BLOGTOBERFEST13 (Day 9) DEVELOPING INSIDE THE ARTIST'S EGG: C4 Atlanta assists mightily!

LIFE BEGINS HERE! Before emerging from the "egg", wouldn't it be great if you already knew your LIFE's MISSION? (art by Ruth Schowalter)

Dear Reader what is your MISSION in life? What is your VISION? What if you happen to be an ARTIST of any persuasion--musician, writer, actor, painter, sculptor, designer, puppeteer, etc...--and you want to earn a living or a percentage of your income through your ART making? I do! How does anyone of us go about doing that? And how does it involve a mission and vision? Great questions! Why not go visit C4 Atlanta?

FIND YOUR MISSION at C4 ATLANTA. You can't get more downtown than C4 Atlanta! For those of us looking for a way to develop a way of articulating our missions as artists, this is the place to go! It is located at 115 Martin Luther King Drive, a short walk from the Five Points MARTA station, right next to Underground Atlanta. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

Well what is C4 Atlanta? C4 Atlanta is a nonprofit organization that is assisting Atlanta artists in developing the skills to make an income from their ART! And I happen to be an Atlanta artist currently enrolled in two of C4 Atlanta's classes (Website Bootcamp and Ignite) to cultivate the business savvy to do just that. 
 

ONLY THE SERIOUS CAN ENTER HERE! Just joking! But once you are "buzzed" in through the locked doors at 115 MLK Dr., you need to sign in with a security guard, writing down your purpose and destination. Now, that is the beginning of forming one's mission statement! (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

As a result of taking these two classes, I am needing to revisit the mission I developed for this blog as I go about developing a business plan and a website to sell my "products" and "services."  But what the heck is a mission statement, and how is it different from a vision statement?

Let's look at C4 Atlanta's mission and vision statement:

C4 Mission Statement: 
C4 Atlanta connects arts entrepreneurs to the people, skills, and tools they need to build a successful artistic career in metro Atlanta.

C4 Vision Statement: 
Our vision is for Atlanta artists to earn a living making art.

WEBSITE BOOTCAMP.  Joe Winter, one of the two members on the Action Team of C4 Atlanta, is teaching the Website Bootcamp course I'm enrolled in. He's totally knowledgeable, helpful, and very patient. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

IGNITE. On the second day of the Ignite program, Deborah Sosower, a print maker, took us into a discussion about "money" and "art" before we delved into learning about "negotiations"! (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

MY MISSION IS...?

As I dig deep into myself searching for a mission statement that will propel me forward in my life as an income generating artist, I feel like this EGG.Recently, as a visual artist (drawer and painter) I have been working on images of EGGS and EGG BABIES for a wonderful project about the American oystercatcher that I am working on with a scientist (see here and here for more about that).

As I begin to shape and revise my current mission statement from this blog for my new and upcoming website, I will be sharing it with you. 

Here is my current mission statement:
It is my mission on this blog to connect and share my ART and reflections with like-minded SOULS across generations. I believe that ART heals, instructs, inspires, and adds meaning to our lives. Therefore, I blog to CELEBRATE all of life's CREATIVE force!

And this is another part of my mission that grew and developed as I blogged ongoingly in the last four years:

Another part of my blogging mission is to explore SCIENCE through the imaginative lens of an ARTIST. As a wife of a scientist, I have many incredible opportunities to travel, learn about different environments,  and meet other scientists.  As a result I have broadened my PILGRIM'S JOURNEY, to investigating and writing about scientific topics. From these endeavors emerged the collaborative interviews that my husband and I have done with Paleontologist Barbie!


Now, I know (thanks to C4 Atlanta) that my mission statement must be concisely stated in two sentences! Revise! Consolidate! Clarify! I will do it but not tonight! Does my mantra apply here?:

NOT GOOD. NOT BAD. JUST IS.

That's Coffee with Hallelujah. SOUL BLOG with me! If you are inclined, give me shout outs of encouragement. And I would really really love to hear your MISSION as an artist, or in the greater realm of existence--what is your LIFE's MISSION?

