I’ll remember this summer as one where I worked less on business but more on my mind — specifically, on trying to detach from the addictions of mind. Creativity is the nimble dance between mind and heart, but so many of us get caught in a stranglehold of mind so that we are blocked from expressing ourselves, taking risks, seeing differently and feeling free to create (not to mention just feeling good). The mind is a powerful instrument, but, as Eckhart Tolle in his classic The Power of Now explains, “about 80 to 90 percent of most people’s thinking is not only repetitive and useless, but because of its dysfunctional and often negative nature, much of it is harmful.” Too much of our thinking — especially in this Information Overload-Great Recession-Multi-Tasking world of ours — is spent stuck on shoulds, fears, anxiety about the future and replays of the past.

I know mine was. So I consciously broke from my normal routine, both physically and mentally, and shifted my mindset. I was lucky to spend more time than I ever have on Lake Michigan, thanks to my friend Joe and his sailboat (above). I truly was able to incubate – a key part of the creative process — in water and for more prolonged periods than I have before. I was able to leave my scolding mind with the buildings of the city and embrace the great creative principle of “Not Knowing” – seeing with fresh eyes, giving up being right and smart and an expert. My mind stopped being king, and frankly I feel much better and more ready to imagine and create a future that works for me.

1st…If you want something NEW to happen in your life, your business, or anywhere, you have to do something DIFFERENT.

2nd…When you do something DIFFERENT you change the way you are thinking, making the shift from left-brain routine to right brain innovation.  This is being supported by both brain scientists and spiritual leaders.

3rd…My mission to illuminate for you the ability you possess to “flip the switch” from left to right brain thinking using Creativity Workouts and the Arts is going to provide you with what you need to create the change you desire in your world, to evolve your thinking in this rapidly evolving world, & to lead a blanced and fulfilled life.

First, let me take you on a little tour to illustrate a Creativity Workout.  Follow along with the intent of getting into your right brain (if you are sitting at your computer right now, obviously, you are engaged in the heavily left-brain dominated world and a little right brain exercise is always good.

I recently visited UMMA.  The Univ. of Michigan Museum of Art.  I hope this motivates you all to go to an art museum as soon as possible.  It is a FABULOUS right brain workout.  Take your business team.  Take your children.  Go alone.  You will leave with new ideas, more energy, and a sense that you too can create something new.

Imagine that you are walking into this room at UMMA.  It is an art installation by Heather Rowe. http://www.umma.umich.edu/view/ (I don’t know why the pics on the UMMA site are of a different install, but enjoy that one too.)  It is a totally separate room.  I had it all to myself.  It is a series of platforms or open boxes perched upon different lengths of metal and glass supports.  Notice the glass cubes at the foot of some of the supports.  (I really liked those….).  The goal of the installation is to engage you in an altered perspective.  The key is to slow down, look around and take it in.  Throughout my tour here today, look for the reflection of the orange, metal sculpture outside the museum.

So, these mirrors were placed as close to the universal eye-level height and each open “box” had these mirrors and other “random” objects arranged differently to catch the reflections.  See the orange sculpture?  Try to really space out on these images.  Just give yourself a little mental vacation from the to-do list scrolling through  your mind.  You can’t innovate if your mind is busy processing lists.  Now, let’s move to a different part of the room.

Hi!  Here I am with my trusty iPhone (LOVE it!).  Now, see the orange?  How many times do you see my face? Look in each piece of mirror.  Or almost all of them.  Can you tell which sections are mirror and which are real?  Look again….

Now, here is the last part of the tour.

Now, even I still can’t figure this out.  See my face taking the picture?  See the orange sculpture?  I promise, that orange sculpture was BEHIND me.  It looks like you are looking through the art install to the outside and there is the sculpture.  No.  That is a reflection of the sculpture.  I promise.  Even when I was there I had to turn around and look behind me there it was.  Then I looked in front of me and there it was too.  OK.  At this point, I admit, I started fantasizing about me alone in that room for hours with a bottle of wine and nothing else.  Except that I would surely need a pad of paper because of all the new insight and ideas that would come flooding into my consciousness as I opened up more and more in my mind–right hemisphere, remember.

OK.  So I could go on and on.  I will just say that just yesterday I bought two books.  Joe Dispenza’s Evolve Your Brain (this author was featured in the movie What the Bleep!?!?–rent that if you have not already) and OSHO’s Everyday OSHO.  Within 24 hours, after only reading a total of 15 pages between the two books, I read BOTH of them say that the key to ANY kind of innovation is dependent on your creativity, which is a task of the right brain, and that your left brain is responsible for information or skills that are routine or already processed by your mind. 

Dan Pink reveals this fact as well in his new book DRIVE.  If you want NEW innovation in your organization, it is dependent on right hemisphere thinking. You can learn to FLIP THE SWITCH in your own mind.  We all live in a left-brain dominated world, so if you think, “Hey, I want to new solution to this problem.” That should trigger the thought, “I better get in my right brain.”  In which case you give your right brain something to do (go to the Creativity Workout section of this blog for ideas OR buy my book The Artist Within, A Guide to Becoming Creatively Fit, that is chock full of right brain exercises), thereby shifting the energy in your mind (What the Bleep?!?!) to the side responsible for the creativity, focus, and openness required for innovation.  I will be back with more from UMMA.  I have to dole it out because otherwise this would be a 20 foot long blog entry.

Come back soon…subscribe to this blog–look under my pic–…learn more about Creatively Fit.  We will be launching the Creatively Fit Program in March 2010.  It will be ther “Jenny Craig” for the Right Brain.  It is going to be fun….

Creative wishes this holiday season, Whitney

I saw this movie this past weekend with my kids. 

Some things struck me about the Fantastic Mr. Fox that I thought were worth emphasizing.

Although, I would side with Mrs. Fox as to the carelessness and recklessness of Mr. Fox’s actions, one can’t deny the creative problem solving nature of his actions once the proverbial @#$@# had hit the fan.

