I’ve always been an attention and compliment seeker. It’s diluted and insecure, I know, but true. There have been countless times in the past when, after finishing an artistic project that I’m really proud of that I’ve been really excited to show it to someone. That someone, before I was married, was usually either my mom, or my little brother Glenn. Mom was always my biggest fan. Available, interested, and seldom critical. When Mom wasn’t around, or when I needed an extra pat on the back, Glenn was always there to be fascinated, genuinely complimentary, and relatable as an artist. After getting married, Kim took over this role, like a fish takes to water. She’s very supportive, and always has been. She plays a much better devils advocate than my own blood did, however. I have to admit that she was much more awestricken by my “amazing talent” while we were just friends and dating than these days. To be fair though…I was certainly much more romantic and attention giving back then too. I guess we’re a bit more realistic now. But I digress…
I’m the type of guy that NEEDS to share his ideas. I NEED to express myself to others. I would be miserable on this earth alone. I can work alone, and even play alone for days on end, but eventually I’ve got to tell someone about. It’s just the way I’m hard wired. Consequently, I have a hard time living by some of the rules that many of my mentors have advised. In his book, Think Like A Billionaire, Donald Trump said that if what he’s doing is good enough, and merits it, it’ll generate attention by itself. I think that is generally true. Then again, he’s Donald Trump. He could probably just fart in a crowded room and get front-page media attention.
Steven Pressfield, the author of The War of Art wrote, “Seeking support from friends and family is like having your people gather around at your death bed. It’s nice, but when the ship sails all they can do is stand on the dock, waiving goodbye. Any support we get from persons of flesh and blood is like Monopoly money. It’s not legal tender in that sphere where we have to do our work. In fact, the more energy we spend stoking up on support from colleagues and loved ones, the weaker we become and the less capable of handling our business.”
Although difficult to live by, I agree with this line of thinking. If the work that I’m doing is worth any attention, it’ll generate that attention naturally. People will talk when they find it. All I have to do it make it obvious enough to be discovered. Advertising doesn’t’ necessarily need to be in your face. It needs to be where you’re looking when you’re ready and willing to see it. Our planet is littered with advertisements. Billboards, television and radio commercials, product packaging, backdrops in sporting events, newspapers & magazines, the internet…heck, some people even sell space on their bodies to advertise these days. However, them more we advertise, the more we seem to tune out the advertising. We mute the TV between program segments and surf the radio stations until we find music. Tivo was even invented JUST to avoid advertisements. We’ve become masters at IGNORING advertising. This is a natural filter. The only things that get through this filter of our attention are the things that we are actually looking for. The things we are seeking out. The things were READY to have pitched to us.
In other words, I need to curb my desire to proactively share (advertise). Especially to loved ones. Why burden them with the obligation of acting interested? What I need to do is develop my ability to recognized opportunities to passively share. I need to cast my net and wait. Rather than starting a conversation about a project I’m working on, I need to be ready to expound on the topic it when it’s brought up naturally in conversation. I need to wait for the wave to come to me, rather than wasting my energy paddling here and there for the ones I see off in the distance. I need to work and create for the sake of working and creating. If I perfect what I’m working on, I won’t need to spend as much energy on the announcing of it. I believe that LittleLDS is a GREAT idea. Yes, I’ll have to do some advertising, but I think that as I endeavor to create quality images for my CDs and create as many of them as I can, the acknowledgement and traffic will come on it’s own.
Monday, September 25, 2006
Friday, September 22, 2006
Risk Management: The Experiment
I had a great idea this week that I really want to try out. While listening to “The American Advisor” this week I heard Joe Battaglia say something that really struck me. He was talking about the world’s energy situation and how we are all in trouble because we’re all so dependant on oil for fuel. He mentioned how important it is that we, as Americans, be innovative and creative in our way of thinking. He said that it’s time to try new things and to come up with new ways of doing things rather than depending so much on the old techniques and resources that have become so hard to come by in recent times. Well, it got the wheels turning in my head. Not necessarily about the fuel crisis, but about doing things in new and innovative ways.
