Bob's CI Blog

The business of creative independence

CI Call In Line



Creative Independence

by

Creative Independence cohost, Illustrator Bob Ostrom of Bob Ostrom Studio

Creative Independence cohost, Illustrator Bob Ostrom of Bob Ostrom Studio

Welcome to Creative Independence where we look at the many ways that creative professionals from around the world have found to create independent lifestyles by leveraging their talents and skills.

Thank you for visiting our site. My name is Bob Ostrom I am a professional  illustrator. I   co-host the podcast Creative Independence along with multimedia designer Chris Wilson.

Cohost Creative Independence, Multimedia designer Chris Wilson

Cohost Creative Independence, Multimedia designer Chris Wilson

If you are not familiar with our podcast please feel free to check us out on iTunes.

We are in the middle of a very exciting time here at Creative Independence. We are in the process of building and launching the new Creative Independence Network. Rather then wait to launch the site at a later date. We’ve decided that this is an incredible learning experience and have invited you, our listener, to follow along with us as we go. Each new podcast episode will feature a task in the chain of events it takes to launch our new site. We will begin by discussing our basic strategy and continue right through to the end where we will build and launch our brand new website. Chris and I will both be blogging about our experiences along the way.

Thanks for joining us, we hope you will find this collection of information helpful in you own quest for Creative Independence.

Part 5 Mind Mapping Leads to Good Things.

by

I hoped you’ve enjoyed the mind mapping series. The mind map is an extremely powerful tool and is one of the best I’ve found for organizing and recording my thoughts. This will be my last post in the mind map series although I will continue to write about the things I’m doing to move myself and my career forward.
n the last episode I was in the beginning stages of stages of building a licensing mind map. I was starting to do some research and looking for info on Google. I found a ton of experts and began reading their blog posts and gathering info. Then something really cool happened. I found a name that looked familiar, Sparky Firepants (how can you forget a name like that). I’d seen his stuff around and really enjoyed reading his blog. He had posted a short vid on Tara Reeds website saying that he was interested in licensing. It sounded like he was pretty much in the same place as I was.

I contacted Sparky (David) and eventually ended up chatting with him on the phone. He had been to Surtex, a licensing show in NY. He shared his thoughts and we discussed a few things. I really liked some of his marketing ideas …then a big giant weight dropped out of the sky and landed right on my head. I had been contacting people with great marketing ideas for the podcast and this guy had great marketing ideas. The math was pretty simple from there, so I asked David if he would come on the show for an interview.

Sparky says...Slow Down

David did a great interview and I learned some really important things from him but the one thing that really stuck for me was the idea of slowing down.* If you haven’t listened to our latest episode this is the part where you should stop reading and head over to check out ep 308 An Interview with Sparky Firepants*. It’s a very simple idea but also one that I sometimes overlook myself. The basic idea is to narrow your focus a bit. Hone in on you market.

It’s good advice and I’d even heard myself mention it a time or two but after talking with David I think it’s time to take a new look at what I’m doing and how I’m marketing myself. I think as artists there is a great temptation to be and do as many things as we can, it’s part of the growth process. As a smart marketer though we have to decide which ideas to pursue and how best to present them. We have some really great interviews coming up on marketing and I can’t wait for you guys to

hear them. So what does all that have to do with mind mapping you might be asking. Simple, if I hadn’t created a mind map I probably wouldn’t have gotten to the point where I actually sat down and began researching. No research, no Google…No Google, no Tara Read… no Tara Reed, noSparky Firepants…you get the idea. The point is that the mind map lead me to take action and by taking action I made something happen and making things happen is what it’s all about. Don’t let your ideas swim around inside your head. Get them out, organize them and then take action. See where they lead you I ‘ll bet you might be surprised.

If you have someone you’d like us to interview please let me know by posting a comment below. Thanks for listening to CI and Pod On.

Part 4 Plotting our trip.

by

Part 4 Plotting your trip

In the last post I talked about the basic functions of a mind map and finding software to help you create one. You are free to choose any way you’d like to build your map. The truth is it’s not super important what you use. Whether you choose a software program or build it by hand the most important part is the content.

Here are a couple of tips to keep in mind as we begin building our new map.

  • There is no right or wrong way to build your map.
  • Even if our destinations are similar no two journey’s will be the same. In other words your map will look different then mine.
  • Start with what you know. Don’t worry you can always add more detail as you go.
  • This map will be a work in progress so if it starts out looking a little thin that’s OK.
  • If you are not exactly sure how or what the next step is start with the main task and break it down.
  • Have fun and dream big this is not the time to apply the brakes.

The Map
Did you decide what you wanted to be, what you wanted to do, where you wanted to go? If so then it’s time to start your journey. Place that destination at the center of your map and then begin adding the things you already know to your map. You’ll be surprised at how quickly it fills up and how much you already know about your journey.

My Journey
I’ve been wanting to expand my art into licensing for a while now. I know very little about it but  thought this would be an excellent opportunity to begin exploring. I’ll be starting a mind map to help me find my way. I know I have a lot to learn but hopefully if I do a good job with my map it will make my journey  a whole lot easier. The more I learn the more detail I can add to my my map. In the center of my new map I’ve placed the words Licensing my Art and added a couple of things I already know about licensing as subcategories. From here I’ll start Googling the info I have. Next time we’ll see what I’ve discovered, how it’s helped me and how I can apply the info to my map and my journey.

I begin my licensing mind map with a few things I already know. Next I will begin a Google search on things I know and see where it leads me.