garycrookartist.com

Social Entrepreneurship, the Social Business and the Arts Business.

July 10, 2008 at 6:08 pm · Filed under Art, Assumptions, Business, Career, Mentor, education, efficiency, every wins, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, quid pro quo, radio, sales, semantics, socialize, time, web cast, webcast, win win

The roots for real societal change are here in the concept of the “Social Business.” Google that term – Social Business – start educating yourself and GET INVOLVED! Continue to utilize your art work in your arts business enterprise and directly benefit form the societal tsunami that were experiencing starting in 2008. This is your opportunity artists to do something really good and to benefit equally in your individual arts practice. This can only be done through a profit arts business model enterprise that directly chooses to involve itself in social commitments and social issues.

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** Click HERE to listen to this Radio Show online! ***

I) What’s the problem:
Arts concentration on the not-for-profit as a mode for social and arts change. This market has become so over-saturated and co-opted by the very government granting its non-profit designation, that manipulation and control have rendered a majority of them completely ineffectual before they’ve even had a chance to open their doors. Because these institutions are designed to run at a loss, they eventually operate in a manner only to serve themselves - by highlighting projects, shows, etc., that will further guarantee much needed future donations. This is a negative catch-22, because organizations are conducting themselves in a manner to just stay alive with no real positive affect on the community’s problems in which they reside.

II) How does this problem affect the artist adversely?
It creates a pre-defined, cautious opinion on the part of the consumer before the artist has the opportunity to make his/her artistic case. This creates a negative bias on the part of the artist trying to implement real social change via their arts business. Out and out charity has become a bad deal for those who give and those who receive it. Those who give, give constantly with no real expectation of the problem ever really being solved. And those who receive it; get locked into the aforementioned Catch-22 of playing to the audience. And society’s problems continually go unresolved.

III) How does the artist co-opt the problem and work to create value for themselves?
Create a for-profits social business!

To quote Alan Webber from USA Today newspaper, May 21, 2008, titled “giving the poor the business”:

“The answer to the profit maximization versus charity dilemma is to create a new hybrid option: the social business. A social business must operate in the marketplace and earn the support of real customers who pay real money to buy real product. At the same time, a social business has a social goal, not just a financial goal.”

You see, this goes far beyond just cutting a check at the end of the year - this is direct social engagement! And it represents a societal shift in thinking via a positive and profitable profit/business arts model. This is creating value for your business - and your art by extension.

Americans are starving for this kind of hybrid thinking!

So:

1. Look at your current arts practice objectively:
Ask yourself: “How can I translate some aspect of my arts practice - in its current form - and create a social business model that will help others help themselves?!” (Like ArtBusinessMentor.com, and Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!)

2. Start building your social business into a true business enterprise:
The definition of a business versus a self-employed individual is that a business will work without your direct involvement. It will take on a life of its own - even when you go on vacation; you will continue to make money. When are a self-employed individual goes on vacation, their money goes on vacation as well. Because people are interested in working with only the individual.

3. Does this social business or enterprise offer investors and consumers equally the opportunity for implementing real social changes - one that runs like a business and delivers real help to real people in your (their) local community(ies)?
The social business cannot – CANNOT – be only about profit. It HAS to serve a larger purpose outside of its direct business focus. It has to be community minded and it has to help solve a community problem.

These are exciting times indeed…

Until next time,
Gary Crook | artist

Utilize difficult economic times to increase your “markup “- or profit margin - and store your artistic value.

July 3, 2008 at 10:57 am · Filed under Arts, Assumptions, Business, Career, barter, efficiency, inflation, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, radio, retirement, sales, time, web cast, webcast

In difficult economic times, the artist wants to work diligently at increasing their markup, or profit margins, to store their artistic value. By at least attempting to “stay put” when economic headwinds are beating their local arts markets to death, the artist will be in a much better place – visibly and economically - for when the economic winds turn back favorably in their direction.

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** Click HERE to listen to this Radio Show online! ***

I) What’s the problem?
In an inflationary/recessionary cycle - like the one were currently experiencing - sales volume goes down across the board. That’s why it’s called a recession - or depression in extreme cases. People collectively slow their spending due to new economic uncertainties. But they cannot stop! Government will not let them stop. That is the role of government or the Federal Reserve, at least in the United States Fiat monetary system a’ la 2008, and that role is to keep the money moving constantly. That keeps the country out of a recession (or depression in extreme cases) and keeps positive inflationary value or capital appreciation continuing into infinity. And that’s precisely why profit margins become so important in these recessionary cycles.

