The Business Plan for Visual Learners - An Artsy Strategic Plan

1. 0. Introduction: I am an yesterday snack, an illustrator, artist, and teacher from France. I create books and journals and online courses and host meetings and workshops all the while, mixing in a touch of art and self-care. I realized that a business plan is not for everyone. It wasn't for me either. For a long time. I'm the creative and artsy type and I just don't like being put in a box. I need space and room for inspiration too. Flourish and grow. The freedom to do what I want in the moment is where I get my best ideas. But then I realized something I was dabbling into so many different things. But at the same time, I was feeling insecure and overwhelmed and pressured. I felt that my inner artist needed some sort of boundaries. Lack of boundaries made me feel overwhelmed, confused, even of who I was, what I was doing, where I was going, and why I was doing any of it. I realized that I still needed some type of direction, some type of guide. If I wanted to make this a business. One day during my craft and collage session, which is what I love to do. I just put things on paper. My vision, my mission, what I like to do, the people that I like to show off my work too. And little by little, I realized that this was my business plan coming to life. And this changed everything for me. What was holding me back from making one was, I guess the calculated DL list of a business plan that I've seen out there or that I've worked on before. But suddenly this one became delightful, organized, attractive. It finally went along with the way my brain worked and I got it. Now when people asked me what I do, I know exactly what to tell them. It's there on my business plan. And another great reason for doing this is that I usually have a really hard time making decisions. So should I do this project? Should I say yes to this invitation for a fair in event, a workshop? Now, all I have to do is just go back to my plan. Okay? Does it fall under my values, my mission, my goals? Is it aligned with what I am and what I want to do? And it's a clear yes or no. I'm a visual learner. So I choose pictures over words. I make graphs and wheels over Liz, by mixing in my love for art and creativity into the business side of things just helps to bring a little more joined to the process. So if you feel it's fitting to you, welcome to this course where I hope to help guide you through the process of clarifying or defining your purpose, vision, goals, and lots more in-betweens. For your business plan. You can find more of my work, art and videos on my website at NES art.fr. 2. 1. Your Why: Why do you make yourself a business plan? You might ask even I had that question for myself because I'm just doing art. Maybe I'm doing it for fun or as a hobby. And maybe I do little projects here and there for people, or I'm starting a few things. Why do I need to delve into creating this grand, big, overwhelming business plan? So I didn't get to it right away. I was worried that creating this dull, boring, tedious and calculated plan was just going to take the passion out of my work, out of my art. But as I started creating it, I got so inspired because I could just let art and creativity takeover and make something dull and boring into something inspiring and beautiful, artsy and attractive. Wanting me to go back to it over and over again as a reminder for myself. So before we get started in creating this plan, I like to question myself, why? Why make it? So I took time to just list a few benefits for myself. How will this business plan helped me in my business? Here are a few points that I came up with. First of all, I realized that there's balance because there's a way to create a business plan that allows for flexibility and growth and even inspiration, but at the same time helps you move into the direction of your goals. So you have to find out what that is for you. Just like I did creating myself, this business plan was also a great exercise and getting curious about what I wanted for myself and this business. I realized that it can be as detailed and specific or as general as I want it to be. I decided that I could just start simple and then add new developments. As I go through this journey, I learned more about myself. I learn more about my business, my customers, so many Enlightenment's along the way. One of the benefits for me is that this business plan really helped me to balance out the different aspects of my business without feeling the stress or overwhelmed. I just was able to review my goals in each aspect, in each category. Another benefit is that everything is well laid out, clearly designed for me in this plan, my goals are at the right place and also I know where I'm going, I know where I am in my goals, and I know where I'm headed, where I want to go, what direction and what it will take to get me there. So those are some biggies where I am at the moment, where I want to go and what it will take to get me there. It also really helps me to answer confidently about what I'm doing. Because I have that written down somewhere. It my mission, my goals, my vision, and my purpose. I don't have to stumble through my words anymore. It's very clear what I'm doing in this business and why. And it's something I can refer back to and review often if I get stuck or if I question oh, should I get into that or should I answer yes to that? It's a great way to go back to your values and see if a new opportunity or new project ties along with those values. And that way you can discern what is best for you. And it helps me stay on track and each process of my business. So if you'd like to take some time to question yourself on that, on the y, you can use the template that I've provided to answer some of those questions for you. And I'll see you in the next class. 3. 