So, when Mr. Fox had to motivate his “team” in the face of dire circumstances and insurmountable odds, he chose the right brain/creative path of painting a picture of what that team meant to him and what they could accomplish if they worked together.  By reclaiming their own “story”–a Dan Pink emphasis for the new economy www.danpink.com– (their inherent traits and talents), the animals were able to band together to accomplish their goals.  Mr. Fox’s leadership skills are very 21st Century.

The other element of this story that struck me is how it mirrors our current situation.  Fox progresses from the pursuit of comfort and status to being grateful for diminishing resources and shelter.  At each point that his situation worsens, he finds the silver lining and emphasizes THAT to his community.  In the end, they are still have to scrap and scrape and are living in the sewer, but they are happy because of their positive perspective.

In your left brain you are all about YOU. In your RIGHT you are tapped into the global mind, the “one big happy family” and everything is working out perfectly.

Fox’s path may hold a key to our own survival in 2010 and beyond.  Might some of us have to learn how to thrive and live fulfilled lives with less?  Getting to know your right brain voice, or Artist Within, gives you so much more opportunity to maximize the potential of your mind and synergize both the left and right hemispheres.  Feeling overwhelmed or do you want to just give up?  You are surely in left brain mode.  Click on the Creativity Workouts category in this blog to learn how you can make the shift from left to right brain thinking.  Turn feelings of hopelessness into HOPE!

Check out Tina Seelig’s blog, Creativity Rulz, on the Psychology Today wewbsite: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/creativityrulz/200911/its-all-in-your-head

She writes about the power we have to interpret the same situation so many different ways, just by how we choose to look at it.  “It’s All in Your Head” is the title of the blog entry.  Mr. Fox “got it”.  Cheers to a Happy New Year–one filled with exciting opportunities, change and new beginnings!

Mythic Balinese Barong Dragon

Following graduation from Yale School of Drama, I received a grant to study ritualistic mask dancing with village master teachers in Bali and India, via a Fox Foundation Fellowship. That was a journey that absolutely changed my life. Prior to going on this trip, I worried, having just graduated from Yale and having entered the market, if it was the wisest thing for me to go on an overseas travel, to leave the city and go frolicking in Asia. What auditions or opportunities might I miss? I felt tremendous pressure—most of which was imagined—about what my classmates and faculty expected from me. It took me a good amount of time to get over that nonsense.  

I figured, “Well, I got the grant and really want to go and have to return it if I do not complete the grant within a year”, so I decided I would blow through for a couple weeks, see what I needed to see and come back—a whirlwind through Indonesia and India in two weeks! However, when I landed in Asia, my mind was so completely blown, that I felt compelled to stay, to take in this world that was so very foreign to my consciousness and see how I might develop as an artist. Two weeks turned into a year. I was definitely on the unconventional path.

Again, I was, at the time, terrified that I was not playing the game and following the path, as I should be. I had great anxiety about that for the first couple months. But at the same time, there was something else driving me. I was on an adventure. I had just undergone a transformation—from student in a highly structured environment, to being out of school for the first time in my life and…finding myself in a strange land. I had no idea what might happen next, what opportunity might arise, what experience my alter my perception, what surreal event I might stumble into (and believe me there were many). I felt a calling and, despite my great anxiety, I committed and stayed.

I traveled through Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Hong Kong and India, observing ritualistic theatre, throughout.

I had the time of my life and experienced things, to this day, which I marvel to have experienced. It has served as one of the great moments of the “shaping of my life” and forever altered how I view theatre and art.

The bulk of the year I lived in Asia was spent on the surreal land of the Antipodes, otherwise known as Taiwan. I love the dualistic nature of Taiwan. A close friend of mine, on a second trip there, said that being on the streets of Taiwan was like being on a prolonged acid trip. A complete assault on the senses. The sounds, smells, food, traffic, people. They say La Formosa (The Island a.k.a. Taiwan) went from sandals to Mercedes in fifty years, literally. It went from being an Aboriginal culture, 50 miles or so off of the coast of China, to a refuge for Chiang Kai Shek and the 2,000,000 Chinese he brought with him, in losing China to Mao. They figured they would retake the mainland, after they reconfigured on this aboriginal island. Consequently, their construction was built with impermanence in mind. Often, I felt that I was living in the movie Blade Runner. In typhoons (hurricanes), the sheet metal they used as make shift roofs would blow off and fly through the air like a spinning razor blade.

The country is pulled between its ancient Chinese and Aboriginal traditions and its drive for all things modern, contemporary and capitalistic in nature. Generally speaking, I found the Taiwan to be a very spiritual people, but very aware of the value of finance and hard work. They are, generally speaking, a good people and I fell in love with the culture.

It was in Taiwan that I first perceived what “theatre of necessity” is. This sort of theatre is one that is vital to the needs of its community, culture, religious beliefs and practices. As a function, art has, basically forever, served to educate a populace, give its people and youth a sense of belonging, cultural identity and community. It is through such theatre that youth gain insight into the symbolic dream world of myth. There is a populace in Taiwan, who follow this theatre, as it is meaningful to them and addresses their spiritual needs. Note the key word “needs”.

Theatre there, typically erupts on the streets. I would know something was afoot when I would hear the firecrackers or gongs. If I followed the music and street dancing, I would typically run into twelve foot tall marching puppets, with face paint inspired by their mythic characters in Chinese opera, their long, hinged arms, swinging as they marched down the streets. At other times, I would see Taoist priests flogging themselves in a ritualistic self-sacrifice. These entranced monks would, with a club covered in triangular-shaped razors, whale upon their own naked flesh. Another priest might blow a dust, of nature foreign to me, into the entranced priests face. The priest would pause, grimace, and continue his entranced dance and then Pow! Another blow. It was an elaborate ritualistic celebration and street passersby’s would become captivated and enthralled by this dramatic self-mutilation, and would then follow the procession.