II) How does this problem affect the artist adversely?
As mentioned earlier, in recessionary cycles, spending is slowed dramatically - but can never stop. Since in recessionary cycles the volume of spending decreases – BUT the level of debt ones holds does NOT, - then profit margins must increase to compensate for the lack of sales volume. That’s inflation.

But precisely the opposite seems to happen in the arts. Instead of lowering their work load in order to keep profit margins high (limit availability, like oil) - artists start attacking each other’s profit margins by cutting their prices accordingly and/or adding way too much value to their product - your time involved and/or materials expense. They automatically tend to deflate the value of their artistic residuals or artistic products (or services) in order to attempt a continuance of steady sales volume or, at least, to maintain the consistent sales volume they had prior to the oncoming recessionary cycle.

They kamikaze their own careers!

In other words, what artists tend to do in these cycles is precisely the opposite of what should be done. Artists tend to increase volume and lower prices, instead of keeping profit margins the same (or maybe increasing them in small increments to compensate for the inflationary cycle) in order to support their price levels during this rough patch. This sets a dangerous precedent for future sales and quite possibly will alienate the arts/artist in a thriving business community. This cuts to the heart of the problem of artists NOT achieving the fame they seek. If the market understands the arts will act this way, by cutting the value of the products being offered, then they will simply sit back and wait for the arts to predictably lower their value dramatically in accordance to the recessionary cycle. This action will only breed resentment from the buyers who purchased during “good times” because the artist has now undercut the original value paid for art work previously.

III) How does the artist co-opt the problem in order to create value for themselves?

1. Learn what money truly is and the cycle(s) money is ruled by.
Money, like your arts career, is simply an idea - a medium of exchange. Money has no inherent value buy itself. Therefore, in order to have your paper money have value you exchange that paper money for something of tangible value. That’s where the arts come in - they have a tangible, physical manifestation of value for paper exchange. This is where the artist benefits tremendously from uncertain economic times. During these times, people seek tangibility for the exchange of their non-tangible paper value money and store that non-tangibility into something of tangible value. That’s the definition of “investment.” And that’s where the arts, historically, always come into play.

2. Understand that people no longer work for cash or paper - but instead for numbers.
This creates confusion to people because there is a dual exchange system currently coexisting in the world economy. Numbers by themselves can be confusing. Tangibility is the key. Investment is the key. Understanding the value of numbers (and the confusion this creates) increases your profit margins exponentially. You need to utilize people’s confusion over numbers to create value for yourself. You need to help them convert their confusion over numbers and their stored work value - i.e. the dollars created on a paycheck - and help them turn that stored value into something investable - which would be your arts practice.

For example: if you’re a photographer and your materials cost is approximately $0.25 cents, and your retail cost of said photograph is $25, then your sporting a 1000% markup. You’ve managed to store some of your value because that $25 will ultimately be put into the resell, secondary market – because the new owners, at some point, will seek to increase their investment value as well (don’t believe me, just watch one episode of “Antiques Road Show” to see what I mean) - which will increase (drive) your primary market median exchange to infinity.

3. Artistic mark-up and value is measured in TIME - not dollars!
And time is infinite. So, in theory, your arts career is infinite. That’s why your arts career will extended much, much, (much) longer than your life(time). To have your arts career value extend longer than you do - keep those profit margins high - and your workload light during inflationary times. Sit back and chill out! Conserve your energy for when opportunities come back your way. Store your value during these inflationary/recessionary, difficult economic times - in your art work via high mark-ups and low time commitments. Relax and let the wave come back and benefit you - instead of trying to continually fight against an oncoming headwind, tiring yourself out. You CAN’T win this fight – you have to co-opt it!

Place yourself squarely in a position to benefit from the predictable back wave when it does benefit your art business. Thus, increasing your artistic value to infinity (AND BEYOND!… for you Buzz Lightyear fans… :0).

Until next time,

Gary Crook | Artist

My Dad Died Yesterday - Observations on the artist and time.

June 25, 2008 at 10:08 am · Filed under Art, Arts, Business, Career, Mentor, efficiency, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, radio, semantics, socialize, time, web cast, webcast, win win

My Dad Died Yesterday.

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** Click HERE to listen to this Radio Show online! ***

And like most people who have someone very close to them die, I predictably took stock of my own life and evaluated it against my ideal being at that moment. In doing so, an individual will question all sorts of things. You tend to hold these revelations up to the fleeting nature of life and evaluate your life’s stressors and resistors against the ambiguity that is one’s existence.

