friends and business

recently, i have formed a great little safety net of artistic friends around me. there is a painter, a jewelry designer, a photographer, and me, kind of an all-around-crafter (in a good way). a huge road block about working from home is the lack of creative input and interaction, and we all have been feeling it. to fix this dilemma, we decided to start having monthly "business meetings" and let me tell you, the ideas flying around the room are indispensable. today was our second meeting and the topic was our blogs. each one of us is in a different stage of our artistic career path and we all have ideas and input on different topics. i am kind of the tech geek and bring my design skills to layout. another is great at integrating social media such as twitter and facebook into their blogs. and it goes on from there. every person has invaluable input that we never would never have thought of as individuals. it is an atmosphere free of competition and judging and i just love the energy!

do you ever feel challenged and unsure about what products you are putting out into the world? if so, focus on creative friends around you, because i bet they are feeling the same way. try getting together once a month and only talk about your art - no kid chatter, no recipe chatter, only art. you will be amazed how many business building items creep onto your to-do list once you leave!