I had an idea for a game a little while ago and, having been through the game production process before, I know that the likelihood of me, a novice, introducing a new game to the market is VERY slim. I tried this before with my game “ABC’s & Penalties” and immediately lost $200. I had developed the game through the prototype stage and had submitted it to a company who charged a $200 fee to review your game idea and then tell you whether or not they are willing to pick up the project and add it to their inventory. At the time I knew nothing about the industry and how it all worked. I was VERY excited when I sent off the submittal, and a bit deflated after receiving their review of it. They told me that my game as not novel enough and that it had too many similarities to games like Scatergories. Fair enough, they’re the experts. That $200 investment didn’t go wasted. I didn’t lose anything on this deal. I learned a very valuable lesson. Not that my idea was bad, or even good for that matter. I didn’t learn NOT to trust companies like this one. What I learned was that I need to manage my risk better. You see, in this example, I was putting my own hard-earned money into the hands of other people and hoping that they would see my game the way I saw it. I was hoping that they would see the potential of my idea and then run with it. It wasn’t a mistake for me to invest in this idea. The mistake was in how I invested in it. The mistake was putting all my hopes into the hands of someone else. The problem with this is that my chances of success were completely out of my own control. By investing my money into the opinions of a handful of people, I was basically putting $200 on the gambling table and hoping to be dealt a good hand of cards. Who knows what the odds were? 50/50? They either take it or they don’t, right? No, I think the odds were worst than that. Who knows how many other games were competing with mine at that particular time for that particular niche? Who knows what sort of mood the reviewers were in?
This time, however, I have an idea. I’m going to perform a little experiment in the control of my investing odds. I’m going to try a completely new method of gaming production. I’m going to create this game in a way that, as far as I know, has never been done before. If I am successful my odds will increase because of the control I’ve taken in the management of my risk. Whether I win on lose money will still be a consideration, but only I will be responsible for that outcome. If I earn money with my new game, it will be a direct result of MY efforts in it’s development and marketing. If I don’t earn any money, it will be a direct reflection of my lack of efforts in development and marketing. My objective: To see if I can successfully control my level of risk in an investment. The tool: My newly conceived game.
Challenges…
One of the biggest hurtles for an inventor of a new game is in the creation of a working prototype. This can represent a financial and physical challenge. My idea will virtually eliminate this obstacle. Another challenge with getting a new game into the market is the task of finding a well established, trustworthy, and fair company to review and then accept the new game. My idea will eliminate the need for anyone’s approval (other than the buyers themselves). Obviously the final challenge, which can have a very heavy impact on the overall success of the project, is to have a game that people will love to play. In concept, my game offers a wide range of playable ages, will be great for a large group, and is very simple to learn and play.
My strategy…
Most games that a group of people can play can cost anywhere from $10 to $30. There are a lot of exceptions, of course, but that is pretty typical. The reason for this cost (aside from the creating wanting to make a profit) is to make up for production and advertising costs. My game idea is really unique. It’s a game that will be downloadable from my website. Rather than paying for my production and advertising costs indirectly, I’m going to eliminate as much of those costs as possible so they don’t have to be recuperated later through high priced sales. In fact, because there are virtually NO costs involved in my game, my sales prices will be ridiculously low. So low, in fact, that the mere sales price ITSELF will be a factor in my advertising. The more inexpensive the game is, the more of a thoughtless decision it should be to try it out. Most people can afford to pay $3 to $5 for ANYTHING. I would think that many people would purchase it just to see how good the game is out of pure curiosity. There are a lot of people, after all, who spend more for less.