I’ve come to the conclusion that once again I’ve overburdened myself and my immediate family with so many outside investments of time – such as new “business ideas,” lofty arts projects and the like - that these “details” continue to chip away at some of the old “punch” of my life. I’ve become (again) predictably sidetracked with the busyness of life. A busyness defined not by me alone, but by a faceless spectacle that seems to demand more and more up my life blood on a daily basis. I find I miss a simpler existence. An existence not defined by someone else or some group, but one ruled by the random actions of one lost in the moment that is life. This is where my dad came in. I was fascinated by his life’s example of someone who could “let it go” and in doing so, had a wonderful peace come over him after 45 years of steady employment.

I miss my dad. He was a good man. He was an inspiring man. He was the hub that held my family together. To that end, I fear for what will become of my family. Compared to many, we haven’t been the closest of families. Not due to any one problem or grudge, we are just a very contemporary family with multitudes of diverging outside interests lying in completely different directions. My father was loved by many. He was a very brave-humble, career military man. He was respected by his contemporaries and deeply missed after his 30 years of active duty military service.

After retirement, he then went on in his second career as a high school ROTC instructor at Valley High School in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1987. The 14 or so years of his second military career, I feel, was probably some of the most rewarding of his distinguished active duty military career. It was also there, I think, he met his most demanding adversary - the American Teenager! (1,400 total to be exact!) I think those years of molding some of the most intriguing minds he’s ever met - and guiding their transition into adulthood - had to be - Had To Be! - some of the most rewarding of his life.

When he retired from his second military career as an Air Force ROTC instructor, I feel he realized it was time to finally let go and start to really live. He fell into a very happy - almost giddy at times - existence in his life. One filled with - and I do mean filled with - the laughter of grandchildren (he had 10 total, ages ranged from two-and-a-half to nine) and a renewed relationship with my mother that finally allowed him to humbly receive back some of all the joy and contentment he gave to others.

I am very confident and content that I was able to express my gratitude, love and friendship to him while he was very much alive. We obviously had a very good relationship. I know he died where and how he would have chose. I know he was a happy man who was proud of his accomplishments, proud of his service to his country and proud of his family - each and everyone of us. I like to feel he died a happy man and that I was a part of that happiness as well. He will be sorely missed.

He was my father and he was my friend…

Observations gleaned from the death of a loved one:

I) Have a method to your madness.
Don’t continue doing the same thing over and over again only because it’s familiar or easier. You do what you have to do to make your situation right. Don’t allow yourself to live an unsavory existence. Search constantly for balance and happiness - and surely, your art will attract the same.

II) Time is precious.
Use yours wisely. But use it you must. Time is the only thing you cannot recover - in time. And stop giving your time away so easily or indiscriminately! Make the best possible use of your time - because, as witnessed by the death of my father, one minute can change your entire world and the world of others around you.

A mere One Minute!

Have all your time have a purpose. Do indeed, live life to the fullest and have all your “time” be as inspirational as possible.

III) Impact the most lives you possibly can - during your time - positively.
Because if you or your art don’t impact others lives positively, then someone else’s time surely will. You need to be a sort Robin Hood about this. You have an obligation as an artist – AN OBLIGATION! - to keep the money and influence from the bad people and redistribute that wealth in a positive manner.

Now go out and do good things!

Until next time,
Gary Crook | artist
http://garycrookartist.com

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If you want to become successful as an artist and arts businesses owner, you must become a student of human nature.

May 29, 2008 at 2:46 pm · Filed under Art, Arts, Assumptions, Business, Career, Mentor, barter, education, efficiency, every wins, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, quid pro quo, radio, sales, semantics, semiotics, socialize, time, web cast, webcast, win win

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** Click HERE to listen to this Radio Show online! ***

The challenge here is very simple. In order to become successful with your arts business career (or any business for that matter), one must become a student of human nature. More specifically, a student of historical human nature and an avid follower of current events.

The rational for this investment of time and brainpower is that humans are, by nature, biological creatures doomed to repeat over and over the same mistakes and accomplishments. And biological creatures operate in cycles. This makes your job very easy. Because cycles repeat themselves allowing this activity to become a study of historical precedents.

Human beings - for all their advancements and feel good world politics - are still animals ruled by erratic emotions. And you, being one of those animals, obviously have a very intuitive response to the exact same stimuli as other humans. Again, this makes your job very easy. For the most part, humans all act - or react – the same way to stimuli as their contemporaries and this historical precedent has been well documented.