I was so inspired in Asia, that I began writing. I wrote an original one person show, backed by a five piece, multi-cultural band. I traveled with this show throughout Taiwan, generating much-needed cash, at the time. Also, I assisted in establishing the largest theatre festival in the history of Taiwan, a multi-cultural, multi-day event called The World-wide Art Collective (Wacfest). This festival’s principle goal was to draw theatrical and dance artists from varied countries of the world, to share their work and lay ground for potential future collaborations. I believe sixteen countries of the world were represented in that first year. The festival continues to have a life, these many years later and can be learned more about at wacfest.org.

The experience of Asia, absolutely opened my mind, as to what theatre is, has been forever, and what it might become. My Stanislavski based training and traditional theatrical upbringing was turned on its ear.

I did not know what I would get out of Asia, but in retrospect, I see it was a vision quest.

In another post, I will speak about the beauty and surreal ness of Bali. It is no wonder that so many truly great and legendary theatre visionaries/directors have spent time on this enchanting Bali. Truly, Bali is one of the more beautiful cultures and islands of the world. From personal experience, I believe Bali to have a special energy about it—what I describe as a spiritual gravity. Perhaps some places in the world have more than others. More on that later…Shamans and cremation ceremonies, Topeng mask dancers and monkey forests with six-foot wing spanned bats flying overhead.

I have since traveled to twenty countries of the world, typically participating in or studying theatre or dance in each.

Jim Hart is the founder of The Hart Technique   www.harttechnique.com and   The International Theatre Academy Norway  (TITAN Teaterskole)

-Tim Frawley,Theatre Director, Libertyville High School

The high school I attended had an ongoing tradition of inviting elderly citizens from the community to come see dress rehearsals so that they didn’t have to pay full price for tickets on performance nights. The laughter and applause of an elderly audience was never as loud or as enthusiastic as an audience full of our families and peers, but at least the house was full. As students and as artists, it was very easy to feel doubtful. Here we were in dress rehearsal on the verge of a production that we’d worked very hard on in front of an audience and the first time. We were projecting ourselves out into a darkened auditorium and hoping for some kind of response. We had no way of knowing whether all our hard work resulted in something we could be proud of unless we could hear the audience laugh at the jokes. And sometimes we didn’t even get that satisfaction.

In such unforgiving economic times it is easy to feel that dress-rehearsal doubt. We cross our fingers and tell ourselves to “break a leg” because we don’t even want to risk frightening away good luck. When we take risks, whether as an artist or as an entrepreneur, we put ourselves out on stage under bright lights staring out into a vast darkened empty space with no way of knowing whether anyone is watching. We have no way of knowing whether we are succeeding or failing except by the responses that we get from other people. And like in theatre, sometimes that response never comes.

If we’re wise, we carry on even in the face of apparent apathy. At times like this, when the auditorium in which we perform seems to be dark and empty and vast we may not be able to see our audience but we need to remember they are there. The audience is seeing us because we are there to be seen. And they are smiling as loudly as they can.

Students have some of the coolest ideas. With their permission, I’m sharing some information about the six awardees with you all. Yes, it’s a little bit of bragging, but it’s also sharing some of the interesting ideas that we’ll be mentoring and supporting in the months to come. (And, yes, there were a few proposals that just made you roll your eyes, but those were very few.) A lot of proposals were for projects that could be termed “social entrepreneurship” as much as “arts entrepreneurship,” a combination I find both interesting and hopeful.
With that, I bring you the Fall 2009 p.a.v.e. awardees:
Join and Cast Ventures: Two Art (Intermedia) students, Jennifer C. and Catherine A., are producing a field guide to the downtown Phoenix arts scene that is itself a work of art.
Radio Healer: Led by Arts, Media Engineering (AME) graduate student Christopher M., Radio Healer presents mediated performances that foster intercultural dialogue in Native communities.
Dance and Health Together Awards: Led by undergraduate Dance major Mary P., the DaHT Awards is a combination of dance recognition award and fundraising enterprise benefiting the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Co-op Film Productions – Film and Media Production/Marketing student Chelsea R. and her team are creating a support infrastructure for student collaboration across arts and design disciplines.
Different from What? Film Festival – AME graduate student Lisa T. in collaboration with Education student Federico W. is producing a film festival focused on films by, for, and about adults with disabilities.

Scratch Theory – Filmmaking Practices major Chris G. and his collaborators are developing a software/hardware interface that will first notate and then play back via synthesizer DJ scratching.

In our present day economy, our US greenbacks are no longer based in precious metal. Rather, they are based in what we say they are. Such is the advantage of being a super power. Though…that is likely to change with time…

Money is a Symbol of Energy.

Money is a Symbol of Energy.

Paper money. Is it not just an agreed upon symbol?

I like to think of money as being a symbol of energy.

People exert energy (working) to earn money (a symbol of energy).

When one has money, they can exchange the paper for other peoples’ services (or their energy). One can also trade this paper for goods (which required energy on other peoples’ part, to construct).

The more money we have, the more energy we can put into action. The less money, the less energy we can put into action. To gain money, our exertion of energy must be of value to others. Is that not what entrepreneurship is partly about—providing value—while assuming risk for financial gain?

I think a lot of artists think of money as something that they either have or do not. This lack of money, often controls whether or not they will work at all. I find that to be a shame and lacking in imagination.

Altering one’s perspective on money can enable one to think of ways to develop value for others. What services or goods can you provide, which will cause others to want to give you their symbols of energy?

What value can you offer? What value might you offer?

Jim Hart is the founder of The Hart Technique and The International Theatre Academy Norway. For more on Hart, see   www.harttechnique.com

The creativity competency here for you to build is flexibility, which includes your ability to break out of a paradigm or mindset that you may not realize you’re stuck in. Here’s a mindset challenge I like to offer in my creativity sessions:
A great mathematician determined that half of eight can actually be zero. How is that possible?

If you can’t figure this out immediately (usually only about 1/3 of people can), it means you need to change the way you’re thinking, which researchers refer to as “breaking set” or “blockbusting.” I call this the skill of shifting–your perspective, your lens, sometimes even your attitude. Understanding and consciously flexing our multiple intelligences is one way to do just that.

