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Archive for ebook/eclass

Editing with Elements Eclass

by Brandi
March 28th, 2012

Friends, my Editing with Elements eclass, the one I’ve been working on for weeks, is done. Done! Is there a sweeter word? Today, I think not, and I am smiling so big right now.

The idea for an Elements eclass came to me last summer, and it’s been a long road from there to here. It took me several tries to actually get this class off the ground. First it was a dying laptop working against me for months, backups failing, losing all of the work I had done not just once but twice, and then a sense of total dejection. It was so complete that I wasn’t sure I would ever want to try again, much less finish; it felt like every time I tried, something bad would happen.

But halfway through February, I sat down and made finishing it a priority. I wanted to do this class because I think any artist or blogger could benefit from a little photo editing know-how. And thanks to your feedback, I got the push I needed to start and finish. And I have to say the lessons are better now than they were the first time around. Clearly things happen for a reason! Also, third time’s the charm.

So, what’s Editing with Elements about? Here’s a few details:

    • It’s a self-paced, photo editing eclass using Photoshop Elements.
    • It’s a class for absolute beginners. We’ll start with the basics and build up your knowledge of both the program and photo editing.
    • There are 20+ lessons utilizing a mix of video, photos, and text. All told, there’s about 3 hours worth of video learning.
    • Since it’s a self-paced class, all of the material is already posted on a private website.
    • You’ll have access to everything for six months. This way, you can really learn around your schedule.
    • And of course, I’ll be right there with you to answer any questions you may have.

To celebrate, I’m offering an introductory price of $45 USD from now until around mid-April. To learn more or to register, you can visit the class site. If you’ve got a question, email me!

Thanks for being there for this journey!

 

 

Categories ebook/eclass, update
Comments (15)

Inspired by :: Roadmap to Action

by Brandi
February 29th, 2012

A few weeks ago, the lovely Laura from Create as Folk sent me a note that her newest ebook, Roadmap to Action, had launched. Intrigued, I headed over and grabbed a copy. And after just a few pages, I knew it was going to be a good read.

What drew me in to Roadmap to Action was that it’s a business guide that let me set the course of my business myself, versus trying to mimic someone else’s model (I’m especially taken with the section about how my critter self works best – that was eye-opening for me). When I started my first business back in 2007, there were no how-tos for creative business owners, no ebooks or eclasses to help get me started (and trust me, I looked). As a result, most of what I tried back then was trial and error, and I was occasionally plagued by the notion that maybe I wasn’t doing things “right.”

After a few years of experience, that feeling has lessened, but there are new challenges now – feelings of stuck-ness, feelings of overwhelm. As I’m going through those exact feelings right now, I took the promise of helping me clarify where I’m at and where I want to go that Roadmap offered as a sign.

I have a feeling that a lot of lessons will unfold over time, and that I will be rereading it over and over as part of a continuing self check-in. But I thought I’d take a few minutes to share some of my biggest takeaways right now.

 

First Takeaway: Clarification

My first aha moment had to do with clarifying what I wanted. I’ve been really reluctant to plan lately; part of it is indecision (so many things interest me, I’m like a magpie with ideas over here), and part of it is fear. The idea of setting a course or making a new business plan felt limiting to me, so I wasn’t quite sure how successful I would be at some of the exercises.

But to my surprise, the life I imagine and the directions I want to go in were clearer than I realized. Roadmap was a gentle prompt that allowed me to settle down and think about what I wanted, what wasn’t working, and brainstorm a few steps to get started. It helped me clarify for myself what I really wanted to do.

 

Second Takeaway: The power of setting limits

The second thing that hit me was the positive power of setting limits. I used to find limits, well, limiting. But I’m slowly coming around to seeing the benefits of them; the visual in my head has shifted from seeing limits as a way to hold me back to protective bumpers – things that keep me safe from burn out, from distraction, from overwhelm. Things that keep me focused and on-track.

Maybe that’s not as mind-blowing to you as it was to me, because you all don’t live in my head, so you can’t really understand my aversion to the word “limits.” But it was a true aha moment for me, and I’m starting to see everything I do in terms of it. Does this mesh with my goals? Does it truly help me or is it really a distraction in a pretty package? What do I really have time for, energy for? So, this takeaway was a truly powerful one for me.