Human beings, like most animals on the face of the earth, run in cycles. And these “cycles” include the highs and lows of human behavior. So in order for on artist to become successful in their chosen field, then it becomes very important to position the introduction of their art into the latest human cycle - timed according to a historical precedence. I very much believe that we are on the ground floor of a new cycle with the incredible roll over of wealth and influence via the housing bust and active engagement of the electorate in the coming election cycle of November 2008. This is a banner opportunity for your art and the arts in general. Were looking at a 5-10 year cycle that’s not even begun. This is very exciting no matter what side of the “fence” you’re on.

Historically, in times of great economic and political upheaval, people and the arts always seem to roll over - blaze new paths of influence and acceptability. This is your time artists! And you still have some time left to study past human reactions to these certain political and sociological events and place your art in front of that wave to become a spokesperson. Teach your fellow humans how to deal with the current economic and political cycles and point them in your more positive artistic direction. Because the world’s population and the arts are growing VERY tired of being silenced – as well they should be. This silencing goes against human nature and will surely be addressed very soon. Look at Tibet, Zimbabwe, the Beijing Olympics, health care and the upcoming USA elections for examples of this growing dissatisfaction.

And so how then do we co-opt this problem in order to create value for the artist? Well, as usual, I have three criteria I utilize in the creation of my arts practice and how I position my arts businesses in front of this problem. These are put forth simply as possible starting points for your own arts business practice. You’re encouraged to go your own direction with these.

A) It has been my experience that it is fairly easy to predict - on a biological level - the cycles in which human beings and/or their behaviors react to certain stimuli. Therefore, the artist needs to study these behaviors from a distance utilizing their nonobjective observing capabilities and learn to “react” in such a manner as to a) get out of the way and to b) eventually profit from that re-directioning by co-opting the cause and throwing your artwork in front of the problem through offering a possible solution. You have to have an opinion (we have discussed this several times) and that opinion is what invariably will call attention to you and your artwork – and that is where your arts value lies. So think carefully about that opinion before speaking to quickly. But speak all the same.

B) Use your god-given ability to observe – objectively - society’s reactions around you to these universal stimuli and translate that into your own unique “arts language.”

** Here’s my formula for no-objective observation:

1. Study the problem, and match it to an historical occurrence of approximately the same problem.

2. Formulate your opinion (after careful study, because your most likely going to have to back it up).

3. Plan your artistic response.

4. Do the artwork

5. And finally, move on to the next problem (DON’T GET BOGGED DOWN ON ONE PROBLEM FOREVER – YOU NEED TO STAY CURRENT…)

C) Long ago (2004) I wrote down five “truth’s” that I live by in pre-judging the reaction of society and their human elements to a given problem.

Here they are my five basic tenants of human nature:

Human Nature:

* Summed up in 5 basic tenets:

1) Never underestimate the irrationality and gullibility of human beings - especially in groups and especially with

their money.

2) Never underestimate the biological human need to “screw up” a good thing.

3) Never underestimate the ferocity with which dominate groups will “eat their own.” Good will never be good

enough.

4) Never underestimate the stimulus of Boredom to manipulate and/or dictate human behavior.

5) Never - NEVER, put an academic in charge… They consistently underestimate number’s #1-4 (above) and/or

think they can control numbers #1-4 via “someone else’s” theories or formula(s). “When the going gets tuff, the academic runs to the library.” - GC

And while these may sound negative in the beginning, if one were to go back and re-read them in a more non-objective manner, I think you would find them to be more true then sensationalistic. In my experience and historical study, I have found that more often than not, all five of these basic tenets come into play - almost in succession - when major economic and/or societal shifts have occurred. Look at the latest housing bust and credit crunch and relate them to numbers 1-5 to see what I mean…

Again, the idea is these might act as a sort of baseline for you and your arts practice and hopefully get you thinking in a direction in which you can utilize these as a starting point in formulating your own opinions within your art work.

Thus, positioning your art and arts business practices into a very profitable and influential direction for the future.

Until next time,

Gary Crook | artist

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!: Sales. May 14, 2008

May 22, 2008 at 12:00 pm · Filed under Art, Assumptions, Business, Career, Mentor, education, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, quid pro quo, radio, retirement, sales, socialize, time, web cast, webcast, win win

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** (Click HERE to listen to the Web Cast of this exact radio blueprint) ***

Sales, sales, sales! If you cannot sell yourself - especially the arts - then you will die (or more to the point, your career will never get off the ground)… Sorry, but it’s true.

This statement is meant to highlight the fallacy of a concentration on technical perfection of your arts craft making up for your inability to represent yourself. Technical perfection will not - Will Not! Act as a substitute for learning how to sell your arts residuals, thus creating an arts career. And that’s as plain and simple as a gets.