2. Your Mission: So in this class we're going to talk about our mission. What is the mission of your business? The picture of a car as it's like a tool to help me get somewhere. I included suitcases and baggage. As I feel it equips me with what I need to get this business going. My provisions of motivation, confidence, clarity, all those things I want to take along on my journey of this business. So what is your mission? You might have heard the term mission statement. Your mission is a short statement defining your business. It's basically a short recap or summary. Your business's purpose and values, the products or the services that you offer, and what makes you stand out from others who you're trying to reach. I have this as my first page because this is what I used to tell people what I do, what my business is all about. But I find it helpful to work on this page. Question myself all my mission. At the end, after I've already clearly outlined everything else in my business plan. Because it is a short recap. Your mission is an action-based description of what you do, maybe who you are, and why you do it. The best mission statements are short and clear enough for anyone to understand it. Something you may even want to memorize so that you can speak about it with confidence. So this is the part that you want to answer when people ask you what you do or who you are, it's something that you can highlight and print out and even post it on your wall. That's what I've done with mine. This is what you want to remind yourself of and align yourself with every day. And I think the best mission statements are inspiring and attractive. It's not just the list of facts. It's a guiding light that keeps you motivated and challenged. So you can try to make it sound super professional, technical, using the complicated words. But I suggest you just write it as if you were talking to someone because that's being true to yourself and being the most authentically you. And that's what people will notice. I've included here some helpful questions. As you write your mission statement. What challenges do you or your business salts? What do others value about what you share? And what makes your business different and unique? Here are a few ideas that I included in mind. My mission is to help equip other women too. And I've included a few little aspects onto the suitcases. To find peace, calm, and balance in their lives. To live a more fulfilling and meaningful life. Includes self-care practices in their daily routines to bring in some fun and creativity along the way to take better care of themselves physically and emotionally. And then I wrote up a little paragraph for myself. That's what I would tell people when they asked me, what do I do? What's my business? Who am I? So take the time now to fill that up for you. And I'll see you in the next class. 4. 3. Your Purpose: Hi again and welcome to this class on finding your purpose. So I illustrated this page of my purpose with a mountain, getting inspiration from this quote. It says, Do not forget who you are and where you came from. You are made of the highest mountains and the tallest trees. You are made of magic and dreams, wishes, and light. This is from Nikki Bennis. I included the little signposts along the path as a reminder of checking in as I go through this business journey. It's sometimes the part that can get easily forgotten along the way. But it's so important as it holds valuable information for us as we go through the practicalities of our business. So this page will take you back to the origin, back to the reason, the purpose, the why, the intentions, inspirations that led you to start this business. In the beginning, there was an idea, maybe a very tiny bit of an idea, or maybe more of a width of a possibility. But it called out to you and it led you here to where you are today. This is the part where you remind yourself of who you are and how you can stay true to your truth. This is where you give yourself that gentle nudge, hint, or sine of what your values are. Some helpful questions as you fill up this page for your business plan. B. Where did the idea or inspiration for this business come from? Why did it call out to you? What is your reason for pursuing it? So you can come and join me with your printout. If you've made one. You'll find this as part of the course that you're taking. So you can just print it out or you can fill it out directly onto the computer as you wish. So in this page, purpose, Here's a blank for you to fill out. Why am I doing this? Here's where you write your why. To go back to remind yourself of do not forget who you are and where you came from. You are made of the highest mountains and the tallest trees. You are made of magic and dreams, wishes, and light. Be brave enough to live the life of your dreams according to your vision and purpose instead of the expectations and opinions of others. So I've included this quote from myself because I somehow so often for back to the expectations and opinions of others to validate what I'm doing and why I'm doing something and that's not the best for me. That's not staying true to myself or my colleagues in my book here. These are a few of the things that I quit for myself and my purpose. I've listed them all on these little Coase boards as a reminder of where I'm going as I climb the mountain of success. And there's always some space to add to it to include other things along the way. So think about and reflect on those questions before you fill out your page on your purpose. 5. 4. Your Vision: Welcome to another class of creating your artsy business plan. Today we're going to talk about your vision. I used flowers to illustrate my page on vision because I love flowers in my garden, on my window sill on my table, on my desk. Even if all my craft projects and in my drawings. And if you haven't noticed already, been all over my business plan and vision is that beautiful part of the business plan for me. There's something in it about the blossoming, the maturing, the developing, and exploring. There are no limits, any color, any shape, any texture. And here in your vision is where you get to dream and imagine and wish big. And just like every flower is so different and unique, so is every person's vision. It must be specific, basically align to you and your core values. Your values are the roots that hold up your vision. They are your sound foundation. So throwing some passion, go crazy, wild, adventurous. There are no limits. Remember, the difference from your mission statement and your vision statement is that your vision is a valuable tool to go back to for inspiration and motivation and also for growth. Because there are no limits to what you can imagine and wished for. Your vision describes your desired long-term results, and gives you direction and your efforts. Your mission is based on the present, which you're doing now in your business. And your vision is future based. What do you want to do? Where do you want to take it to? At the core of every idea, project or business, there is a vision. It can be hard to express it sometimes, but it's there. Just give it a little time and patience. So the clearer you are on your vision, the easier it will be to make confident decisions as you move forward. This is the place where you can be free to visualize what it is you want or where you want to take your business. If you don't see it all super clearly right now, or maybe you just see a part of it. Don't worry, because this is the place where you can add two later. You can come back to it anytime you like. I probably already said this a few times, but just remember, there are no limits. There are no limits to the inspiration ideas that flow for you in your