THIS IS MY CITY! C4 Atlanta is located in an exciting part of the city. Go down one street and there is the Golden Dome of the Capitol. Go down another and there are small local shops selling gold teeth, hats, and hair products. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

THE CAPITOL BUILDING! Not too far from C4 Atlanta.(photo by Ruth Schowalter)

ALSO NOT FAR FROM C4 ATLANTA. (photo by Ruth Schowalter)

AUGUST MOON 2013 (Day #7): Opportunities created by blogging!

Hallelujah for blogging! Yes, hallelujah! Let's celebrate the OPPORTUNITIES or benefits created by blogging! Today, for the August Moon 2013 (Day #7) prompt--OPPORTUNITIES--I am writing about the blogging workshop for artists given by serial entrepreneur and professional blogger, John Saddington at C4 Atlanta.

JOHN SADDINGTON. WOW! What a kind, articulate genius! I had the OPPORTUNITY to spend my morning with John at C4 Atlanta for a blogging workshop for artists. Here is a link (and the source of this photo) to an interview with John about professional blogging.

 As a blogging artist, I have written more than 300 blog entries since I started my blog, Coffee With Hallelujah, 4 years ago. That's nothing in comparison to John Saddington who has been blogging for 13 consecutive years and writes more than 3,000 blogging words a day. If you are an aspiring blogger, John has written extensively on blogging. You can find his useful materials here.

8 BENEFITS OF WHY YOU NEED TO BLOG

The first part of John's talk pulled me in. How do I benefit from blogging? What OPPORTUNITIES are opened to me because of writing my blog, Coffee with Hallelujah?

BENEFIT #1: PEOPLE

Writing and publishing your blog posts frequently connects you with all sorts of people. Some are familiar--family and friends. Others, perhaps many, are new. And connections with these new people create unforeseen OPPORTUNITIES for you.

 

BENEFIT #2: AUTHORITY

Writing a blog give you the OPPORTUNITY to develop your authority on a subject. Over time by writing and publishing frequently (every day?), you become an expert. 

BENEFIT #3: SPACE
Through connections with people and the authority you develop, bloggers create the OPPORTUNITY to move out into the world, one of concrete spaces, where work can be done, coffee consumed, friendships forged, interviews given, or office space found.

BENEFIT #4: SPEAKING  OPPPORTUNITIES

Sharing your expertise in the form of speaking engagements can come directly through blogging consistently. People give you the OPPORTUNITY to share in person the knowledge you have been writing about.

THE ARTIST'S BLOG: YOUR COMMUNICATION STRATEGY.  I had the OPPORTUNITY to talk with John Saddington before he began his presentation and was impressed by his humility and interest in my own blogging endeavors. Yes, I was surprised to learn what an expert he is in the blogging domain, but he is also an artist and engineer creating all kinds of things for clients. (photo by Hallelujah Truth at C4 Atlanta)

BENEFIT #5:DOMAIN EXPERTISE

You have created an area, a domain, where you can display your knowledge on a subject. You have the OPPORTUNITY to deepen your understanding of a specific area through your blogging frequently about it.

BENEFIT #6: KICKSTARTER

Your blog is a "bank" for your fans. It serves as a resource for people who want to know more about what you do. Your blog entries show the work you have been doing. Blogging gives you OPPORTUNITIES to expand and do more based on the experience you have acquired by developing domain expertise.

BENEFIT #7:PERSONAL BRANDING

Blogging provides the OPPORTUNITY to brand yourself. Through persistent writing and publishing blogs, you have the perfect communication medium for establishing who you are and what you think.

BENEFIT #8: NEW OPPORTUNITIES

Blogging opens unforeseen OPPORTUNITIES. Perhaps you will be asked to make a film, illustrate a story, get commissioned to paint, or create a new product! Who knows?  

Well that's it for the OPPORTUNITIES created by blogging. John Saddington closed by giving the following advice: 

• Blog for 15 minutes every day (sound familiar?)
• Schedule a time to blog each day and stick to it
• Build a habit
• Know blogging is an investment 

QUESTIONS? Part of a good presentation is allowing enough time for questions. And C4 Atlanta brings together some pretty interesting creatives to discuss blogging.  (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

THAT'S COFFEE WITH HALLELUJAH!  Soul blog with me and tell me what OPPORTUNITIES are in your life right now!