Here’s the novelty of my idea…. ready? My game is mostly downloadable. No expensively made boxes, boards, cards, or dice. The game will have instructions, rules, and playing cards that can be, cut out, and then laminated if desired (for durability). These cards can be printed from a simple PDF file sold on my website. The game does require some physical playing pieces, but in my instructions, on the website, it will be explained that each of these physical pieces can be gathered from other games that folks might already own. Names of games that contain necessary pieces to play my game will be listed so that people can check to see if they have all the required pieces. Fortunately, most people who like to play games tend to already have collections of other games, which facilitates my idea. Basically what I’ve done is create an IDEA for a game, develop it only partially, and supplement it with existing gamers’ work. I’m capitalizing on physical games that have already been made. No production costs for me translates into no expenses passed onto buyers of my game.
The phases of completion…
Phase I - Develop game on paper
I had an idea for a game a little while ago and, having been through the game production process before, I know that the likelihood of me, a novice, introducing a new game to the market is VERY slim. I tried this before with my game “ABC’s & Penalties” and immediately lost $200. I had developed the game through the prototype stage and had submitted it to a company who charged a $200 fee to review your game idea and then tell you whether or not they are willing to pick up the project and add it to their inventory. At the time I knew nothing about the industry and how it all worked. I was VERY excited when I sent off the submittal, and a bit deflated after receiving their review of it. They told me that my game as not novel enough and that it had too many similarities to games like Scatergories. Fair enough, they’re the experts. That $200 investment didn’t go wasted. I didn’t lose anything on this deal. I learned a very valuable lesson. Not that my idea was bad, or even good for that matter. I didn’t learn NOT to trust companies like this one. What I learned was that I need to manage my risk better. You see, in this example, I was putting my own hard-earned money into the hands of other people and hoping that they would see my game the way I saw it. I was hoping that they would see the potential of my idea and then run with it. It wasn’t a mistake for me to invest in this idea. The mistake was in how I invested in it. The mistake was putting all my hopes into the hands of someone else. The problem with this is that my chances of success were completely out of my own control. By investing my money into the opinions of a handful of people, I was basically putting $200 on the gambling table and hoping to be dealt a good hand of cards. Who knows what the odds were? 50/50? They either take it or they don’t, right? No, I think the odds were worst than that. Who knows how many other games were competing with mine at that particular time for that particular niche? Who knows what sort of mood the reviewers were in?
This time, however, I have an idea. I’m going to perform a little experiment in the control of my investing odds. I’m going to try a completely new method of gaming production. I’m going to create this game in a way that, as far as I know, has never been done before. If I am successful my odds will increase because of the control I’ve taken in the management of my risk. Whether I win on lose money will still be a consideration, but only I will be responsible for that outcome. If I earn money with my new game, it will be a direct result of MY efforts in it’s development and marketing. If I don’t earn any money, it will be a direct reflection of my lack of efforts in development and marketing. My objective: To see if I can successfully control my level of risk in an investment. The tool: My newly conceived game.
Challenges…
One of the biggest hurtles for an inventor of a new game is in the creation of a working prototype. This can represent a financial and physical challenge. My idea will virtually eliminate this obstacle. Another challenge with getting a new game into the market is the task of finding a well established, trustworthy, and fair company to review and then accept the new game. My idea will eliminate the need for anyone’s approval (other than the buyers themselves). Obviously the final challenge, which can have a very heavy impact on the overall success of the project, is to have a game that people will love to play. In concept, my game offers a wide range of playable ages, will be great for a large group, and is very simple to learn and play.
My strategy…
Most games that a group of people can play can cost anywhere from $10 to $30. There are a lot of exceptions, of course, but that is pretty typical. The reason for this cost (aside from the creating wanting to make a profit) is to make up for production and advertising costs. My game idea is really unique. It’s a game that will be downloadable from my website. Rather than paying for my production and advertising costs indirectly, I’m going to eliminate as much of those costs as possible so they don’t have to be recuperated later through high priced sales. In fact, because there are virtually NO costs involved in my game, my sales prices will be ridiculously low. So low, in fact, that the mere sales price ITSELF will be a factor in my advertising. The more inexpensive the game is, the more of a thoughtless decision it should be to try it out. Most people can afford to pay $3 to $5 for ANYTHING. I would think that many people would purchase it just to see how good the game is out of pure curiosity. There are a lot of people, after all, who spend more for less.