Multiple Intelligence theory, widely accepted in the world of education, came out of the work of Harvard researcher Howard Gardner, a great paradigm-shifter himself, who studied prodigies and people with brain damage to build his theory that intelligence cannot be measured as a single entity. In addition to the IQ-associated S.A.T. intelligences–mathematical/logical and verbal–he delineated at least six other autonomous intelligences that all healthy people possess, but not necessarily in equal strengths. They include the four above–visual-spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal and bodily-kinesthetic–as well two others, auditory-musical and natural. These intelligences are quite different from each other–thus you can be great with words and terrible at math, smart in your head but not smart in the world. The key to understand about intelligences is that we are all smart. But it’s how we are smart that matters, especially when it comes to our flexibility and creativity. Flexibly acessing different intelligences is not only a hallmark of creative people, but it is also essential for teachers and presenters who need to engage people who learn differently.

Consciously shifting your intelligence is a technique I use in brainstorming/ideation sessions to get you to think in ways you hadn’t considered. When you’re stuck, ask yourself, “What if I think about this visually or interpersonally or naturally?” Most creative business breakthroughs–ranging from wearing your music to the latest software program, from an experiential marketing campaign to the new restaurant that feels like it’s outdoors–come from insight originating from a flexibility among intelligences, a movement from logical to visual, from words to moods, from the man-made to the natural.

Now back to our mindset challenge. To figure out why half of eight is zero, just shift from your mathematical intelligence to your visual…

For more from Adam, go to his Innovation on my Mind blog…

When I was six years old, my father took me to a violin shop. Some years later, I was told by my grandmother that this trip was inspired by a performance given by a medical resident at the beginning of a conference. Although my initial attitude to the violin was care-free, I always liked music as a child. I remember dancing around the living room to my mom’s piano playing. In fact, there are somewhat embarrassing home videos of me twirling around in circles to a recording of a march by John Philip Sousa.

Soon after the violin was purchased, my parents enrolled me in the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Suzuki Method program – a philosophy that encourages a nurturing approach to learning. Practicing was always encouraged through positive affirmation. The teachers instilled in me the joy of a job well done through stickers, candy, and other prizes. I will also never forget the “play-ins”, where scores of violinists would perform together for an audience of parents and friends, at least twice a year. It was this carrot and stick approach to practicing, coupled with the social aspect of making music together, that would eventually grow on me progressively, yet deliberately.

As I matured into my teenage years, I started to recognize that I had an ability to communicate that made me unique. Whether it was the joy people felt of watching a young violinist and his mother on the piano, or the power of the music I played, people were moved by my performances. Around the time I started applying to colleges I remember thinking “This is what I want to do. I want to move people and influence them positively through my music”. Looking back, I now realize that I wanted to inspire people the way I was inspired. Yet, I didn’t quite know how this was possible. Could the mere act of playing for an audience really create a long-lasting impression?

The short answer is “no”. My four years at the New England Conservatory in Boston were a wake-up call. I realized that although I was gifted, there are plenty of amazing musicians out there who were trying to “make it” purely as performers. We were trained to be soloists and orchestral musicians. We were also told, quite often, that despite our wonderful education, the field of music was horribly competitive and that the ideas that most of us had of how to “make it” were, unfortunately, outdated. I recall spending many nights and many discussions with my colleagues worrying about the future of classical music. Yet, I saw a glimmer of hope. In my last year, I started to teach a private student. Little did I know that this would develop into a passion, later on.

My next stage was a two year Masters program at the Royal College of Music in London. While the earlier pessimism about performing still remained, a voice inside me kept saying, “You’re not finished! You haven’t reached your full potential yet. Keep practicing and be a performer!” This was followed by an additional three years of concerts and coursework at Boston University in the Doctor of Musical Arts Program.

The Boston University program consisted of a rigorous curriculum of solo recitals, regular orchestral playing, chamber music, music theory, and music history. I came out of this program incredibly well rounded.

In tandem with my studies at BU, I also taught for two years at the Powers Music School – a small community-based institution that provides lessons for adults and children. Pivotally, I learned that I could communicate and inspire the way I had always wanted to, not only through performing, but through teaching as well. A further year of teaching in the public schools of Birmingham, England, helped me to confirm the fact that teaching is truly is a medium that enables me to transmit the life-long inspiration that I so longed to impart.

Back in Boston, I now find myself at a crucial juncture. I have just finished my doctorate degree and am teaching privately. I am also preparing to play private concerts in a few months. I am doing exactly what I want to do with my life. This is one of the most wonderful blessings one can ask for. Yet, I now need to create capital and use my talents in a way that is marketable.

It appears more and more likely that my dual-approach to performing and teaching will play a large role in my future. I am thinking very strongly about starting my own school one day. I want to teach all ages, as I have done, and I want to build an audience. I believe that directing my own school could allow me to inspire people, just as I have always wanted to do.

Yet, what I believe makes me unique is my unwavering conviction that music lessons have the ability to transcend the instrument. With the right faculty, a whole new approach to learning can be taught. As the pedagogue Shinichi Suzuki said, too many of us were “damaged by the wrong kind of education” . It is my belief that I have what it takes to find that crucial equilibrium between inspiration and discipline. The best teachers and mentors do not spoon-feed. Nor do they impose their ways. Rather, they empower individuals through a careful balancing act of praise and patient firmness. It is this “I can” attitude that creates the character traits necessary for success in any discipline.

written by Dr. Daniel Broniatowski.
www.musicteachersboston.com

For one week, millions from around the world will join a growing movement of entrepreneurial individuals, to generate new ideas and to seek better ways of doing things. Countries across six continents are coming together to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week, an initiative to inspire young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity. To think big. To turn their ideas into reality. To make their mark.

Are You Ready to Make YOUR Mark?????

There are no geographic or socioeconomic boundaries to Global Entrepreneurship Week. Anyone can participate:

How Can You Get Involved?

