- Business Management for the Creative Mind
How many times have you thought to yourself, “I’m creative! I’m just no good at business!” In this dynamic, interactive workshop, I’ll dispel this myth and help you identify and apply your unique talents to create a successful business without sacrificing your creativity or your integrity. Whether you’re freelance, self-employed or working ...
- Business Management for the Creative Mind Or How to Run Your Art/Music Business
How many times have you thought to yourself — I’m an Artist. I’m just no good at business!
In this dynamic, interactive workshop, I’ll dispel this myth and help you identify and apply your unique talents to create a successful business without sacrificing your art or your integrity.
- Copyright and Trademark Basics an Interview with Jeff Fabian
Trademark and copyright protection are fundamental components of a sound business strategy for all artists and professionals in the Music Business, Visual Arts or Film and Television Industry. But do we have to be lawyers to understand the basics? Jeff Fabian says “NO!” and he is going to going to prove it to us in ...
- Create and Maintain Your Team
Are you sick of doing it all alone, but the idea of delegating to someone else overwhelms or confuses you? Do you have people working for/with you – agents, managers, assistants, web designers, etc. – but you’re unsure how to work with them? Or even worse, you feel like you’re working for them, not ...
- Debra Recommends All You Need To Know About the Music Business
An entertainment lawyer whose clients include many from the top of the music charts, Passman has written a book that sets out to give musicians, performers, and songwriters the tools to hire advisers, market their careers, protect their creative works, and generally cope with a complex industry in a state of flux.
- Debra Recommends Ann Evanston – Social Networking Coaching Club
Debra Russell, of Artist’s EDGE, recommends Ann and her Social Networking Coaching Club! She is committed to teaching the strategies and tactics to successful social networking to grow your business, increase traffic, and generate revenue!
- Debra Recommends Blue Ocean Strategy
Kim and Mauborgne’s blue ocean metaphor elegantly summarizes their vision of the kind of expanding, competitor-free markets that innovative companies can navigate. Unlike “red oceans,” which are well explored and crowded with competitors, “blue oceans” represent “untapped market space” and the “opportunity for highly profitable growth.”
- Debra Recommends Concerts in Your Home
Fran Snyder has created a great resource for musicians who are looking to perform in house concert venues as well as home-owners who are interested in creating wonderful events in their homes.
- Debra Recommends Guide to Releasing Independent Records
Ask any major label A&R rep and they’ll tell you: the best way to develop your music career is to release your own record. What they won’t tell you is how to make your release a success
- Debra Recommends How to Be Your Own Booking Agent
This book will get you on the road, making more money, booking better gigs, with more press while playing to larger audiences.
- Debra Recommends International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees
IATSE is a union of professional stagehands, motion picture technicans, and allied crafts. Different locals of the IATSE have their own web-sites and contact pages. Do a Google search for the Union you’re interested in.
- Debra Recommends John Braheny
John Braheny is in demand as a top consultant for songwriters, performers and industry entrepreneurs.
- Debra Recommends Music XRay
I have recently been listed as an expert – under career coaching for Music Xray.
Music Xray is a resource for both musicians, composers and the buyers of music to connect in a professional and transparent environment. Music industry professionals use Music Xray as the preferred, direct and transparent method for interacting with artists.
Music Xray is ...
- Debra Recommends Music, Money and Success
The Insider’s Guide to Making Money in the Music Industry
by Jeffrey Brabec and Todd Brabec
My friends, Jeff and Todd, have written a comprehensive and incredibly informative book about the world of music licensing.
From Amazon:
The music and entertainment business means money for songwriters, composers, recording artists, musicians, music publishers and record companies. Whether it’s videogames, worldwide ...
- Debra Recommends Rich Dad, Poor Dad
What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money–That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!
by Robert Kiyosaki
I loved this book. It made me take a good hard look at my relationship with money, but even more so, how I thought about my business.
Amazon.com:
Rich Dad, Poor Dad chronicles the story of the authors two dads, his ...
- Debra Recommends Songsalive
Since 1997, Songsalive! is a non-profit membership organization dedicated to the nurturing, support, promotion and education of songwriters and composers worldwide. Founded in 1997, by Gilli Moon and Roxanne Kiely in Sydney, Australia, Songsalive! is run by volunteer songwriters for songwriters and has reached the far corners of the globe with over 25 chapters worldwide. ...
- Debra Recommends TAXI
I’ve been working with TAXI as a speaker for the yearly conference, the Road Rally, since 2005. I’ve come to know many TAXI Members, as well as Michael Laskow and the other staff who tirelessly work to help their members create a prosperous living doing what they love.
