everyone you employ is depending on your ability to hold on to the rope.

As part of your overall Business Plan, your marketing plan is the most important tool in your pack–more important than finance or human resources. Quite a claim? Think about it this way. Without adequate sales, you will not need a CFO, as you will have no money to manage. Without a marketing plan, you may pass over your ideal customer like a white jacket in a snowstorm. Your marketing plan should pinpoint at least ten places where you can rendezvous–a place to give them something of value that they need for their own journey.

If you attempt to start or operate a small business without a defined marketing plan, you are getting the Shopping Cart Before the Horse.

If you already have a marketing plan, do not wait to dust it off and bring it up to date. It is not for the banker. It is your map to help you find the trail in the middle of the night. If you think you can wing it, you are not only jeopardizing your own livelihood, but everyone else who joins you in the climb.

Entrepreneurs, are you ready? Explode your pack. What things will you carry in yours?

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Why do we, a graphic design / and advertising company, care about the way you run your business? Because no matter how beautiful your external graphics, they will never be stronger than your internal management. If your management is strong, so are your communications. Since entrepreneurs are famous for getting the cart before the horse, all this month, we are discussing five of the most common ways that entrepreneurs are hitching their horses incorrectly. Since this is the new millennia, we will at least update the idiom. The vehicle of commerce is now a shopping cart. Either way, wooden or metal, horses still do not know what to do when the cart is in front. Read Part I, Part II, and Part III, and stay tuned for Part V next week!

* Graham Ottley is still planning mountaineering adventures at Outward Bound, which you can find here. Or find Summit Adventure here.

**Information as promised in last week’s post “Upgrading Your Own Personal Operating System”.

Upgrading Your Own Personal Operating System

The Shopping Cart Before the Horse – Part III

Despite the odds against small business survival, I remain CEO of our company: Chief Entrepreneurial Optimist. Small business is one of the greatest catalysts I know for growing and transforming people into all that they were intended to be.

Your business is a reflection of you. Whatever we are as entrepreneurs, the sum-total of our person, our health, our personal habits–good or bad, along with everything we believe about the world will eventually manifest itself in our businesses. One of the biggest problems for any us is the fact that we take ourselves to work. How do I know this? I also am an entrepreneur. I know that if I am the source of any problem, I am usually the last employee to know.

David Rose, CEO of the New York Angels, says:

“The number one thing I look at when making a startup investment is the quality of the entrepreneur. In this, I–and a majority of professional angel investors—follow the old adage: ‘bet on the jockey, not the horse,’ . . . . If I have to choose between a great business idea and a great entrepreneur, I’ll take the entrepreneur every time.”

If the entrepreneur affects business valuation, you would think that becoming the best person that we can be would be a top priority. But we are so busy wearing all the hats, that we forget to put on our own ball cap. Putting yourself on your priority list does seem a bit selfish. Let me assure you, it is not. (Stay tuned for more on this in next week’s post!) When we consider ourselves in our business role, we often think only of our academic skill set. But if our business is to survive, we must be a whole person– physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.

What kind of person do you need to be so that you can do what you need to do? Here are some daily investments every entrepreneur needs to make:

Invest in your health. Though it is not on the balance sheet, your health is your most important asset. Small business is a marathon. How can you go the long haul if your health is deteriorating daily by a lack of exercise, poor nutrition, and normal to high levels of stress? If you will not care for yourself, plan for health concerns to rock your business world.

Invest in your head. What skills do you need to bring your plans to fruition? Whatever you need to learn, remember there is no learning curve left these days–it goes straight up. If you are not investing some time every week to stay on top of your industry, you are getting left behind.

Invest in your heart. Simply put, we are what we believe. What do you believe about yourself and your abilities? Any unfinished business before starting this one? Do you approach opportunities as an optimist or a pessimist? Do you find time to refuel so that you can stay refreshed? What do you need to do to change your perspective so you can approach the world with more dignity and grace?

Every entrepreneur will eventually experience some event or circumstance that brings them up short. Consider each experience a chance to upgrade your personal operating system. You will grow and stretch and develop skills right along with our plans.

Before you can lead others, you have to lead yourself. Before we can behave differently, we must think differently. Most importantly, we must be before we can do, and until we invest in our own personal growth, we have the shopping cart before the horse.

What is one way you can nourish your own growth this week?