Get involved today at the Global Entrepreneurship Week web site, www.unleashingideas.org.

The process of choosing the perfect graduate school can be both exhilarating and scary, as you consider the next phase of your life.  But many artists approach this challenge with a faulty set of assumptions, while failing to explore the most important question. 

Assumption #1: Grad school is non-negotiable

In many fields within the arts world, there is a notion that advanced degrees are requisite.   It’s not even a debate.  That’s just what we do.  Master’s Degree, then Artist Diploma, and then in many cases, the Doctorate. 

Now, I’m not one to prescribe one path over another. If you decide to pursue advanced degrees, I wish you the best.  But before signing up, ask yourself why.  What’s your true motivation?

One student justified her rationale this way: She read a study showing that people with advanced degrees earned more than those with just an undergrad education.  However, while these statistics may be true as sweeping generalizations, we need to dig further. Do alumni from medical schools, law schools, and MBA programs tend to earn more than those with just undergrad instruction?  Definitely.  Can the same case be made for artists?  Probably not.  In fact, many artists with multiple advanced degrees can’t even land a job.  (Maybe it’s time to become a bit savvier…)

Others claim that advanced training is essential in order to have more time to improve their artistic skills.  Fair enough.  Arts school is a great place to do this.  But when you’re a better practicioner, in two or four or ten years, with all kinds of diplomas on your wall, then what?  Will these outstanding skills entitle you to professional success?  And if improved technique is your solitary goal, why not just take private lessons?

In my experience, here’s the number one reason arts students go to grad school: to postpone the inevitable.  To buy a few more years before they have to earn a living, start paying back student loans, and grapple with “grown-up” issues.  Music school may be challenging, but at least it’s familiar and safe.

There are all kinds of paths to a successful life, and not all require advanced degrees.  Be honest with yourself.  If your primary motivator for attending grad school is that you don’t know what else to do, and you’re too scared of the real world, seriously consider taking some time off.  Use that occasion to determine what you truly want from life, and architect a solid plan for getting there.

There are many wonderful reasons for enrolling in graduate programs in the arts.  Denial is not one of them.

Assumption #2: Only the people who go to the “best” schools will succeed

In the past, the very act of listing a famous school on your resume could open doors.  “Wow, she went to [Juilliard, Eastman, Yale, Indiana University, other prestigious school]!  She must be good!” 

But times and attitudes have changed.  Most people now realize that a wide variety of institutions are capable of providing quality educations, which is absolutely true.  They also understand that even the most famous schools have produced duds and incompetents. 

So instead of focusing solely on the “where,” employers and other opportunity providers are more interested in the kinds of experiences you’ve had.  Did you study abroad?  Tour?  Win the concerto competition? Make recordings?  Initiate an art exhibit? Intern with the ballet? Found a service organization?

Of course, you should still choose a great school.  But different environments are good for different things.  Make sure you know why the school you choose is outstanding, and take full advantage of it.  The best opportunities often lie beyond the obvious choices. 

Assumption #3: The most important aspect when choosing a grad school is your private instructor

Working closely with a strong and revered private mentor can be a wonderful process.  But (if you’re doing things right) many more aspects contribute to your educational success beyond private lessons.  These additional factors should be considered as well, and weighed heavily in your decision.

One of my music students is currently applying to doctoral schools.  As we discussed options, he kept focusing on the teachers at various institutions, as if that were the primary consideration.  But here’s the deal…He is already an astounding player.  There’s no gig in the world where observers would reflect, “You know, this guy just isn’t good enough.” 

But there are many other skills and experiences he desperately needs, and shortcomings that should be addressed: recording, touring, marketing, booking gigs, etc.  He doesn’t yet have a website, hasn’t commissioned much, and still needs to figure out his brand and what makes him different from the competition.  In my view, while a good private teacher would be nice for this student, it should be a pretty low priority item. 

Even if you still have to get your artistic chops together (as most of us do), many additional factors beyond the private teacher should be considered when researching graduate programs.

In Part 2 of this series, I will unveil the most important question to ask when looking at grad schools.

RELATED POSTS:

• Choosing the Perfect Grad School: Part 2 (not yet available)
• Average Student, Entrepreneurial Student
• An Essential Question When Applying to Arts School

Love music, but hate to starve? Hoping to achieve more success with your career? Visit www.SavvyMusician.com for a Resource Center with 1000+links, valuable articles, info on the most relevant music career book in print, and more.

More than sixty activist artists, community artists, and creative organizers took part in a conversation with the White House.

The public dialogue on the arts and our national economic and cultural recovery is one in which all of us should and can have a voice.  Some of our most thoughtful cultural leaders have been bringing this public dialogue directly to the White House.  The exchanges there and elsewhere have fermented the drafting of new frameworks document for the arts in the context of what is being called “The Public Purpose”.   The document is authored first to last by a brave contingent of artists and cultural leaders committed to the arts and the potency of their survival their value to all of us in a democracy. 

The first part of this argument is where do you draw the line between projects from your personal life vs projects from your professional life? For instance, this coming year I will be planning a wedding. A wedding is a Big Deal that will take up a lot of time and resources. In fact producing a film and producing a wedding involve largely the same resources and the same kind of time commitment. The only difference is that a wedding is a personal project while a film is a professional project.

The problem is time. As C.S. Lewis says:  ” The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is. “  There is only so much time in the day and only so many days in a year. Do I choose to commit that time to a personal project or to a professional one? If I choose to only work on a personal project such as a wedding I lose my professional momentum from having films in production or in the festival circuit. On the other hand, if I commit myself entirely to a film and neglect my personal life then who am I but a sum of my work?

Is it really too much to ask to have both? Are personal projects and professional projects mutually exclusive? At what point do you begin to sacrifice one for the other?  I don’t have answers for these questions. I would like to think that the line between professional and personal is not as distinct as we like to think that it is. I would like to think that my profession is part of who I am personally, not just something that I do during the 9 to 5. I would like to believe that my personal life is equally important to my professional work as the films I produce.

