especially at the beginning;
• learn to balance family and business time;
• face your shortfalls and improve on them;
• learn from others around you; and
• believe in yourself.
Are you hesitant, ready to forge ahead, or actually practicing some of these steps?
If you are hesitant and not quite sure where and how to start, consider doing business on a small scale. Combine forces with another business or start working with a partner. By reading this book you are on your way to starting your business. Pay attention to the exercises and advice in this book, talk to respected advisers, and network. Clarify in your mind the best place for starting your business.
Maybe you are ready and you know you have a good idea and great potential. As long as you have done your preliminary homework and are not going to start your business by trial and error with a “hope for the best” attitude, then go for it. If you have any reservations, however, take some more time to prepare yourself.
Look, Listen, and Learn
Sometimes eager entrepreneurs may skip seemingly unimportant steps in the planning, marketing, and strategizing stages at the start. Mistakes are inevitable, but if we are equipped with the right knowledge, and we prioritize and remind ourselves to be patient, we are halfway down the road to success.
You may find that reading this book will prepare you for or confirm your ideas about your impending venture. I cannot overstate the importance of doing the preliminary homework and, if necessary, delaying your dream by a few months or even a year or two. Always keep your long-term success in focus. You are building a stronger foothold for your business to flourish and last. Adopt the sure and methodical approach of the tortoise over that of the erratic and risky hare. The latter may bring fast apparent success, but quickly leads to burnout.
No one but you can do the work of researching into what is right for you — not even your spouse or partner, unless you plan to work together. You know yourself better than anyone else, and I hope this book can help you gain more insight into starting and running a successful art teaching business, whether you plan to do it alone or with the support of others.
Apprenticing or teaching, and continuing your education
Before starting out on your own, and depending on your confidence and experience, you may want to become a part-time or full-time apprentice or take a teaching job. There is no better way to learn the ropes than by witnessing trade secrets while working alongside other teachers or an art school owner.
You will become aware of how much work goes into all the programs and the smooth workings of a school, and the many hats an owner has to wear. You will see what types of pitfalls could be in store for you in your own enterprise later on. It may prove to be an invaluable experience.
And of course, you can go back to school yourself, as a student, if only to take a short course or workshop. Your local colleges, business resource centers, and libraries can provide you with a list of programs, whether they are business related, or related to theories of teaching and instruction. This is also a great way to form a social network.
Learning from children
I have come up with the best ideas for projects, study subjects, and programs with the help of my young daughter. She taught me to listen intently to my students. As a teacher, you must encourage the vibrant freshness children possess and help them capture it in their art. Children are naturally curious; have them share and explore. Listen to them and learn from them. You may find that they invigorate your own creative spirit.
Contacting other artists and entrepreneurs
Another way for you to connect is to contact artists and creative entrepreneurs to find out how they began. Research the backgrounds of artists and creative entrepreneurs that you respect most. Find out how they went about making and shaping their careers. If possible, contact some of these artists or entrepreneurs directly and ask them for advice. Create a list of questions to ask these people before you talk to them.
The best way to initiate contact is to email them your questions. Email eliminates geographical distance and time differences and gives people time to consider your questions, which means that they may answer the questions more thoroughly when you finally talk to them on the telephone.
Ask open-ended questions that will encourage your interviewees to trust you. If they are in a different state, province, or country, they probably won’t see you as competition and you may be able to ask specific questions about their pricing and business strategies. Gauge their comfort level from the length and content of their replies.
Remember to always be professional. For example, if you ask for a certain amount of their time, keep your promise, and arrange another meeting or phone conversation if you need more time. After your interview is completed, thank them for their time with a personal note or by email. Keep the channels open and friendly. By the same token, remember to be there for other people who may approach you for your expertise later in your career.
Home-Based Studio Versus Rented Studio
You will need to decide if your home is big enough for a home-based studio. If it is not, then you will need to consider renting space for a studio.
Home-based studio
Using an area of your home (or maybe a building on your property) for your studio can have many benefits. For starters, you are in control of your own environment and have no one but your family to answer to about what goes on in your studio; for example, your students can smash tiles to make mosaics and not worry about being too loud when working on their art projects.
Another benefit is that you can have as few classes as you like without having to worry about the studio earning its keep, increasing rental costs, and other unexpected expenses, especially in the beginning. (The period it takes to build up a client base and awareness and trust from your neighborhood and community can be between one to three years, depending on the activity and profile of the school and the effectiveness of your marketing strategy.)
Your hours can be flexible according to your schedule or other responsibilities, such as a part-time job in the mornings. You could concentrate on teaching art classes in the afternoons, evenings, and weekends. On the other hand, if you rented a studio space, your hours might possibly be dictated by the owner of the building or the district in which your studio is located.
The best part of having a home-based studio is that you will not have to commute to work nor will you have the additional expenses of gas and car maintenance.
However, before you leap into transforming a space in your home into a studio, you should consider the disadvantages. First of all be aware that having a studio in your home gives it a “hobby” and “passion for the arts” feel, rather than seeming like a dynamic business that is constantly looking for more students. As well, some people find it harder to stop working for the day when their work is in their own home. It becomes tricky to set boundaries between personal life and business life. Your family may become upset when dinner or family time is interrupted by phone calls or when your attempt to accommodate your students’ busy schedules for classes and other programs interferes. It may also cause problems when students show up unexpectedly to discuss a project or drop off a late assignment.
You must also consider the fact that your neighbors may not like having their parking spaces used, even for quick pickups and drop-offs of students. In fact, zoning restrictions may not allow you to have a home-based business (discussed in more detail later in this chapter).
You may also need to do some renovations to provide for adequate ventilation and lighting. This could be costly, but you may decide that the costs for redesigning a space are cheaper than renting.
When