Why do we, a graphic design company, care about the way you run your company? Because no matter how beautiful, your external graphics will always reflect the strength of your internal management. Entrepreneurs are famous for getting the cart before the horse, and all this month, we are discussing five of the most common ways that entrepreneurs are hitching their horses incorrectly. Since this is the new millennia, we will at least update the idiom. The vehicle of commerce is now a shopping cart. Either way, wooden or metal, horses still do not know what to do when the cart is in front. Stay tuned for Part IV next week!

The Shopping Cart Before the Horse- Part II

I have a new product idea. (Of course. I am an Entrepreneur!) If only I could make this product, I am sure I would be independently wealthy overnight. (Of course. I am an Entrepreneur!) It would solve a real problem–a problem that I have seen at least once each week for the last 26 years. (If any of you venture-capitalist-types are reading this, please stay tuned for a hot new business idea.)

Case in point: an entrepreneur steps into my office in need of some graphics and print material for a pressing project. A sales opportunity has just come up and has taken them by surprise. They need a brochure, or a sales sheet, or perhaps a new trade show display. But they need something quick. They are in such a hurry that they need to make this meeting brief so they can get on to the next fire.

“What I need is something really simple. You know what I mean! A big picture here, and a swooshy thing over there”, they say, waving their hands, trying to make the swooshy thing. At that very moment, they are convinced the images in their imagination are synced with those in my imagination. “And we need some sort of slogan, big, here across the top. You know, like that!”

Nope––I do not!

“Ok”, I reply. “I am so happy to help you out. Maybe we can use some of those photos from your last trade show. I know you had a pro-photographer on site then. So, tell me, what would you like this piece to say? What sort of slogan do you think you need?”

Deer in the headlights. Pause. Followed by stuttering, incomprehensible noises, and another uncomfortable pause.

Finally he says, “You know, I don’t know. What would you recommend for an opportunity like this?”

A thought bubble appears above my head, “What would I recommend for an opportunity like this? You mean you do not know what you need to say about your own product?”

Of course, I do not say this outloud. I am only thinking it to myself. True confessions. I have been there–in that same place–and I am in marketing. (Paper-sack-over-head-with-two-holes-cut-for-my-eyes-blink-blink.) But think about this. If you, the business owner, do not know what to say about your own product, how will anyone else know what to say, when they know less about your product than you do?

Sure I can make your materials look great. That is easy for me, and it is my job. But no matter how beautiful the design, without a strategy, your materials will net you zip zero nada nothing. If you think advertising is expensive? Try advertising that does not work! If you left my office right now, threw several hundred dollars out of the window on your way back to your office, flaked off all responsibilities and took your spouse out for a fancy dinner, that would be less expensive than buying a brochure that yields no results.

So back to my product idea. Venture capitalists? I need you to help me fund some research to create The Cure. I need a pill. A potion. Some sort of patch. It is important to cure one of the leading causes of demise in small business:

Entrepreneurial Speechlessness.

I so wish a pill could fix this. But in all reality, I know that speechlessness is only symptomatic of a deeper issue.

So what is the underlying cause of this condition? Let’s look at a few reasons:

• You are chasing sales–not solving a problem.
• If there is a problem that your product can solve, you are not sure what that problem is.
• If you are not sure what the problem is, you cannot identify anyone who has the problem (in other words, anyone who could use your product).
• And without knowing what the problem is, you cannot be confident that your product is the best solution.
• And without confidence, you will never sell anything.

Do you have symptoms of Entrepreneurial Speechlessness? It is the result of placing Advertising before Strategy, or putting the shopping cart before the horse. Get back to the bedrock issues of Purpose, Vision, and Mission.

Until you are a believer in your own product, you will remain speechless.

I want to help remove the lack of clarity that is stealing your voice. Make sure your product is not just a product of your imagination. Make sure it is something that will change the world, and become a believer. Remove every trace of doubt in your mind, and you will have plenty to say. You will not be able to stop talking about it if you try.

Stay tuned for Part III of The Shopping Cart Before the Horse, next week!

“And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.” the Beatles

Part I

Have you ever seen a Grant Wood painting? If so, you have seen Iowa. Iowa does look like that. You can argue with me, but I will contend no other State is as green. In case you did not know, we grow stuff here, and grow stuff very well at that. Since June is the month of unstoppable growth, we are going to talk all this month about growing businesses. That will add to the green!