So how much is too much? To work in a creative industry is to reach deep down inside your personal self and to develop something expressive and innovative and sincere through hard work and collaboration.  To separate the personal from the professional is what makes work overwhelming.

Think about the things that only money can buy—a better education for you or someone in your family; medicine to bring health of comfort to a parent who is gravely ill, or maybe a beautiful ring for the girl you want to marry. Are these things possible without money—99 percent of the time, the answer to that question is no. Too bad no one has invented a “money tree” just yet. Sure would make life easier, wouldn’t it?

Yet as important and vital as money is in our lives we often don’t stop to consider the long-term effect our values and beliefs about money will have on the outcome of our lives and our careers.

Let’s face it; to a great extent, our financial resources determine what our lives will be like. The amount of money you earn effects most options and choices that are available to you: where you live, the number of children you can afford to raise in the way you envision, how much you can save for your retirement, where you travel, and what kind of car you drive.

Your bank account balance determines where you can or cannot shop, how much discretionary spending you have as well as what kinds of experiences in life you can have that only money can buy. While creativity may be priceless the MasterCard ™ bill is due at the end of the month and if you cannot pay it in full easily, eventually the way you live will have to change.

To fully develop an economically freeing life through your artistry requires a very close examination of what your true belief system is about money and where those values and your career goals intersect.

A Dollar for Your Thoughts

Maybe you were raised in a family that offered money as an allowance, in exchange for doing household chores, or for making good grades. Maybe you grew up in an environment where you were given money sporadically “just because”, or maybe you come from a household where there wasn’t enough money to go around and from a very early age, you had to earn whatever you needed and wanted on your own, or do with out entirely.

As children, it is likely there were times when we felt over-paid and other times when we felt that we weren’t paid enough. Rarely in either situation, young in life, do we reflect on how those early experiences shaped our feelings about money, or how they affected our feelings about our own worth—how they made us feel valued or less valued.

Think about your earliest memory of being paid for a job. What was the value of that money to you then? How did earning it make you feel?

Did you feel valued, important, excited, depressed, taken advantage of? How did receiving that money for the work you did ( or didn’t do) made you feel?

Just as the first few years of life are important in the development of a child, the first few years you earn money shape your views on money for the rest of your life.

My first job was working for my father, a criminal attorney, when I was 10 years old. My father’s office had lots of filing to do. My job was to alphabetize personal files and organize business expense receipts by date. It was challenging work for a ten-year-old, but I did it.

My father paid me $3.50 per hour in 1974 (minimum wage was $2.00 per hour), and I liked the job because I felt I was really doing something important to help my father and his clients. I looked forward to going to work with him on Saturdays to do “my job” and felt a great deal of pride when he told me how easy it was for him to locate information after organized a client file. I also liked that my father always paid me right on time.

My father was teaching me that the work I did was valuable and that a job well done should be well rewarded; and paying me promptly made me feel that way.

Our feelings about money are often deeply embedded in our past and that impression affects our future efforts to earn money if we don’t take the time to look at our “money value” system as re-evaluate our attitudes later on in adult life.

The Faces of Money

“My Mom did not think I did a good job cleaning the house” Doris told me, “so she would only pay me half of what she promised. I didn’t think it was fair because she never told me what she expected me to do in the first place. ”

Now in her thirties, Doris has trouble paying her bills because she can’t keep a job. Doris told me recently” What’s the point! Everyone I have ever worked for takes advantage of me, so I only do what it takes to get by and if they fire me they fire me!” Doris has no respect for herself or for doing a quality job thanks to how her mother treated her when she cleaned her family home a long time ago. If only Doris could develop some self awareness and see what her past has done to shape her money values so that she could reshape them into something more helpful for her life.

Mary, on the other hand, hated to part with money. As a child she would hide her allowance under her bed and often would claim to her family that she had either spent it or lost it. A number of times her father felt sorry for her and gave her another allowance to replace the one she lost.

Later in life Mary had not changed her ways much. She often refuses to turn on the lights to save on the electric bill frequently the house is either freezing or stifling hot because she won’t run the furnace or start the air conditioning. Joe, her son and a friend of mine in school, grew up acting just like his mom. I don’t know how many times I bought him lunch because he said he never had any money; of course he never paid me back.

Joe went on to become an entrepreneur and opened a bunch of movie theaters. One day he called me and asked me if I needed a loan. I asked him why? He said, “Well I have been skimming money from the theaters for over forty years now and I have more then a million dollars under my mattress not earning interest. I thought you might help me out by borrowing some of it and paying me interest.”

Like Mother like son. We formulate our personal monetary value system for everything from what we see and how it makes us feel.

Francis sat with her family at her grandmother Annie’s funeral. Everyone expected Annie, her grandmother and her father’s mother, to die; after all she was 94. But as Francis, who was 13 at the time, sat there what she heard deeply upset her. “ Well now that Annie’s is gone, I bet my sister Jean, since she is the executor to my mothers will, is going to get the lions share of Annie’s estate.

Yeah, Jean has been sweet talking Annie for the last six months just waiting for her to die. I wouldn’t even be surprised if she got her to change her will over the past few months,” barked the harsh words of Francis’ father.

Francis adored her father, idolizing him in every way. But in that moment, and for every moment for the rest of her life, Francis always heard those horrible words come from her father’s lips and it changed her dramatically. Francis never felt exactly the same way ever again about her father or about money.

Francis went on to drop out of high school and life. Last time someone heard from her she was walking the streets homeless and high on crack.

As these “every-person” stories attest, money and what it is capable of doing in life can be dramatic and life-defining.

Monkey See; Money Do

Usually we learn about money and its purposeful and less than purposeful uses from families, friends, and teachers as we are raised and schooled. Depending especially on our family’s attitudes toward money that education may be well-defined and intentional or it can be haphazard, casual, or for that matter there might be no money training at all.