One needs to spend at least as much time (if not more) perfecting their sales abilities as they do their arts abilities, thus ensuring that your Arts Business Mentor endeavor will continue well into the future - unabated - and stay profitable. Thus buying time and eventually influence within your chosen field. This, of course, will further translate itself into sales with the process repeating itself over and over again.

So what’s the problem?
I feel there is a total lack of confidence in an individual’s respective art work to sell it. If you, the artist, don’t believe in your art work enough to sell it to anybody and everybody, then you cannot sell it at all and thus you’ll have no arts career. This is harsh – but it’s true. YOU are the ONLY one that will believe passionately in your craft. No one else will even come close. So if you are not passionate about your arts purpose – or don’t have one – then your chances of a long-term arts business career are pretty minimal.

How does this problem affect the artist adversely?
This, of course, is a very obvious impediment to an artist’s future and one that opens them up to scamming by individuals and organizations that are trained to tell you exactly what you want to hear.

So how then do we co-opt this problem to create value for the artist?
You simply have to get over your fear of sales and rejection – plain and simple. It could be easily argued very convincingly that a fear of sales - especially in the arts - comes from a fear of rejection and by an unfair association your artwork. That’s not being fair to yourself or your art. You very simply need to learn how to sell. And the best way to learn that is to stick your neck out there and learn the best technique that works for you. Your technical ability alone will not allow you to achieve your goals of true artistic freedom. You will not generate a spectacularly influential arts career by simply learning how to write the perfect poem, paint the perfect picture or hit the perfect pitch in what ever opera you choose to participate. Because all of those self-imposed technical criteria are simply opinions. Your opinions! The “perfect” artwork is and will always be subject to debate. So that alone will NOT ensure your artistic success. Repeat sales to the right individual(s) will.

By learning to create value for yourself through sales - you are thus in a better position to call the shots when legitimate representation does present itself. This way you “learn the business” prior to opportunities opening up and are in a better position to create win-win situations for your arts business career, increasing your likelihood of repeat commissions exponentially!

Step-by-step plan of action for co-opting this resistor and creating value for the artist:
1) Stop concentrating solely on technical perfection as an excuse not to learn sales. Be honest with yourself here. You know you’re doing this. I, myself, did this for many, MANY years. Always remember this: Those who can sell will and do rule the world! Think I’m joking here – look no further than the 2008 election cycle in the United States!

2) Find your audience by having an opinion! This makes sales a whole lot easier. You need to be speaking to the right audience and you need to know who that audience is first. When you get that audience, your value is cemented in your new community. At that point you will be able to sell them just about anything. They will always be at least open to your new art work and your new ideas.

3) And finally, here’s a guaranteed sales formula:
a. Ask your audience what they want - or need (identify a need. “Can I Help You?).
b. Give it to them (provide a solution).
c. Answer or your customers question “What’s in it for me?” with a special offer. Create a win-win-win situation always to ensure you seal the deal.

It really is that simple… Don’t try to sell people something they don’t want. Find out what they want - simply ask them: “Can I Help You?” And with a little practice – trial and error – the rest will come naturally.

Then you will have your sales. And if you don’t have “it” (the item they need), then simply recommend someone you know who does. This is where your community comes into play. So you need to get out of the studio and get to know your fellow artist(s)!

A word caution here, don’t go outside of your arts interests simply to make a sale. That’s a dangerous trap and a discussion for another time.

Until next time,

Gary Crook | artist
http://garycrookartist.com

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show! Inaugural Show! May 7, 2008

May 15, 2008 at 8:58 pm · Filed under Arts, Assumptions, Business, Career, Mentor, education, efficiency, every wins, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, quid pro quo, retirement, socialize, time, web cast, webcast, win win

Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show!

*** (Click HERE to listen to the Web Cast of this exact radio blueprint) ***

Welcome to Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show! inaugural show airing originally on Talk Radio 1080 WKJK in Louisville, Kentucky. For those of you reading this on Gary Crook | blogger! we would like to extend our warmest welcome and let you know that a link to Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show! will be placed on this blog after each airing, thus enabling the listener to listen (or re-listen) to the show at their leisure. Also note this blog will basically become the general outline for Art Business Mentor -The Radio Show! summarizing the various talking points of the radio show linked. In this way, an individual can utilize either the verbal recording or the written summary – or both. How’s that for options! :0)

Now on to business…

The format for Art Business Mentor - The Radio Show! will consist of a single arts business topic relevant to the artist (of any and all genres) broken down into three different categories. We will address this topic from three different criteria.