If only we could get our small businesses to grow like Iowa weeds in June! We once poured a cement slab over some weeds in our yard, only to have them grow out around that slab later in the summer. If only small businesses could be half that resilient! But with half of all start ups folding by year five, and half of the remainder folding by year ten, we know the Iowa weeds analogy could not be more incorrect. There are just too many ways to fail at small business. Let me count the ways. No, wait, I take that back. Let’s not. That would be too depressing. But there are certainly many common ways that entrepreneurs get the cart before the horse. So we are going to be discussing five of the most common ways that entrepreneurs are hitching their horses incorrectly. Since this is the new millennia, we will at least update the idiom. The vehicle of commerce is now a shopping cart. Either way, wooden or metal, horses still do not know what to do when the cart is in front.

Case in point. I make a habit of listening to podcasts, mainly out of curiosity, to see what the “experts” in the marketing industry are teaching and to see what others deem essential marketing techniques for small business owners. I was listening this past week to one in particular, and was never more disappointed in my life. This shopping cart did not even have a horse–nothing to drive the cart at all. In fact it was loose in the parking lot. And it could cause damage out there.

The entire webinar repeated the same mantra over and over: “Get the income you deserve! Don’t you deserve to get paid all that you are worth? Don’t you deserve to take that vacation? Of course you do! Click the button to sign up below to create the business of your dreams.” How I wish I could tell you there were more to the training than this. Oh, I almost forgot. There was a free PDF download. It was a “checklist” of marketing tasks–a reminder not to forget to mail out your postcards. Or to send your newsletter. And oh yes, it reminded you not to forget your email campaign. Every third month there was an extra task thrown in–sending out an extra postcard that was supposed to deliver a huge surge of cash flow every quarter, just like magic! Of course, no one would have ever thought of this checklist on their own. And of course, I’m being facetious.

I have nothing against making money. Not even making good money. My beef lies in that throughout the entire podcast, he never once stopped to ask whether our product was worthy of a higher price tag. He was asking the wrong question. Instead of asking the question “how can I make more sales?”, he should have been asking, “how can I provide more value?” 

The shopping cart was indeed before the horse. Do you want to make more money in your business? We all do. Find a way to make your product more valuable.This will place your horse firmly in front of the cart. It will then be a much easier task to pull in the sales. It just makes good horse sense. 

Stay tuned for Part II of The Shopping Cart Before the Horse, next week!

When is profit a problem? When you do not know how you made it.

Sometimes new entrepreneurs get lucky.

Meet Jack Potts. Jack has little hands-on experience in business. But Jack was very fortunate. When he started his business, conditions were just right. He had the right product, the right timing, the right customers, and the perfect climate. It was as if a favorable wind blew the customers in on a balmy summer breeze. His bank account multiplied quickly. What could be wrong with that? Nothing, except that it took him by surprise. He had no idea how it happened. It just did. So he had no idea how he did it. He had no idea who his customers were or why they liked his product. Therefore, he could not replicate it or sustain it. His business began at the top of the hill, and it was downhill from there.

It is easy to manage a business when you are making a substantial profit. You can be a bad manager when you have plenty of cash flow, and still make it. Accidental entrepreneurs often overlook the fact that the fad will eventually end, and the customers will blow away as fast as they blew in. Accidental entrepreneurs are often oblivious that the winds are dying down until it is too late. Because they are unaware, they are not prepared to change or innovate the product to better serve the customers’ needs, and remain a viable option.

What is the moral of this story? Know thy customer. Know why they buy. Prepare in advance to innovate your product to remain a bona fide option.

Alma Knack? Alma is also a new entrepreneur and reads a lot about business. In fact, she is a virtual encyclopedia of business advice. She seeks out mentors. “They tell me things I already know,” she said. She already knows how to do market research to find her ideal customer and to find better ways to connect with them. She says she already knows she needs a company culture and consistent branding. She knows how to set up systems, and to train her employees to these standards.

So what could possibly be wrong with knowing how to do all this stuff? It is fine that Alma knows. She just does not do it. She is all talk and no go. All the business wisdom in the world will profit you nothing if it sits there like a book on a shelf–unapplied to your day to day affairs.

Until you are applying what you know, you are not managing. Until you are doing yourself what you tell others they should be doing, you are not a leader.

You can know nothing about business and succeed for a little while. You can know everything and fail. If you do not know what you need to know, find out, and keep learning. The learning curve in business never stops. But the most important thing by far is to apply. It is a waste of time to read books or seek advice without applying what you have learned.