vision. It's so important to know where you want to go, to have some way to picture it and visualize it, write it down or draw it or sketch it, are listed if you want in order to help you get there. So a few questions to help you with this part of the business plan or how do you foresee your business blossoming in the next five years? What do you want wish for and look forward to in your business? How will your business make a difference in other's lives? What adjectives would you like to use to describe your future business? So for my vision, I've added flower petals and I've cut my now, your personal core values define who you are. So here's a little spot that I've written out my core values I give from a heart overflowing with joy. It must be fun and creative for me. I share what's authentic to me and my personal journey. It's meaningful and fulfilling. So if something doesn't stay aligned to my core value of here, then it's not in line for me. It's not part of my vision. And what I want for my business or my mission, core values, or the framework on which we evaluate our choices. When I have a decision to make a choice, whether to start a new project or say yes to some opportunity. I check in about my core values. Your core values are the glue that holds your business together. So that's why I've drawn the flowers. And the roots. Remind me that this is what keeps me standing, strong instinct beautiful and staying true to me. And that's the way that I can stay lined with my vision as well. So I have just used my flowers as little flaps opening and closing. But for you as you fill out your page, you can also just include your little vision here like this, around each flower. Adding, what is your vision? But would you like, what do you imagine? What do you foresee? What do you dream about for your business? So you can get really artsy and creative as well, just writing alongside each flower. What are those things aligned to you? Remember here your personal core values defined here, who you are. It doesn't have to be long and wordy. It can just be short and clear, very precise that way. You will have very clear overview of what your vision is. Here you can list more of your core values. 6. 5. Your How: Welcome to this class where we talk about are how for our business. So I've included a few quotes that speak to me about this topic. Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work from Aristotle, the work of art is above all, a process of creation. Vision is the picture of the future that produces passion. So all these quotes spoke to me as I was creating this page. And that's why I thought of making a tree, thinking about my business as a starting point. Something I'm creating something, I'm building something I'm growing into, and also something that I want to bear fruit. For my visual business plan I use leads to depict the different parts, different aspects of my business. And I've categorize them into four different sections. E.g. my art business consists of drawing because I'm an artist teaching. I'm also a teacher creating, which is kind of like drawing, but it's, it goes even deeper. And writing, depending on what I'm creating. It was very helpful for me to just picture a tree with the branches and then the different leaves that come out of each branch. So this is just to give you an example. But of course, for your class project, for your plan, you would be able to use the sheet that I've provided and create your own. So here you can fill out the blanks, different aspects of your business. Maybe it's not an art business, maybe it's a jewelry business or sewing business. You're still creating. There's the creating process, There's the communication process, the organizational process, maybe the online process. So this is where you can picture it for yourself. And I find that it really helps me just have a overview of the how in my business, how am I gonna get to my mission and my purpose and my vision? This is where I can focus on here. Later on in the course, we're going to talk more about the how and the process of each of these aspects. But for now this is a page just as an overview. So thinking about e.g. my drawings, I draw self-care resources. I may quote doodles. I draw affirmation cards. I draw self-care posters and my teaching, I do online courses. I do live workshops and YouTube videos. So that kinda falls into teaching for me. Then my creating, I can craft pages and books. Some gift kid's birthday parties are, some of these things are things that I would like to do. So I'm not really able to do each one of them and that's why I find it very helpful to categorize my efforts and my work. Because that way I can either give time for each one or maybe I see some of them that I can be flexible and change with as I go as I try them out. So sometimes you'll notice that certain things, certain aspects of your business could fall into more than one of these categories, and that's fine. You can add more leaves. That's the wonderful thing about this page or this visual business plan because you can always add to it. I've even glued some on top if I wanted to change down the line. So there's really no limit. Here's just a little space, e.g. you'll see in the blank as well to journal anything that you would like concerning your house as a little gentle reminder. And here I've included another quote that says, Don't judge, each day by the harvest, you reap that by the seeds you plant. It's not always about the fruit and the end result. Because when I focus on the end result, I forget to think about my wow, and then I lose track of the how. It's the seeds that you plant that make a difference. And to me, I also take time to reflect on the difference that it makes in my life. How I grow and evolve with time as I go into my business and try out new things, experiment with new things, challenge myself to new things, and even sometimes get out of my comfort zone. So all that to me is related to my house. And here you can either type something up like I've done in this example. You can just write it as you wish. I've written. I love each aspect of my work. It brings me so much joy and satisfaction. It most often feels like play. And when it doesn't, I make sure I take breaks to stop and play. The how is great. But it's not as important to me as the wow, I feel when I do something that I enjoy and love today, maybe all of those things here tomorrow, something may be totally different. But I'm flexible and attuned to any changes in growths. That's what it's all about for me. Paying attention to that inner wisdom that guides me to new ideas and inspirations and keeps me in line and motivated and striving for progress. It also totally accepting of where I am right at this moment. There are moments to do and moments just to be. So again, that's the wonderful thing about a tree that doesn't rush around and stress. It's just there. It's accepting to just be still, stay put grounded. That's also a big lesson that I learned from nature. To stay grounded, to stay centered in my house. Then I can more freely experience the wow. So I've listed here a couple of questions that you can ask yourself as you were flagged and as you work on this page of your house. 