Key Business Tips and Specific People Who Have Fostered Our Growth
One aspect of our business that sets us apart from other art advisors and creative small businesses is our passion for business itself. Between our team members, we have a few degrees in Economics, Masters in Art Business, and Bachelors in Business Administration alongside diverse work experience. All of this enables us to efficiently operate our business, always thinking about not only art advisory, but also the marketing, financials, client service, staffing, risks, strategy, and more.
Throughout the process of building this business, there are a few key philosophies, sound bites, and resources that have significantly contributed to our growth. We’re sharing them here for those in and out of the artworld, as they can undoubtedly be helpful to entrepreneurs across industries. In no particular order:
Books to Read:
Building a Story Brand: The premise of this book is that every compelling business clearly conveys who they are and what they do, which enables them to attract and service the right clientele. This book had a meaningful impact on the course of our business, and the author runs a series of podcasts that continue to serve as a driving force of our growth.
Videos to Watch:
Impact. The maker of this video, Matthew Hussey, is a life coach whose work is geared towards women who want to find love. That said, we’ve engaged for another reason: this particular course focuses on how to become a person of impact. Any business owner can benefit from the lessons shared about everything from body language to vocal inflection, relationship building and more.
Specific Shoutouts: There are many individuals who have been helpful over the years whose work has nothing to do with the artworld. Dr. Becky is now a parenting legend, though I actually know her from high school, so I’m an early supporter. The movement she has created around embracing challenges, setting boundaries, and separating from toxic people and mentalities that don’t serve your adult self, can truly transform you. If you’re a parent or not, take a look at her content. Separately, our former employee Melissa Byczek also deserves a shoutout for introducing our team to time batching. Three years ago, the time batching concept inspired us to restructure our entire week to maximize efficiency, collaboration, and sanity, and we have largely stuck to those habits through three very different, but productive, years.
Finally, one of the most meaningful habits I have developed and enjoyed is engaging with content that has nothing to do with art. These include following entrepreneurs through a lens of curiosity; listening to the Mindset Mentor (who has episodes on selling, reducing anxiety, productive daily routines, etc.) and How I Built This, and consistently speaking with friends who are leaders in other fields. All of this helps open my mind to what has worked and what hasn’t in other fields so that I can think differently about my own industry. This practice is the reason why we have 3 offices (and maybe more soon) as it planted the seed for how to identify business partners elsewhere and ultimately create a unique model for an art advisory business.