“I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.” – Leonardo da Vinci

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In the 26 years that we have been helping small companies with their marketing and advertising, we have seen almost every kind of difficulty one can imagine. Throughout this month, we are sharing some of the most common problems using fictitious characters in a humorous way. While all of the details in these stories are true, the names have been changed, to protect the guilty. Should any of the stories sound familiar, it is our desire that they would help steer you around some pitfalls. Stay tuned for more Complex Characters of Capitalism.

For more stories on all the Characters this month, visit www.etcgraphics.com/thincblog

The Artistic Business- Part IV

All this month we have been talking about the Artistic Business and Small Business as the highest art form.

In Part I: We talked about how thinking like an artist will to help you to position your business in the marketplace.

In Part II: We discussed how thinking like an artist will provide the best platform from which to compete.

In Part III: We talked about how thinking like an artist will bring more creativity and more originality into your business.

Why is it important to develop an Artistic Business mindset? Because if you think like an Artist and do your work as if creating a work of Art, you will create a successful business.

Today we will talk about what the Artistic Business does, and how it behaves. Let’s take a look:

The Artistic Business believes in their work. A true Art Master is fearless in the face of a blank canvas. They set to work with confidence. They know what they want to make, how they want to make it, and believe in the value of the final product before it has even begun. They see the finished image in their minds eye before they have laid the first brush stroke upon the canvas. The Artistic Business sees, and, therefore, can masterfully produce. Because they see the final product, they communicate masterfully. Because they are confident, they are fearless.

The Artistic Business is honest. They are WYSIWYG. What you see is what you get. No matter how you slice it, the Artistic Business is the same on the inside as it is on the outside. They represent themselves and their product honestly. (The fake-it-till-you-make-it mantra does not apply.) They will not talk about their product as valuable until they are sure it is just that.

The Artistic Business welcomes change. They understand that the pathway to success may follow a different route than originally planned. It may even be marked with detours. Openness to detours is a built-in part of the Artistic Business plan right from the start. These detours will not stop them in their tracks. They know that if they keep moving, they will see new opportunities open up. (You cannot steer a parked car.) They know that navigating the path to success will help them figure out what success means.

The Artistic Businesses puts more back into the world than they take out. The Artistic Business wants to leave the world a better place than the way they found it. The Artistic Business helps support causes and works together with others in their communities to achieve common goals. These efforts are not a roundabout way to self-promote. The Artistic Business is honestly helping. They have figured out how to make a difference and sustain business at the very same time.

The Artistic Business has an overarching Purpose. This Purpose presides over every other business activity and is larger than the business itself. This Purpose makes the world a more beautiful place. The Artistic Business has witnessed the effects of other businesses who value profits over purpose. They know the “profits first” mindset shoots the real meaning of profit in the foot. They know that making profit all about financial gain makes the world an ugly place. The Artistic Business does not do ugly.

The world awaits your Masterpiece. The world needs you to share your gifts and skills in a way that makes it a more beautiful place. Want to gain more confidence as a business owner? Employ the Artistic Business mindset in your business. Create something so good that you can stake your entire reputation upon it. Think this is easy?Not on your life. But only this kind of endeavor creates real Art. And nothing can give you more confidence in business than mastering your craft and creating real Art. You then, too, will become an Artistic Business.

Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art. Making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art. –Andy Warhol

All this month we have been talking about small business as an art form and that of the highest level. Unless you have been hiding under your desk, you cannot help but notice the large amount of press being devoted to the value of creative intelligence in the workplace. Any person possessing large amounts of this ‘right stuff’ is suddenly the preferred candidate for top positions. Smart companies know that innovation seems to magically appear right behind any pixie who sprinkles this magic creative dust. Shortly after, old problems that everyone has been staring at for years also magically disappear.

We all know certain people who have more than their fair share of creativity. It is almost as if God tripped with the carton open. For true Artists, creativity is akin to breathing. But whether you can draw a straight line or not, there is nothing to stop you from thinking more like an Artist.

Here are five ways to find more of the Artist in you and in your company:

1. Artists are compelled to create.They are like the little chick inside an egg– with a life force inside. If they do not break out and become all they are destined to be? They rot. Entrepreneurs who purposefully create space in their day for creative thinking will also awaken latent skills. Not feeling it? Take a brisk walk. Genius has proven the benefits of fresh air to force out the cobwebs and get the gears turning. (Check these articles out here and here.) Great things happen from the inside out.

2. Artists see differently. They thrive on perceived limitations. They often use the same raw materials that everyone else uses, but use them in a different way than was originally intended, and in doing so add tremendous value to those same materials. Artists make a habit of asking, “What else could we make with this?” Stop looking at limited resources as a problem. Creative Entrepreneurs ask the same question.