Unfortunately the national statistics about the development of financial literary are not encouraging. For example, more than half of us are not putting aside enough to maintain our present standard of living upon retirement. By the year 2010, 78 million Americans will be 65 or older. One in three has no retirement savings; according to Senator Paul Sarbanes, Maryland, Chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.
Additional statistics from the Office of Investor Education and Assistance, Securities and Exchange Commission www.sec.gov/investor.shtml conclude that:
• Only 5% of investors believe they know everything they need to know to make good investment decisions.
• The personal saving rate went negative for the first time ever in 2005. Americans are spending $100.50 for every $100.00 they bring home.
• Only 32% of American parents talk to their children regularly about personal finance.
• 20% of employees are unable to carry out normal work activities three days per week due to financial concerns.
• 2 out of 3 households will probably not be able to accomplish one of their major life goals because they did not plan for the future.

As these statistics indicate, most of us are not taught or raised with any sense of how to handle money, so it is more our own experiences than any outside teaching or instruction that drive our decisions, values, and future outlook on what money can and can’t do for us and for the future of our lives.

If you decide being independent and building your own arts based venture is for you, you are going to come smack up against your money value system and need to not only know where you stand, but access if your ideas are productive and helpful to the creation of your venture. Ongoing Arts Entrepreneurship Training can really help you work through your relationship with money and learn how to use your current value system, or the new one you shape, to serve you productively in your personal and professional creative life.

Brainstorming. What a great word. For me, it conjures up a storm in the mind. Electricity. One of my favorite acts to engage in, in the creative process, is collective brainstorming. It is an act that can generate phenomenal inspiration and can generate ideas that would not have been possible, without this contribution of multiple minds.

In building my first school, TITAN Teaterskole (in Oslo, Norway), I created a course that was exclusively dedicated to the act of collective brainstorming. I called it Studio Lab.

Here are are some foundation rules that we found especially strong in stimulating constructive brainstorming:

o   Egos must be checked at the door. Each individual in the group needs to sacrifice their personal motivations and desires, in order to act in the service of the larger group/project/idea. We must let go of emotional connection to ideas we come up with or get excited about. In the words of legendary choreographer Martha Graham, “We must kill our children”. I believe she means that we must sometimes sacrifice those ideas that our personal treasures. It is very easy to become married to an idea. Sometimes, in order to create our larger work and to make it as strong as possible, we must kill or sacrifice ideas that we love the most.

o    There is no “right”. There is no “wrong”. There is only what we create. What we create today will be different from what we create tomorrow. Why put value on it so early in the process? One thing for sure…collaboration is a process of evolution. It is a process of change. Sometimes our creations are built upon seemingly non-connected ideas. Sometimes our best impulses are sitting on a foundation of others’ ideas. Ideas are born upon one another.

o    Don’t censor yourself. As long as we are judging and censoring our ideas, they will not see the light of day. Sometimes, we come up with an idea that we are reluctant to share. In such an environment, why would we be reluctant? Typically, it is because we fear the judgment of others. Here is one of my favorite Martha Graham Quotes:

There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.
And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable it is nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you.
Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive.

~Martha Graham to Agnes  de Mille

Jim Hart is the founder of The International Theatre Academy Norway and The Hart Technique.  www.harttechnique.com

To learn more about IAE check out our website. Applications for early enrollment are now being accepted.

Baaahhhh!

In Australia, it is called “Tall Poppy Syndrome” (the tallest poppies get cut). In Scandinavia, it is called Jante Loven (or Jante’s Law). Many countries weave a societal pressure into their cultural fabric, teaching youth to not stand out, to fit in, and to tow the community party line. The goal of such behavior is to promote a sense of “equality”, cultural identity and a feeling that everyone is equal.

However, what these phenomenon’s spell out to me, is a social goal of mediocrity. Shoot for the middle. If you are in the middle, you might feel that that you are gaining a sense of security.

Such social pressures are not only present down under and in the far north. It is found in many countries of the world, including America. Any public high school student can tell you about the social pressures they face in school—to not be different, to not stand out. One may argue, “Well, that is in high school—not adult life”. To such thinking, I would point out that our adult personality and believes stand on the shoulders of our experience as youth. Then I would point out the popularity of homeowners’ associations.

As individuals, at some point, each of us must ask the question of ourselves, “Will I commit the ‘the system’ and tow the party line or will I create my own path, follow my own instincts, be the individual I am”?

Will I fit into the flock and be a sheep or will I go a different way and be a wolf?

Mediocrity stifles creative opportunity and prohibits innovation. After all, in order to innovate, we must step outside of “the typical”, outside of our societal and cultural norms.

One of the things I love about the burgeoning discipline of Entrepreneurial Arts Training is that it is a system that pushes people to strive for their personal best, to overcome obstacles, to obtain their dreams, to compete in the market and to innovate, to fill cultural gaps, to serve something more than ourselves, and to promote change as we go.

Certainly, the goal for entrepreneurs is, at times, to overcome the competition (after all, they must vie for the limited audience and resources that may be out there). But what I love is that the discipline demands that the entrepreneur strive for excellence. There is just too much competition out there to do anything less than one’s personal best. Entrepreneurial Arts Training pushes artists to push themselves, to realize vision. Realizing vision demands a commitment to adventure and adventure has a way of pushing people beyond their understood limitations and comfort zones.

Be honest with yourself. Are you operating at your personal best, your highest sense of self? If yes, I applaud you. Many don’t. If you answered, “No”, ask yourself,  “Why Not”? What steps can you take, today, to alter your course, to put yourself into motion towards realizing your highest potential?

Here is a tip on discovering what that is:  Listen to that voice within—not the one that judges (the watcher at the gates of the mind), but the one that instinctively knows right from wrong. That voice will tell you. It knows your potential. Get into a dialog with that voice and listen, listen, listen.

But, here is a tricky thing about that voice… Sometimes it tells us things that we do not want to hear. It sometimes has a way of demanding change—change of action and change of self. That voice can push us very hard and knows if we did our best or if we settled for mediocrity.