I can without hesitation recommend TAXI Membership to ...
- Debra Recommends The ABC’s of Building a Business Team That Wins
Great champions in sports, business and even families have one thing in common. It’s a legitimate secret weapon. It is something that lies deep in the genetic code of winning organizations. It appears when pressure is high, when the stakes are critical and when everything is on the line. They know how to work as ...
- Debra Recommends The E-Myth Revisited
The brilliance of Gerber’s approach to systematizing your business has made a significant difference in my success and the success of my clients.
- Debra Recommends The One Minute Manager
by Kenneth H. Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
For more than twenty years, millions of managers in Fortune 500 companies and small businesses nationwide have followed The One Minute Manager’s techniques, thus increasing their productivity, job satisfaction, and personal prosperity. These very real results were achieved through learning the management techniques that spell profitability for the organization ...
- Debra Recommends Turning Passions Into Profits
Turning Passions Into Profits
– 3 Steps to Wealth & Power
by Christopher Howard
This is a book by my NLP and Hypnosis teacher. What surprised me about this book was what it wasn’t. It wasn’t another “follow your bliss” woo-woo book. And it wasn’t a “Business” book. It is a concrete instruction manual to use other people’s ...
- Debra Russell Recommends The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter began as the entertainment industry’s first daily trade paper in Hollywood.
- How to Manage Your Marketing – The Contact Management System
Marketing is creating an environment in which people feel comfortable enough to buy from you, over and over again.
Sounds like a great idea, right? But what exactly does that mean in terms of day to day actions? And how do you systematize creating that environment?
Does this sound familiar?
You’ve got a pile of business cards on ...
- How to Write the Dreaded Business Plan
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
Benjamin Franklin
We’ve all heard this quote, and yet, we struggle and resist against writing a business plan. For most artists and creatives, there’s the myth that the plan will cramp your creativity. But what my private clients discover over and over again, is that the plan empowers ...
- Innovate or Perish
I am sick and tired of reading articles and blogposts that scream out
“… doomsday – the sky is falling, the music industry is dead – it was killed by the internet. Blah, blah, frikkin’ blah!”
Enough already! It’s just so much crap! The music industry isn’t dead. IT’S CHANGED! What’s dead are the companies that ...
- Leadership
I believe that Leadership, or the lack thereof, underlies many if not all of the challenges that we are experiencing in today’s world. But what is Leadership?
- Meetup.com Creating Community in Your Community
Meetup.com was mentioned in response to a question from the March 2009 Ask Coach Debra call. The question was about finding and/or building community with fellow artists. I have found meetup to be an incredible tool for finding and creating community centered around common interests. I have been both a Meetup organizer with my Bay Area ...
- Multiple Streams of Income
I’ve been following this model in building my business and it has made a tremendous impact on my income, on my success with my clients and on how much fun I have working!
While these products are primarily focused on Coaching or Service and Consulting businesses, I’ve very successfully coached my clients in the Arts and Entertainment ...
- Systems Creation – Work Smarter, Not Harder
Ever feel like a rat on a wheel, spinning and spinning and not getting where you want to go? A great way to get off the wheel is to set up systems that automate your business. Anything you do more than twice in your business will be easier, faster, and simpler to delegate if you ...
- Taylor Swift – Is Her Career Over?
I wrote this to Bob Lefsetz in response to his rallying cry for Taylor Swift and against the almost universal online and mainstream media bashing.
- The Art of Outsourcing – An interview with Tiamo De Vettori
This month we interviewed the LA Music Awards’ Male Singer/Songwriter of the Year, Tiamo De Vettori, on The Art of Outsourcing – how to get volunteers to enthusiastically do the things that you don’t like to do.
He also touched on cross promotion – how to minimize your work and multiply your fan base, and on ...
- The Economy and Your Business
There’s a saying floating around out there among the financial and personal growth Gurus – “I refuse to participate in the recession.” I intend to help you come up with an even better, more empowering mantra to keep you focused and clear in this time of challenge, uncertainty and fear.
- Transitioning to Full-time With Your Art/Music Business
Whether you’re working a day job in the corporate world or teaching within your craft to sustain yourself, many artists and musicians dream someday they will earn enough to go full-time with their art.
And just as many have given up on that dream, because it seems out of reach. Or because they tried to ...
- Venues and Artists – A Complex Relationship
Last week, an interesting conversation erupted on a music list-serve that I participate in. I think there is much to be learned from this both by the Venue Owners/Bookers and the Performing Artists who depend on those bookers for their gigs. I have removed all of the names/locations because the real issues here ...