3. Artists choose their style. Then they work that style until they are very very good at it. No artist can afford to experiment with every medium. They only have so much room in their art kit anyway. They focus on the things that they do best. Creative Entrepreneurs also choose. They choose their style, their methods, and their offerings. By virtue of what they choose, they are also choosing to exclude something else. If you try to do it all, you will do nothing well. On the entrepreneurial journey, you can only fit so much in your sack anyway. Focus on what you do best, and excel.

4. Artists are rebels. They do not do paint by number. They do their own thing. They do not waste time on things that do not matter in the deepest part of their hearts. They create from that place, and not to please the masses. Therefore, they are not quick to give up on their idea just because someone hates it. It goes without saying that real Entrepreneurs will do their homework to know if there is a market for their product before they begin business. But the presence of haters is not a sign of failure. In fact, haters may mean just the opposite. Every great product has haters.

5. Artists tell a million stories through their work. They know how you say it is as important as what you say. True artists know their message does not have to resonate with everyone–just a specific group. Because the message of their art is strong, that specific group is attracted as if by magic. Artists know the more powerfully they develop their message, the less they have to say.

Imagine attending an art show where the Artist goes around telling people all about the features and benefits of their work. That would be–well–just so weird. Real Artists do not do that. You either do, or you do not like it. Artists do not try to convince anyone why they should love their work. Unfortunately, many small business people are not acting at all like real Artists. They are still trying to sell something to everyone. Focus on making your best art, and source it from your heart. Make it matter to your target audience, and you will attract them by default.

Oh you little rebel you.

Stay tuned for The Artistic Business–Part IV, next week!

The Artistic Business- Part II

Artists and Entrepreneurs have very parallel problems. Real Artists and Entrepreneurs just want to work. And both want to sell their work. Is any Art real art without someone there to appreciate it? (I wax philosophical.) Whatever your definition of real art, it is certain that real art must be shared, or the whole world misses out. And eventually someone has to like it enough to buy it, or the Artist will not be able to continue to do what they desire to do. 

Let’s imagine the world of ideas as a circle. Let the center of the circle represent commodity ideas. If each idea is a dot, the center of the circle is filled with a high concentration of dots. It is almost black. It represents ideas that are easily copied, where supply is large, and value is low. As we move toward the outside of the circle, the dots become scarce. The outer edge is where innovation is found. Each dot now represents something highly original, highly valuable, and scarce. In this area, ideas that are so cutting-edge that they may not be understood by the general population at all, and the audience for such ideas is hard to find.

Drawing a conclusion from this imaginary visual, (pun fully intended!), is that the more your push your business to the outside of the circle, the more valuable your idea will be. The challenge for Artists and Entrepreneurs alike, is to find the balance: not so different it cannot be sold, and not so common it cannot be valued.

According to Wikipedia, Paul Gauguin’s painting “When Will You Marry” tops the current list of the world’s most valuable paintings. If the outer edge of our circle represents this kind of uniqueness, then the center of the circle would represent the millions of postcards of this same painting, sold for $2.00 each in museums all around the world. Yes, even this painting can be commoditized. The current owner paid almost $300,000,000.00 for the painting just this year. True beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. In this case, true value is in the eye of the billionaire. Few could afford to add such a painting to their collection. (Even if you had the means to buy it, you would also have to afford the armed guards!)

One of the best strategies for entrepreneurs to add value to their offerings is by pushing their product toward the outside of the circle–making itan Original–with a capital O. Believe it or not, your best strategy for getting ahead of the competition is not lowering your price. It lies in creating better Art. Alas, it is also one of the most difficult things to accomplish. Perhaps you are in an industry that is so congested with competition you can barely get your big toe in the market. How can anyone dream up new ways of doing things that have not already been dreamed up? Take a trip to your local art museum. Each Artist uses the same raw materials that many other artists have used, and yet has created something that no one else has created, and transforms a few dollars of those same raw materials into something extremely valuable. No two paintings are alike, even if their subject matter is exactly the same. The best thing about the strategy of creating better Art is that you decide the style, what medium you wish to use, and just how far out you want to go. Another plus? Your competitors can become your friends because you are doing something completely different.

Real creativity is born of constraint. There is no other kind. Think this is tough? Sure. Let the pressure of competition form you and bring out the Artist in you.

Make art. Not war.

Stay tuned for more articles in the series “The Artistic Business”, all this month.