7. 6. Your Goals: Welcome to this course on setting goals for your business plan. I used wheels because to me it takes out the boring process of setting goals. You get to turn something, you get to see something moving to me. It just reminds me of a car going somewhere moving forward. And that's what goals are. Kind of following the process of your vision, of your mission, your purpose. Spinning a wheel helps my mindset engage into a physical activity of turning a wheel. Reminding me of the process of putting some action into these goals. I see it as a fun way to outline and define my goals into different timeframes, like I've done here with weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, and even here legals, it gives me a clear overview, yet still specific to each separate goal one at a time. That way it's not too overwhelming into the future. As a creative person, I needed something a little fun or than just lists or paragraphs of goals. A goal properly set is halfway reached by zigzag color. Ideas do not work. It is you who has to do the work at a gentle reminder. Why set goals? Give me clarity, direction, and vision to energize, inspire, motivate, and keep me challenged. So that's something I wanted to add here because that way it's very clear. Why do I set goals? Why do I want to set goals? Here's where I have my weak goals. My biweekly calls, my month legals, my one-year goals. And my two-year goals just gives me a fun, clear outline of my goals in a fun, artsy way. And so for you in filling out yours, I've made a wheel as well and you can just add to it like this here would be maybe one week here if you want your two-week goals, your monthly goals, maybe your quarterly goals on, you can go that way. You can just see it in one big wheel or if you want, you can also include a wheel like I have done with a little clip like this in the back. You can add that if you wanted a little bit more artsy and creative. And this wheel here is for my smart goals. So if you don't know what smart goals are, they are they stand for s for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, Ti timely. So I've listed for myself a question for each of those smart goals just to help me remember and think about as I go through my business. So specific, as I think about each project or each new idea, I think about what do I want to accomplish with this idea? Are with this project measurable? What's my action plan to get there? How will I track my progress? Next? Achievable? What resources, talent, opportunities will it take? Well, will I do to accomplish it? Relevant? How does it align with my values or fit in with my creative journey or support and align with who I am today. Timely. What is my deadline or timeframe for this project completion? So thinking about each of these questions, and I've included here a little book for myself. And I usually have a little paper or a little notebook for each different project that I started. And I think about the smart goals again, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely. For this one, in the page that I've created for you, I've listed each of these questions that you can ask herself. And then of course you can add in the back or on another book and it'll envelope related to each project or each idea. Thinking about your smart goals. 8. 7. Your Customers: In this class we're going to talk about your customers. I made a girl shopper outline for my customer page. What could describe it better than that? It's a hall in the picture for a visual person. So I added lots of shopping bags for her. It's so important to know your customers because they're the ones who are going to keep your business going. Understanding them better will help you be a better service to them. This is where you want to try to get into their hands what they need and want. But sometimes they don't even know what they want. So that's why we have to show it to them. This is the part that will help you build connections. If you build commitment and passion towards your customers, they will more likely come back for more. That's why customer service is so important. And not only will they remain a customer, but they can also help generate referrals. Here's some helpful questions to ask yourself in this category. Who are they? What are their motives and goals? How can I meet their needs? What are their values? Where do they find me? Where do they live? Hangout, Shaw or travel. What are their hobbies? Why would they buy what I have and what do we connect on? So here talking about our customers. Satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all. Yours where you can answer some of those questions about your customers. There's lots of space to doodle than right, and even extra notes here. Or in my book here. I've just added a page behind that I just fill out. And I can add to later on as well. And I made this sort of like as a pocket. That way I printed it out all my questions related to my customers. So you can decide how you want to do yours. You can even cut this out and make it like a pocket and add something to the back if you'd like. Most of all is that you fill out what you need about those customers. That's what's going to give you real clear direction about your customers and how you can best fill their needs. 9. 8. Your Competitors: In this class we're going to talk about how to get to know your competitors and why. Learning about your competitors will help you to learn more about yourself too. Knowing their strengths and weaknesses will help you to be aware of your own. You try to see what works for them and what doesn't. That's when good comparing comes into place. When you know, what is your competition. You can also see clear how to stand out and be different. You want to outsmart your competitors using your own skills and strengths. As an example for me personally, I realized that I have some lax and the technical aspect of things. I'm a bit slow in learning new programs, new technologies, new apps, as well as calculating anything related to numbers. But I'm really good at planning and organizing and bringing in the fun and creativity to my projects. So then I tried to see how I can bring a little bit more of that aspect into what I create and with what I share. So for me, I've made it into a little flower petal because yes, you know, I love flowers. And I've included questions. What