Speaking of limits, since I was doing these exercises last week (when I took a few days off from blogging), I was able to put into action some of my new protective barriers. Specifically, I was able to identify the things I do that veer me off track, then worked to curb those habits. It wasn’t easy, but it was eye-opening. And at the end of each day, I didn’t feel like my was wasted; if anything, I was amazed at how much I got done when I wasn’t goofing off (imagine that!).

With help from the critter self section, I was also able to identify when I naturally work best, and am slowly tailoring my schedule towards those times. Progress, people, feels pretty good.

 

Third Takeaway: Being in control

I love knowing that I’m in control, and for a while, I’ve been feeling the exact opposite. Like I haven’t been the one deciding my life, which is a little silly now that I’ve figuratively said it out loud. It was just how I was feeling; I can’t really explain it other than I felt like I was floundering a little. Turns out, I’ve been in control the whole time – I just needed someone like Laura to point it out to me. I just needed to be reminded that I’m already capable and whole and in control.

 

 

I’m a fan of ebooks that guide me – those are the ebooks that I constantly come back to time and again. I love that I can use Roadmap to Action as a self check-in exercise from time to time. It’s less a book that is full of definitive answers, and more a book that guides you as you brainstorm. Though I’ve never had a coaching session with Laura, that’s what Roadmap to Action felt like – a coaching session with a friend who only wants to help me do what I want to do. It felt like a chat session with the girls over coffee – friendly, familiar, and honest.

What about cost? Well, Laura’s got a special price for Roadmap to Action – you can pay what it’s worth to you. So, if you’d like to grab a copy for yourself, or read a little more about Roadmap to Action, click here. That’s an affiliate link, so if you prefer not to click that, you can find out more information on Laura’s website, Create as Folk.

 

 

Categories ebook/eclass, inspired by
Comments (9)

The Art of Creative Business Digital Kit

by Brandi
June 20th, 2011

Today’s the day! I’m super excited because today is the day that the Art of Creative Business Digital Kit launches!

Dannielle and I are incredibly thrilled today. Both of us have put tons of time and energy and love into the AoCB Digital Kit because we wanted to share our experiences as business owners. We wanted to answer the questions we both had when we started growing and expanding our businesses.

Creative businesses need a special blend of artist touch and business savvy; that’s exactly the approach we take in the Art of Creative Business Digital Kit. At over 200 pages long, it covers topics like advertising, time management, branding, and networking, areas of creative business that are essential to growth. We’ve also included worksheets for each lesson to help you brainstorm, get your ideas down, and stay organized and focused.

For more information, or if you’re ready to purchase, click on over to the sales page right here.

Happy Monday!

 

Categories ebook/eclass
Comments (4)

52 Colors :: Week 22

by Brandi
May 31st, 2011

This post is part of my 52 Colors Project. You can see all of the posts here.

Photo by me

I was having a “poor, pitiful me” party yesterday when a friend I love and adore huffed into the phone and eloquently said:

“What the hell are you whining about? You’re living the life you imaged (which, by the way, is my all-time favorite quote). Stop feeling sad because you blew up your computer and get back to it already.”

Brutal honesty with a swift kick in the butt – I loved her more for it.

And for the record, I maintain that it was a defective part and not, in fact, my fault. But technical problems do seem to happen to me with alarming frequency.

Anyway, I’m not a masochist, I swear, but that statement right there made me feel better about, well, everything. The right message said by the right person at the right time? Gold.

She’s right. The computer situation, annoying as it is, will be fixed and handled somehow. I’ll still be here plugging away because this is what I love doing – creating and blogging.

So, stick around, hang with me, and we’ll be fine. There may not be posts every day till I get my computer back, and there may not be photos, because I don’t have access to Photoshop to edit said photos, but I’ll be here (if you’re here for the photos, come back on or around June 15th).

The truth is, I was feeling low and unsure before this whole computer fiasco because The Art of Creative Business class I’ve been working on became a no-go last week. It came down to a tough decision that Dannielle and I had to make. It was hard emotionally because of all of the time and energy we put into creating the class; we were both disappointed. Even though it wasn’t easy, ultimately, though, I do feel it was the right decision.

Then Dannielle and I put our heads together and came up with a plan B. We had content we created, material we believed in. We didn’t want to let it go… and we’re not. We decided to turn the class into an ebook! Once that decision was made, the enthusiasm and excitement poured back in for me, and after three solid days’ worth of work, the bulk of our new ebook was done. It looked fabulous, and it felt glorious to have some thing to show for the months of energy.

And then my computer combusted.