These criteria are:
1. How does an artist co-opt an existing institution (or resistor) to further create “value” for that artist?

a) We will teach the artist how to learn to “get outside of themselves” and their respective arts
practices and start to see opportunities everywhere.

b) Also we will teach the artist what we consider to be one of the best tactics (on a case by case basis) of overcoming these resistors by essentially not to hitting these repressing institutions head-on, but instead co-opt them by studying them in order to exploit their weaknesses to create value for you – the artist!

c) Learn to slip “fluidly” between these resistors. Become an artistic chameleon of sorts - always creating value for the artist in the process.

2. Utilize business systems designed to get the artist through the “Ruff Spots.”

a) First and foremost, create a career blueprint! Understand this arts career is a business and as such requires a plan! If you’re not thinking in those terms then you and your art are at a distinct disadvantage.

b) Utilize the tax code as a sort of cash flow. This action includes: losses, tax planning and detailed documentation in order to reap the benefits of a legitimate business enterprise.

c) Learn how to invest the “feast” to tide you over during the “famine.”

3. Maintain your newfound artistic “value” by giving back to the community.

a) Get out of the “camp!” Learn to create a “community bridge” with your art work and your creative thinking processes in order to help your local community problem solve. Thus, creating value for yourself and your art work by proxy.

b) Learn that your other talents - outside of your arts practice - are just is valuable to your arts community. Help your fellow artists to help themselves!

c) By giving back to your local community, you inadvertently “cement” your artistic value and attract a buying audience. Taking you back to criteria number one “How to co-op existing institutions to create value for the artist.”

Now within the above topic breakdown, we will pick apart the single subject problem utilizing numbers one and two above - before the commercial break and then come back after the commercial by addressing number three with approximately 3 more different solutions I’ve (or my artist colleagues) have utilized to co-opt said problem. The point, much like a successful artwork, is to at least offer a well-thought out solution to at least use as a starting point for the listeners in the hopes they will use these solutions with other solutions personal to their respective practices and co-opt them for their own artistic betterment. Because, obviously, what’s worked for one individual will NOT necessarily work for another. But PARTS of the others solutions most likely will. It’s up to the listener to define the “parts” that will help them. The solution presented in number three, after the commercial break, will consist of an additional three criteria:

Those criteria will be:

What’s the problem?
How does this problem of fact the artist adversely?
And finally (you guessed it), how to co-opt said problem (or resistor) in order to create “value” for the artist

These blogs and the radio show links will be posted one week after they are initially aired locally on Talk Radio 1080 WKJK in Louisville, Kentucky. The pre-recorded radio show uploads will likely take place on Thursdays of each week. And of course, any and all constructive critiques will be much appreciated!

Thank you all so much for the feedback (and hearty pat of the back!) and Thank You – the listeners - for this terrific opportunity!

Until next time,
-Gary Crook | artist!
http://artbusinessmentor.com
http://garycrookartist.com

Six Mega Trends in the future of the Arts and the Internet.

April 21, 2008 at 2:47 pm · Filed under Art, Assumptions, Career, Mentor, education, efficiency, gifted, internet, on-line education, opinion, politics, prophecies, semantics, socialize, time, win win

Six Mega Trends in the future of the Arts and the Internet.

1) Distance Accredited College Education will become the operational norm and will truly go worldwide. Look for a “worldwide” accreditation grouping and issuance of diplomas (or more to the point transcripts). Think of this more as a “UN for Education” type of international organization. This will enable the consumer to “shop” classes on price and availability on a worldwide scale with the completion of a degree most likely consisting of many (and many and possibly many more) different schools individually approved classes collectively organized into a single degree. A degree from a particular institution will be of little relevance (like Harvard, Yale, Princeton and the like) compared to a degree from a particular accreditation institution in which a collective of institutions will reside.

* Obviously, this will also give birth to some sort of international accreditation licensing/service which will enable and encourage freelance
professorships.

2) Also look to the increasing popularity of non-accredited education getting bigger and bigger as the realization that accredited education is currently overrated, over priced and still relies on outdated business models of the industrial revolution; which have become increasingly irrelevant in the “New - New Deal” (or post-modernity business models) societies.

3) Self-published (or ‘On-Demand’) books, Music, Video/Movies and Art will be increasingly accepted and sought after because of their efficient delivery systems, costs and flexible copyright agendas.