are they doing? And I've answered them underneath. How do they connect? Where are they? Their strengths, their weaknesses? We're also going to talk about swot analysis. What is that? So I just made myself a little pocket here. So swot stands for strengths, your strengths, your weaknesses, your opportunities, and your threats. So think about that and take some time to fill that out for you. Here on this page, you'll have a little space to do that, my personal swot analysis. So if you need more space, of course, feel free to use the back or to use another page and included here as a little pocket, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. So it was very interesting for me to fill that out because I had never listed for myself those things about myself or about my business. And just some things to be aware of. And that way you'll know what you can work on and be encouraged about your strengths and how to use those to more efficiently fork in your business. So to get into a few more details about swat, we're going to question ourselves about our strengths. What do you do? Well, what's unique talents and resources can you draw on? What do others see as your strengths? Now, how to question yourself about your weaknesses. Some questions could be, what do you feel you could improve in? What resources are you lacking? We do others see as weaknesses in your business. Now moving on to questions about opportunities. What opportunities and possibilities are at your disposal? What trends could you take advantage of? How can you turn your strengths into opportunities? And last but not least, some questions about your threats. What could make things difficult for your business? What is a downside to which you're offering? What obstacles could get in your way. 10. 9. Your Financials: Welcome to this class where we'll talk about the financials of your business plan. The reason for this part of the business plan is so that you can calculate your costs and forecast your profits and losses. Workout your cash-flow projections, balance sheets, Find your break-even point and get the help when you need it. The fun part of creating this page was trying to think about how we handle money, whether in a wallet, with coins, with cards, or with gifts and coupons. Maybe some price tags, all that to help me get a very visual picture of my financials. So the financial parts are very important to add to your business plan because they allow you to budget properly for your present and future expenses as well as to know how your business is going. This is the part that's going to clearly describe how healthy your businesses. There are parts that need to be filled out monthly, quarterly, and the rest usually annually before your taxes. There are plenty of Excel sheets or templates or apps to better keep track of your financials. I only keep a very minimal general idea here in my paper plan just to have a basic overview and so that I have it laid out with the rest of my business plan. But most of the time I use it on the computer or on my phone just for easier access and also as a way to keep it more secure. So the very basics that I have included here are funding, which is from where, where do I get the money from? Expenses? What do I use it for? And pricing, which is the how how do I get the funding? And then as I mentioned before, I've gotten more detailed using spreadsheets, excel, or other apps. Other things you could include in this section would be your financial goals, your net worth statements, your budget, and cash flow planning, your balance sheet, which includes acids, liabilities, and equity. For more details on this part of the business plan, I would suggest you find other courses or resources on the topic to fit your needs and expertise. Money is a tool of trade, a standard of value, a medium of exchange. With money, you exchange the best of what's inside of you with the best of what's inside of others. From John butcher, pricing. So I've included funding in the little purse expenses and there's all handed a coin and pricing with little price tags on gifts. Choose your money goals consciously by asking yourself what kind of life you want to live. If you're confident in the value you give and the skills you bring, nothing stops you from setting your most ideal price. I've used. The hand here has a little pocket. What are my expenses? So each little coin is a different expense. My art supplies, I live workshops, print out samples, de corps, business cards, and my funding. Where do I get my funding from? Online courses, referrals, workshops, print on-demand downloads, added that to my little purse here, and some other quotes. I've made some little gift boxes with some tags. So each of these tags I use as different things that I sell in my business or any source services, online courses, workshops, books down those gifts and cards. And then here's where I would list. What I want is pricing or what do I get. Here is a total monthly totals and you can of course, add it as yearly totals as well. So this is just a very quick overview. As I mentioned before, feel free to use any other spreadsheets, excel sheets or apps to dive more into these details of your finances, which is so, so vital for your business. 11. 10. Your Marketing: Now it's time to delve into the part of marketing for our business plan. I made this page thinking about our little farmer's market in front of our house every Wednesday, I see the same people coming back each week. And that's what we want for our business. People coming back regularly. So I asked myself, how do I get there? How do I make them come back? And that's what marketing is. Marketing is about the planning and thinking about the distribution and promotion of your products and services to best satisfy the needs of your customers. So we talked a little bit about it when we went through our customer page. You can think about it as delivering value to keep existing customers and to attract new ones. So now would be a time to go back to that page on your customers. If you need a little refresher or review on who they are, where you can find them, how you can connect with them, because it has a lot to do with your marketing plan, your marketing strategy. It's one thing to create your product or your service, or whatever you're sharing with others. But it's a whole other ball game to be able to sell it and market it. I know it's not everyone's favorite part. It's not my cup of tea either, but it's a very necessary one if we want our business to continue to be successful. So putting it all into balance, into perspective. If I were to take my product or my service, or think about the order of events for it. It would probably go something like this. First would be planning and production concept. Maybe researched the availability and value. Basically ask yourself the question, what will you make? What will you offer? Number two would be to create the product or the service. What's the quality or the performance that you're going for? And how will you make it? Number three, is selling it. What promotional efforts are you willing to put into it? Where will you sell it? For? Would be your marketing? Identifying the needs of your customer. Who will buy it. In five would be your customer satisfaction. How will it be received? Because this will determine if they come back or not, or maybe bring others to find out what you have to give. So if I look back on this list, I noticed that a big part of it, more than half of it, is related to the marketing aspect. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help you fill out this part of your business plan. Will you market from home, online, in-person, word of mouth, brochures or fairs, events. To whom will you market it? Again here? Your customers. What platforms? I tried to start with one platform. Once I'm very comfortable with that one, maybe I can move on to another one or try out another one to see which one works best for me. Another question, When is it something I wanna do daily or weekly? Bi-weekly, monthly, depending on what where you want to post, how you want to mark it will depend on when you do it. The last question, how how will you do it? Here's where you can add any more specific details on how you will go about it. Talking about or marketing. A few quotes I've included are the best. Marketing doesn't feel like marketing. That is so true. I don't like marketing. I don't know many creatives who like it. Good marketing makes you look smart. Great marketing makes the customer feel smart. So I've listed for myself some weekly, bi-weekly, monthly fees on the aspect of marketing. The best marketing strategy ever is. Care. Don't wait for opportunity. Created content is fire, social media is gasoline. Just a little reminder there. So your content is important and so is your social media. You can't have one without the other. And what, how do I do it? So in this page that I've included for you, you can fill out where where do you do marketing, maybe what apps or is it online? Is it from home? Is it in-person? Is it through events or fares? And then how do I do it? So here's where you get into the details of how you would do it. Me, I got a little bit more detailed. U2 person, blog events, interviews, freebies, quotes, birthdays, Instagram videos. So those are just a few ideas. And each one, each business is different, So each business will have different marketing needs as well. When I think of marketing, here's a few things that I remind myself of. That marketing is so much about what feels good for you. And also related to who you are. It's learning to work with herself, not against yourself. I feel that it must be aligned with your mission and your personal values. And that's why this comes after you work on those aspects of the business plan. Just because it works for someone else, it doesn't mean that it will work exactly that way for you. I don't feel that marketing is putting a lot of pressure on yourself to do it just like someone else. Or the way all the professionals tell us to do it because we're all so different. Yes, it's stepping out into some level of discomfort, but it's also trusting yourself to support and meet you at the right place, at the right time. It's really about stretching your limits, your edges a little bit every day. At least for me it is. And finding just the right balance that doesn't freeze you or make you feel stuck. But that makes you feel excited and challenged. Because we all want marketing to feel good so that what you give and share is not in a pushy and still see sort of way. But it comes from a place of generosity being true to you, so that you want to keep doing it over and over again. So that's really my favorite marketing strategy. Becoming so good at filling someone else's needs that I don't have to think about marketing as a business strategy to me that puts a lot of pressure and overwhelm on me. So instead, I want to feel fulfilled and satisfied that I'm making others happy and filling their needs with what I give and share. 12. 11. Your Work Process: In this class, we're going to talk about the process. The process of your work, your products, your ideas, your services. I've made a few pages for this part because the process can be a big one to plan. Processes, different products, different things I share. That way I can get very detailed about each one and just have a one-page overview, which gives me a clear direction of where I'm going. This is one of the last parts of our business plan, but also a very important one. Here's where I get more detailed and categorized and organized in the how, how do I do it? Again, this is for you to personalize to your products, your business, and your services. You can use one or two or all of the pages I've provided here to use to fill out your process. For my general creation process, it might look something like this. Preparation. Here's where I gather information, knowledge, and any research on the subject. Next is inspiration. What a-ha moments do I have? Here is where it gets more clarity, more ideas about the project or even the timing of it. Next part I call it incubation because I let it sit for awhile. Here's where I explore our experiment. Maybe I sketch it out, I try it out on myself or on some friends just with a very rough idea. Next part, evaluation. Here's where I reflect more about it. Maybe critique it, or ask others to critique it. And I assess it not in a judgmental way, but in a gentle, loving, helpful, supportive way. The last would be the implementation. Here's where I create, I do the work and then I keep going, I persevere. And then once I'm clear on those for the implementation part, I break it down even further into tasks to get really into the nitty-gritties of the creation process. And the reason I've included a few pages on this topic of the process so that I can use a different one for each aspect of my business or each service that I offer. And that gives me a very clear idea on how I'm going about it. And the steps that helped me get to the end result without missing out on any important aspect of it. Again, this is great for visual learners step-by-step, box by box. And I see very clearly where I'm headed, where am I at right now? What is the next step? So I find it helpful to list for myself a few ways that I can get to these tasks. So first, I take a look at the big picture, gives me a clear overview of everything that needs to get done. Then I figure out step-by-step what needs to get done. That's when I break it up into different aspects, different steps. Next, I