I do regular backups now since this isn’t the first time I’ve lost a hard drive (first time there was fire involved, though). And thankfully, I just did a backup last week so most of my files are nice and safe. The exceptions are all of my templates for my 52 Colors Project (managed to upload this one before the crash), my 30 Before 30 Project, and my weekly color palettes – they’re gone. And, of course, this shiny new ebook Dannielle and I were inches away from finishing that I saved but did not backup.

Sigh.

That’s why I got all mopey.

Still, after that brilliant comment from my friend, the lessons for me were this:

1. Computers hate me and/or my pajamas are semi-fire-proof.
2. Back up important documents the minute they are saved.
3. Ideal working conditions isn’t always possible.
4. I didn’t really lose anything - all of the information is still available and I can redo it.

And I will redo it. Now that I’ve gotten a little perspective on the situation.

We’re working on this new format right now. As of today, there’s no launch date set yet, but if you’re interested in the new, soon-to-be-launched Art of Creative Business Planning Kit, we invite you to sign up for our mailing list right here. If you’re already on the AoCB class mailing list, then you’re set – it’s the same one.

And hey, if you made it this far, thanks for listening. I appreciate you. And I’d love to know – ever gotten a swift kick and been appreciative, or is that just me?

 

Categories 52 colors, ebook/eclass, update
Comments (3)

The Art of Creative Business

by Brandi
May 2nd, 2011

I’m a fan of investing. I’m not talking exclusively about money here; I’m talking about investing time and energy, too.

Small and micro-businesses take a lot of time and energy. Marketing product lines take a lot of time and energy. Coming up with an idea in the first place takes time and energy.

When I first started my business, I didn’t have a backup plan because backup plans, in my head, equaled exit strategies. I didn’t want an exit strategy for this. Being an entrepreneur was what I wanted to do, even though I couldn’t always articulate that. But I followed my gut and pushed through. I knew it wasn’t going to be completely smooth sailing, but I knew I could do it, even if everyone thought I was nuts.

But, man, if I could have had a how-to-do-this plan, I could have saved myself a lot of time and energy.

That’s where The Art of Creative Business comes in.

Over the last couple months, my friend Dannielle and I have been working hard creating a new e-class called The Art of Creative Business. We realized that despite different fields, we had a lot in common: the same concerns, the same questions, the same experiences.

And we realized it wasn’t just us – every creative business owner faces these same scenarios. Every creative business owner has these same questions because creative business is an entity all its own. Selling art online has its own formula.

The Art of Creative Business e-class is our answer. We want to save you time and energy by giving you solid, concrete advice to get your creative business in shape. We want to guide you as you set goals and work towards them. We want to pass along our experiences and all of the lessons we learned since we started. Together, we have 7 years of online selling experience across multiple sites, and we want to share all of that with you.

How would I personally describe The Art of Creative Business? It’s the kind of e-class I wish was available when I started my business four years ago. It’s a great blend of practical advice and handmade world knowledge. And since each lesson has several topics for students to brainstorm, you’ll immediately have tools to guide you once the lesson is complete. We’ve taken the basics of selling online and broken it down into a structure that gives you the information you need to know, while still maintaining the freedom to customize and apply the discussions to your business.

Here’s a snapshot of the topics we’ll be covering:

  • Week 1: Motivation, Time Management & Planning for Success
  • Week 2: Budgeting & Income Streams
  • Week 3: Pricing
  • Week 4: Branding
  • Week 5: Blogging, Social Media, Advertising & Marketing
  • Week 6: Selling in the Handmade World
  • Week 7: Better Photography for Business
  • Week 8: The Business Plan

We’ll have a couple surprises in there, too. And because Dannielle is in Australia, and I’m in the States, you’ll practically have round-the-clock attention from us. And, of course, personalized attention whenever you need it. By the time you finish, you’ll have all of the tools you need to move forward no matter what you sell.

Class starts on May 30th and ends on July 22nd, and will be held on a private class site. Additionally, every student will have access to the class site for an additional eight weeks so that you can catch up and review, as you need it. The site will close on September 2nd, giving you plenty of time to work through the material.

I do want to say that this is the only time we’re running this class this year. We planned it for the summer so that you can prepare and be ready to implement what you’ve learned during the upcoming holiday season.

If you’re ready to invest in your business, you can sign up here. If you have more questions, check out our FAQ page, or feel free to email me directly!

Have a happy Monday!

Categories ebook/eclass
Comments (4)
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