Are you willing to listen to that voice and push down the judgmental one, “the watcher”? Are you willing to step outside of a possible herd mentality? Are you willing to accept uncertainty and a need for change and operate from your own values, desires and interests?

If you said, “Yes” to all of these things, you may have the makings of an entrepreneur.

Jim Hart is the founder of The Hart Technique, The International Theatre Academy Norway, and Sleeping Hero Productions, LLC.    www.harttechnique.com and   sleepinghero.com

Unfortunately, no.  Not by a long shot.  But you surely realize this already. 

Being talented is wonderful, but technical skills alone do not assure a successful life in this business! Savvy artists have huge advantages over the others, and it’s no mystery why. They work pro-actively to build their career, making smart choices that allow them to earn a good living, and make a positive difference. In addition to outstanding artistic ability, the savviest artists:

1. Dream big
2. Think creatively
3. Take risks and are willing to fail (or even succeed!)
4. Create opportunities where they don’t exist
5. Understand the nuts and bolts of the business
6. Invent remarkable products
7. Distinguish their work
8. Take the initiative
9. Follow through
10. Build a strong brand
11. Prioritize both content AND presentation
12. Market extraordinarily
13. Comprehend money matters
14. Fundraise effectively
15. Educate powerfully
16. Embrace technology
17. Excel with people skills
18. Maintain a strong network
19. Assemble an outstanding team
20. Leave a legacy

Obviously, few people are experts in every category above.  When a weakness occurs, you have three options: 1) develop the skill (costs energy), 2) hire someone else to help (costs money), or 3) forfeit opportunities (costs success).  But most people who architect a fulfilling life in music exhibit many of these characteristics.

My new book, The Savvy Musician: Building a Career, Earning a Living, & Making a Difference (officially released today, though pre-release copies have been available for a few months), tackles each of these issues.  Though focusing on musicians, lessons taught apply directly to artists of all disciplines.  This comprehensive resource is packed with detailed strategies for success alongside examples of real life role models.  Whether hoping to augment income, stand out from a competitive field, add variety to activities, or erect an empire, The Savvy Musician will help you find ways to thrive under any circumstances. 

But it’s only a book.  As Ranaan Meyer, bassist of Time for Three, noted: 

“The Savvy Musician unveils a vision for a healthy [artistic] future, articulating 99% of what we need to do.  The missing percentage is YOU.”

 Isn’t it time you became a savvy artist?

To learn more about “The Savvy Musician,” and for a wide array of free resources, visit www.SavvyMusician.com.

Shall we celebrate with a virtual party? Take a sip of something bubbly, steaming or thirst quenching and lets flip through some memories together. And as for the cake, you can have the first piece.

Here is a link to my very first post, Hello World! (I launched ETA on my father’s birthday, Nov 1st, in honor of his memory and entrepreneurial journey throughout his life.)

Here is my post from our first birthday party….

Our second birthday was celebrated with the launch of The ETA competition with our first entry, Brian Owens. Although Eli Epstein was our first contest winner, this marked the beginning of a number of fine entries to the competition. We still hope for more of you to enter before the 2nd, and final competition, ends on December 31st, 2009.

I am so happy that ETA is finally three- there is a reason for the expression ” the terrible two’s.” The development of a child and a venture have a similar road map. The first two years of life are about survival, rapid growth and evolution, experimentation and a lot of “Ah-Ha” moments! These are important developmental years and the lessons we learn and “roots” we plant tend to greatly shape our future.

Thanks for reminiscing with me a bit.

I hope to share the first few birthdays of your (ad)venture with you. That is why I am launching The Institute for Arts Entrepreneurship™– for your ideas to be supported, nurtured and developed to come to life too!

In celebration of our 3rd birthday, The Institute for Arts Entrepreneurship™ website will launch this week. Stay tuned.

Support a Worthy Artist’s Entrepreneurial Development
We are now selling this button for $1.00 or whatever you feel comfortable donating. We are selling them to fundraise for scholarships for arts entrepreneurship training for a worthy artist to attend IAE.

Because all IEA students will partake in building their own Bite-Size Arts Ensemble™ to develop their own entrepreneurial imaginations and those in the community, I am asking you to make your donation to The Bite-Size Arts Ensemble support fund. Your donation is tax deductible. ETA and The Bite-Size Arts Ensemble™ are both a 501c3. To buy one and make a donation click here.

I’ve been doing some research lately on measures of the fiscal health of not-for-profit arts organizations, especially theatres. This got me thinking about the factors that support the fiscal health of individual artists and arts entrepreneurs. In a 2001 article, Mark Hager examines four measures of fiscal stability – of the ability of an organization to withstand the kinds of economic shocks we’ve experience over the last twelve months. (He adapted these from some earlier work by Tuckman and Chang.)

The four measures are: equity balance, revenue concentration, administrative cost, and operating margin.
How can we translate these four organizational measures into something useful for individual artists and arts entrepreneurs? Here is some of my preliminary thinking:

1. Equity balance. It’s always nice to have some money in the bank. From a practical standpoint, having a cushion in the bank can help support the artist in lean times. Building up that cushion during lean times is difficult but should be a priority during the fat times. I even think there’s a story about that somewhere regarding Joseph and a pharaoh’s dreams.

2. Revenue concentration. It’s much easier for an arts entrepreneur to withstand the sudden withdrawal of one client if they have more than one. So, if you’re counting on that one big commission, you may want to backstop that with several smaller commissions as well. Multiple revenue sources guard against permanent damage when any one of those streams dries up.

3. Administrative costs. Believe it or not, studies (Hager’s and others) indicate that it’s worth investing in the people and equipment necessary to run your arts-based business. Doing so has two positive effects on financial stability: 1) solid administrative capacity and 2) there’s somewhere to cut if the times get really really lean.

4. Operating margin. Pretty simple – don’t spend more than you earn. If you do, you’ll need to dip into that equity balance from item one, further diversify your revenue, or sell off the new copier/scanner you purchased to support your office operations.
It all sounds like common sense to me and I’ve been glad to find out that that common sense is actually backed up by empirical research!