put them into the best logical and organized fashion or order. Then I create a timeline to complete my tasks, kind of listing the priorities within those tasks. Then I make a plan of how to stay on track, how to persevere, how to keep going. And lastly, I set a little time to evaluate and maybe adjust some things and change things if need be. Process is a series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a particular outcome or results. Success needs a process. The process may take time and lots of effort. I stay committed to doing my very best each day. I continue to learn and improve along the way. So I've made it a little path to help remind me, okay, these are the little steps that I'm going to take. And throughout, I gave myself a little nodes that'll affirmations, positive quotes to help me on the process, to help me on the journey. I trust and enjoy the process of this work in progress. Yep. It's just a work in progress. I don't have to do it all perfectly. Just trust where it takes me. So these girls, to me, they're taking the first step in the process towards the process. I've written here, my process for, and here's where you can add the different aspects of your business. I am sure to celebrate my small wins along the way. So for me, I have some self-care online courses, so I've listed here each different aspect of that. Here's my process for acute art online courses. Also different steps for that one. Here's my process for creating different resources. I've listed them here and then gotten even more detailed here. Here is my process for making books. Again, the process here and here I've written what type of books fall in love with the process and the results will follow. That's a big lesson I'm learning to just enjoy the process, not be so tied or looking after the results because they'll just follow as I enjoy the process. And then even another page, my process for cards and my process for live workshops or events. So these are the pages where you can fill out your own process and details for your business. And here are some questions that she can ask herself when you want to review how it's going. So the first question is, do I have a clear outline of the process to what are the parts of the process that I enjoy most? Three, what are some challenging or problematic steps for how can I improve my process? Five, why, and how can I simplify the process? Fix how much impact does each step have on the total success? 13. 12. Your Resume: In this class we're going to talk a little bit about writing out a resume. So you can add this to your business plan or not. It's really up to you. I've included my here, just folded it, cut it up so I can add it and have it together with my business plan. And then I have a different format that I give to others or send online. Again, I think it's important and I like to add it to my business plan because it's a reminder of who you are, where you've been, what you've learned, your skills, your talents, your interests, what you've accomplished so far, and where you're going. For me, another great bonus of adding it here to my business plan is that it's a great way to help build me up and cheer me on in my business. I look back and see all the effort, how I've grown, how I've matured, what each challenge, even maybe mistakes, ups and downs along the way where they have brought me and where I'm at today. Also, it really grows my confidence. Related to your resume or your CV. The goal is to present yourself well and quickly. Here there's space for you to write your resume in my book because you've seen before, I added mine into a little pocket like this with little papers, I've cut out different aspects of my resume. That way I can always have it included here. In order to inspire people, it has to come from somewhere deep inside of you. So here's how I've made mine with a little slap and pocket. And here is how you can feel yours up if you like. You can just write yours. On this side of the page. Here it says prioritize quality words, relevant words, keywords over quantity of words. I added that just as a little reminder for myself, it doesn't matter how many words you include an ad. It's more important to find those quality words that really say who you are. Here's a different resume that I like to give out businesses. So I've included my details and personal information. Then I've included my education, my professional experience, my actual work now today, then my competences, my areas of interests. Then where they can find me. This is another fun way to do it if you want to include this, if you would like to use this as a starting point for creating your CV and your resume. But of course, you're not limited to that. You can use a smaller page if you prefer. And just missed points. Here are a few points that you could maybe include in your resume. Some of the things that I've done for mine. But of course, you decide what is right for you and what you want to include in your resume. Because each business, each person's resume will be very different. And that's the wonderful thing about it. Alright, so first of all, I would add some general information such as my name, my email, my phone number, my website, anything else that you feel would be conducive for people to see right off the bat. Next, you can include your education, which would be your studies, your diplomas, certificates may be any courses you've taken. So all this would be related to the project that you would be working on or the job offer or the service you would present. You don't have to put all your education if you don't want to. Just what is pertaining to what it is that you want to show. Next would be professional experience. So again here I would say the same thing as with the education. List, your levels of experience and where you've worked previously. Maybe some of the projects you've done for others, whether you're a freelancer or whether you have another business going on or where you've worked before. All that could be a help for people to see the experience level that you're at. The next one would be your present work. So what are you doing at the moment? What projects do you run your own business? Do you do other freelance illustrations or are you coaching to do online work, to do workshops? At the same time, I like to include some links wherever I can because this is very helpful, not just for people to see a list, but for people to see examples of your work. So don't be afraid to show yourself off in this part. Next would be skills and competence. So again, here are your strengths. What are you good at? What do you know how to do? What programs do you use? What are you comfortable with? Maybe what languages you speak, what art mediums do you use if you're an artist, you could also include your level