Megan & I are starting to get ready for the first roll-out of The Creative Empire. And we’re talking a lot about what subjects the creative community needs to embrace, work through, discuss, and learn to maximize both the profitability & the personal satisfaction we experience with our businesses.

The main question we keep coming back to is:

What should drive my business?

Is my business driven by personal passion? Is my business driven by the market? Is it driven by our competitors – or lack thereof?

What forces determine what products I roll out? What affects how much I charge for them? What determines my audience & client base?

We have our ideas. And I really can’t wait to tell you about them. If you’re not on the list for The Creative Empire yet, sign up below! List members will, well, be getting some downright awesome information & opportunities over the next two weeks.

If you are on the list, tell me: what is driving your business right now?

And if you’d like to know a little bit more about what Megan & I think of “creative empires,” be sure to check out the video discussion we posted about a month ago!

After you hit subscribe, you’ll receive a confirmation email. Click the link in the confirmation email to get yourself on the list!

Just wanted to let you know that you can find another excerpt of my new ebook, Storytelling for Creative Biz Success, up on Crafting an MBA today. This one is about the brainstorming process you can use to create a whole blog or website full of usefull, story-driven content.

This is the very first – and most important?! – step in creating content that generates inbound links, retweets, likes, comments, and thoroughly engaged customers.

Check it out – my gift to you for being awesome.

necklaces by foundling – jewelry swoon.

ceramic earrings by sofia masri – total etsy crush.

megan auman at the beehive kitchenware booth – networking.

just a tiny sneak peek of the goodies i’ll have late next week at scoutie girl! megan will also have great posts inspired by great conversation with amazing artists, crafters & designers over at crafting an mba. a very productive trip!

Are you cheap? There’s a difference between being broke and being cheap.

Are you cheap? There’s a difference between being thrifty and being cheap.

Are you cheap? My answer is yes, we all are.

And it’s killing our society.

You may have great taste, understand the value of a dollar, even know the worth of an hour’s work – but you’ve been programmed to be cheap. American culture dictates that spending less is better – that getting a “thing” is better than getting what you pay for. And American business knows it – they source inferior supplies, they outsource their labor, and they decrease the bottomline.

And we’re left with junk.

Luckily, the handmade movement, the slow food movement, and a general backlash against consumerism is starting to turn the tide. But it’s pretty ingrained in our collective psyche. And so those movements – perhaps without even realizing it – adopt the same philosophies. Bigger is better, less $ is more $.

I don’t have any answers but what I do have is a strong desire to change this cultural instinct. I’m trying to start with me but I need others to come along for the ride so that I can lean on you for support (heck, I never said I wasn’t a bit selfish!).

If you want to start to change this as well, think about this one thing when you go to the store. How long would it take you to produce something similar to what you’re about to buy? An hour – 2? 5? Sure – it doesn’t work across the board but think about it. Now take that amount of time and multiply it by what you get paid hourly. Look again at the price tag – anywhere close? No? You’re being had, my friend. There’s something wrong in that supply chain.

This post isn’t meant to be a downer – and it’s certainly not going to dramatically change the way you shop. It can’t. But, it was inspired by a fabulous discussion going on at Crafting an MBA, a blog written by my friend Megan Auman who is not only a phenomenal craftswoman and designer but a pretty savvy businesswoman, too. Please check out the conversation and add your two cents – or whatever you’re worth.

{image credit: sharon montrose via etsy}