4) Mainstream News outlets will increasingly rely on the web specifically for stories; live video feeds, informational Blog’s, self-produced video’s, etc. (look at Iraqi insurgents, Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda’s use of extremely inexpensive web submission services to Al Jazeera make news for itself)

5) Some sort of “Kelly Services” type of organization for professional “moderating” services for Chat rooms, etc. will be highly valuable/profitable business service model.

6) Speed and efficiency will increasingly be paramount in the foreseeable future. Borders and sovereign identity will continue to melt away for more of a “localized” tribal identity consisting of a more international network of like-minded individuals.

*** Artists, now ask yourself:

“How can I turn any or all of these ideas into profitable arts businesses?”

All of these could easily be their own businesses. However, keep focused on low cost entry/high visibility Internet start-ups whose ‘exit plan’ is to sell at its peak – this becomes THE commodity bought and sold. This becomes its own real estate. Remember, the web is just a filing cabinet. Approach your Internet start-ups this way and you should stay relatively profitable by keeping your entry costs very low and your profit margins very high.

You don’t have to hire a team of college grads to operate and/or administer a file cabinet.

Until Next Time,
- Gary Crook | artist
http://garycrookartist.com
http://ArtBusinessMentor.com

Capitol Markets and Efficiency Manna.

April 14, 2008 at 3:01 pm · Filed under Art, Arts, Assumptions, Business, Career, Mentor, barter, education, efficiency, every wins, gold standard, opinion, politics, prophecies, quid pro quo, retirement, semantics, socialize, time, win win

Capitol Markets and Efficiency Manna.

I don’t know if you’ve been following the financial markets recently, but something very interesting has happened that is quite revolutionary to the last 70 to 80 years with regards to the United States office of the Federal Reserve. An article from Peter Coy in Business Week dated March 27, 2008 and titled “’Fed ‘Loan’ Faces Serious Scrutiny,” is the basis for this highlighting of the addiction to efficiency manna our current society has counted on in the last thirty years and is the basis for this Blog.

Here is a quote from the article for your consideration:
“If this case proves anything, it’s that the Fed is ready to press the limits of its charter to keep the financial system afloat. Effectively acquiring the Bear assets at a bargain price and then liquidating them is similar to what Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) did when it shut down savings and loans and auctioned off their loan portfolios in the 1990s. The difference is that Congress set up the RTC but had nothing to do with the (recent) Fed’s moves (with regards to the Bear Sterns acquisition)…”

It is important to take note here that this is exactly the behavior the Bush administration has been conducting itself in all along. For almost a solid eight years, this Bush administration has been completely bypassing Congress under the guise of speed and efficiency. Sometimes this is and has been a good thing and many times it has not – but one thing it surely has been is an easy sell to the American electorate who think government is cumbersome and annoying anyway. If you doubt the validity of that statement, just go to your local driver’s license department and re-new your license and plates and see how efficient that experience is!

But here’s the rub…

They’ve expanded governmental powers by approximately one half! What this administration has done is actually very ingenious and you should be looking objectively at this for inspiration in your arts practice. By over-committing to what they would like, they have effectively cut back and gotten exactly what they wanted in the first place. Now if this is allowed to happen over and over, (and over, and over again) with crisis after crisis - be they world crisis’s, monetary crisis’s, national crisis’s, efficiency crisis’s, whatever - you will most definitely get a Zimbabwe-type government intervention for the sake of efficiency going on were all outside investment will eventually get out of “dodge” and inflation in the United States will become the “poster child” of what not to do to your country’s financial system.

The dollar as sole world currency is definitely exited the world stage, my friends. This means world-wide possible hyper inflation and huge investments in tangible commodities to store purchasing power. And your art and arts business is definitely a sought after tangible commodity. Understand that once humans get a taste of this “market efficiency manna” then there’s no going back. This addiction is instantaneous and a King George III style rule will most definitely return.

This year, my friends, the government is looking to make money! And this should not at all be surprising based on the fact that all the men holding top governmental offices in the last seven years of this administration are businessmen (or businesswomen). And these businessmen are at the control levers of the USA’a money printing machine. Private investment will never, repeat never be able to compete with the likes of the government’s printing machine in this environment. So monetary investment will simply go somewhere else. You need to act quickly and go chase it, because it’s not coming back anytime soon. This is what money does. If it’s difficult for money to make money in a particular environment, then money simply goes somewhere else. And you should too. Not physically mind you, you don’t have to physically “leave” in the Internet era. So get that arts business going and “create” your value in other markets as well as this one by use of efficient delivery in the Internet. It doesn’t matter what kind of art you do because the Internet is melting away borders and this investment in time and money is just in its infancy.