of expertise which could be helpful for some. Next, I would include interests. So this is really the fun part. What do you enjoy doing? Because it tie line with your values because if you're very clear on your interests, then they'll also be clear on whether they should use you for a certain project or hire you for a time if you're willing to do certain things and also very clear that you're not willing to do certain things. So that's also being true to yourself. Not being afraid to share your interests. What you enjoy doing the most, what lights you up, what keeps you motivated? What's your style? And last but not least, you can just again, repeat some of the information where people can find you, whether it's your website or Facebook page or Instagram. You have a YouTube channel, do you have a blog, anything of the sort, just to remind people of that, even though you've put some of that information at the beginning, I find it helpful to also put it at the end. That way they don't forget about you. And it's very clear if they would like to contact you in the future. 14. 13. Other Additions: This is not a must to include in your business plan, but I like to remind myself of a few things to help keep me motivated. So as I write something or read something or listen to something that could help me in my business. I listed here on this page. That way when I feel a little stuck in a particular area of my business, check out that list. And it always reminds me of something helpful that I can review. Somehow. It just enlightens me and encourages me onwards. So here's where you would add whatever it is that helps keep you going persevering in your business. It's not a bad thing to have little gentle reminders, little nudges that keep us going in the right direction. We all need that from time to time. I've added little quotes and messages to myself. Build your own dreams or someone will hire you to build. There's, this reminds me why I'm doing this business plan. There are lots of challenges, lots of ups and downs, especially when you're doing your own business plan from scratch, you're starting your self. It's more important to build your skills than your resume. So yes, that's finding the balance. It's good to have your resume ready, prepared, well worded, clear, concise, but remember your skills are most important because after all, it's not what you say you can do, but it's what you show you can do. I wrote myself a little note here that I also include in my pocket. This is my growing and evolving business plan. It's me today, right now. But I'm giving myself permission to adapt, move, and challenge myself in the new and different ways when the time warrants it, or when I feel in my heart the need to do so. This is not a plan set in stone. It's to clarify where I'm at today and some wishes and goals for my career so that I can stay focused and motivated, especially confident to tell others who I am and what I do. But most of all, besides an artists and creative, I'm a joyful, playful soul who's number one goal is to be happy and fulfilled. So we go, always go back to your values, which for me is joy, happiness, and to do what lights me up here, a few things I've listed for myself that I reread and review to myself often as I go through my business or before I start a course, before I start on a new project, I have a before filming for a course lecture, I have a motivational letter, a thank you letter from my cheerleader letter. I have some place. I have a book where I keep little motivational quotes. Authentically me letter, craft page on starting something new. I have creativity protectors, I have say something class and cores. So this anything helpful information that you want to refer back to regarding your business? 15. 14. Final Thoughts: You've done it. You've created your own personalized business plan. What a big win. Now it's time to celebrate that. Celebrate all that planning and getting curious and questioning yourself, being aware of all those things related to your business. Now, keep working the plan and adjusting and staying flexible to changes or improvements as you go on this business journey. A few final tips. You might want to have this business plan handy to refer back to very often, if it's in a notebook, keep it on your desk. If it's in a frame post-its and your office where you can see it often and be reminded of all your goals and the direction, your values, your purpose, your mission, and don't forget to evaluate from time to time. I think it's a critical part to take time to review and evaluate your plan if you want your business to continue to thrive and grow and be productive, it works to do it once, but what if you go back to it every year? I'd like to review my business plan every year because there are a lot of tweaks and changes that I can make. It so easy to get stuck doing the same things over and over again just because it's the way we've always done them. Like the saying that goes, insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. So I suggest you really review of your plan to see if you want to different results. If you're happy with how it's going, a detailed look of each aspect of your business plan. And because it's all in one place, in one book or one frame, one wall. It's easy to go back to it. It's not overwhelming. It's not lists and lists or papers and just facts and figures. You have a beautiful artsy plan to go back to review and reevaluate as needed. And then evaluation is maybe admitting to yourself that there is room for improvement. I love going back to my business plan because it means i'm, I'm going somewhere and I'm learning through the whole process after a year of living with it, working with it, and then adjusting it. I realized that there's so many new aspects that I didn't know before. So it's an exciting part for me to go back to it and evaluate it. I suggest you just go back to your plan, read through it page by page, and ask yourself three questions. Is this still true to me and how I feel today? Is there anything to alter or change? What could be improved in some way? Some other general questions, if you want to go even further, in what ways is my business growing and thriving? What has worked well in the past year? Are there some schedule, work habits, adjustments to be made? What new things could I try or experiment with? Am I living a balanced life? What do I want to see happen differently in this new year? So I will leave you with that. And I hope that this course was helpful in some way and give you more insight about yourself and mostly about your business. That you'll be able to take these goals, these questions and answers, and be more successful than ever before in your business. I'll see you in another course and thank you again for joining me. Bye bye.