So go ahead and feed the Global Markets demand for efficiency manna – it’s by far their biggest weakness! And as such, exploit that weakness, position yourself (and your art) to keep’m coming back for more – there’s your value. Utilize Web radio, blogs, web based video, virtual shopping carts, gifted (and on-demand, self published) books, music and videos, open source computer programming, free education curriculums, whatever you can get your hands on, get your point out and get it out quickly because this could go on for a while. Get in front of that wave – because this is a BIG one! You might as well get your art and your arts business services out in front of that wave and

Ride Baby RIDE!

Until Next Time…
- Gary Crook | artist
http://garycrookartist.com
http://ArtBusinessMentor.com

In 1971, Real Estate took the place of Gold as the Dollars backing commodity.

April 7, 2008 at 9:31 am · Filed under Art, Assumptions, Business, Career, education, every wins, gold standard, opinion, politics, prophecies, retirement, semantics, time, win win

In 1971, the United States officially left the “gold standard” for an (unofficial) “real estate standard” when defining the value of its currency (which also just happens to be the current “world’s currency”). This Fiat Monetary system design then became an investment/tangibility issue based on the taxation of its masses – vs. the actual “value” of those masses. Understandably, this has become an issue open to constant debate in the world’s economies – which is EXACTLY where we are as of April 2008.

But with the current real estate mess, what we now have is a bit of a conundrum. You see the backing “asset” - real estate and the taxation it produces – is what’s causing a precipitous decline in the value of the dollar and/or the United States currency. You see what’s happened here, is the United States finally got busted on it’s over printing of dollars and it’s over pricing of collateral. That collateral would be the taxation of the dollar backed commodity that is real estate in the United States. And now the “people” (read: countries) are finally starting to see the tenuous house of cards for what is and are selling, selling, selling. Thus, accelerating the dollar’s decline.

That, my friends, is precisely why the cost for gas, food, water, air, basic human dignity, citizenship, etc. are all shooting to the moon here in the United States. This formula is really very simple. When the dollar falls in value on an international scale, everything else here goes up. And vice versa (in the “good” years).

Now the tangible real estate thing is actually quite interesting and is an anomaly in regards to the inflation of all other commodities. By all intensive purposes, real estate or tangible real estate assets (i.e. a house, land, dirt, tax’s, etc.) should be rising as well. But that’s precisely the opposite of what is happening. Real Estate is actually falling the fastest and is dragging the dollar (and your paychecks, pensions, dollar based investments, IRA’s, 401K’s, etc.) right along with it. The reason for this is basic economics. The United States Real Estate market is just a bad deal right now – so is the dollar. You simply can’t win by owning or investing in a house at this time.

Check out this quote from “The Daily Reckoning:”
“According to the latest S&P/Case-Shiller index, average home prices are down 8% year over year. Now combine that 8% decline with a new 6% mortgage that’s available for credit worthy borrowers, this makes the real estate rate, in reality, - (negative) 14% on a nationwide basis! (To tabulate this - 14% number simply add the - 8% decline plus - 6% mortgage which equals - 14%) Therefore, the real mortgage rate feels like - 19% if you’re looking to buy in one of the previously hot markets currently suffering upwards to 13% price declines.”

Wow! This is a BIG wealth rollover folks! And this doesn’t even include the tax’s, insurance, etc. that you have to pay as well. You would have to make a minimum of +14% a year JUST TO BREAK EVEN on your housing “investment!” God Forbid if you actually pulled equity out of that depreciating “asset” in the latest run up in real estate speculation. I can’t even imagine trying to climb that tenuous house of cards…

So if housing isn’t going to come to the rescue, then what will? AGAIN, a business – more specifically - your arts business. Put simply, this puts you on the winning side of the dollar’s decline because of your arts business’s ability to pass your depreciating dollars cost on to your consumer.

Here again, you harness the downwards inflationary spiral. I know this doesn’t exactly sound like a winning combination, but follow me on this one. You effectively – with your arts tangible asset – ride the wave like a surfer on Long Beach. Yes, that wave might be headed down at the moment, but then again, so is everything else! At least with the arts business you’ll be able to stay afloat and ride that very same wave back up again – just as quickly! You WON’T be able to do that with your housing asset. THAT! That I guarantee.

So you had better hang on tight and start getting that arts practice business going - as this ART Business, my friends, is also a commodity that IS rising in value. Because it sure ain’t the studio you’re producing this art in.

Art is and will continue to be in an upswing.

Until next time,
- Gary Crook | artist
http://garycrookartist.com
http://ArtBusinessMentor.com