Here’s the novelty of my idea…. ready? My game is mostly downloadable. No expensively made boxes, boards, cards, or dice. The game will have instructions, rules, and playing cards that can be, cut out, and then laminated if desired (for durability). These cards can be printed from a simple PDF file sold on my website. The game does require some physical playing pieces, but in my instructions, on the website, it will be explained that each of these physical pieces can be gathered from other games that folks might already own. Names of games that contain necessary pieces to play my game will be listed so that people can check to see if they have all the required pieces. Fortunately, most people who like to play games tend to already have collections of other games, which facilitates my idea. Basically what I’ve done is create an IDEA for a game, develop it only partially, and supplement it with existing gamers’ work. I’m capitalizing on physical games that have already been made. No production costs for me translates into no expenses passed onto buyers of my game.
The phases of completion…
Phase I - Develop game on paper
(establish rules of play, decide on playing pieces, work out a Q & A page)
Phase II – Create a cost-free prototype
(Virtual & assembled game pieces, and PDF file)
Phase III – Game testing
(Play with test groups to work out the bugs and evaluate levels of interest)
Phase IV – Develop online interface
(i.e., create webpage, download-selling software, etc.)
Phase V – Market testing
(Experiment with family & friends)Phase VI – Public launch (Marketing and advertising)
Monday, September 18, 2006
First Distribution Contract
This weekend marked a monumental event for LittleLDS. On Friday Kim and I went to a party that we had been invited to by Joe and Michelle. It was Michelle’s birthday party. Michelle is the one who told her mother, Marsha, of Wellspring Publishing, about my LittleLDS Coloring CDs. Marsha and I have spoken on the phone on numerous occasions to discuss the possibilities of me doing some cartoon work for their line of greeting cards and also for the sales and distribution of LittleLDS CDs. Marsha even took the first three CDs to the LDS bookseller’s convention last month and got a bunch of orders! Well, this weekend when we went to Michelle’s party, Marsha just happened to be there! She was in town from Salt Lake to surprise Michelle for her birthday and I was finally formally introduced to her. We had a great discussion, and ended up talking a lot more about LittleLDS distribution over dinner on Sunday. By the end of the weekend, I had signed my first distribution contract for LittleLDS. I’m very excited.
Ever since Marsha told me about how interested people at the Bookseller’s convention had been in LittleLDS CD#4 (Scenes from the Plains), I’ve been thinking, and have finally come to a big decision. I’ve decided that I am going to be reducing and perhaps even rejecting logo designs for the next few weeks or even months to focus strictly on the development of LittleLDS. If this is ever going to become as big as I want it to become, then I really need to put some time and effort into it. I need to really buckle down and get moving. I have quite a bit more to do on CD#4, namely finishing sketches, inking, refining in Photoshop & Streamline, and then getting all the files ready for Charles to create the software. After that’s finished I have to get the cover finished for the case, purchase a new bar code, and get the files to Peter at Conduit! Better get to it!
Ever since Marsha told me about how interested people at the Bookseller’s convention had been in LittleLDS CD#4 (Scenes from the Plains), I’ve been thinking, and have finally come to a big decision. I’ve decided that I am going to be reducing and perhaps even rejecting logo designs for the next few weeks or even months to focus strictly on the development of LittleLDS. If this is ever going to become as big as I want it to become, then I really need to put some time and effort into it. I need to really buckle down and get moving. I have quite a bit more to do on CD#4, namely finishing sketches, inking, refining in Photoshop & Streamline, and then getting all the files ready for Charles to create the software. After that’s finished I have to get the cover finished for the case, purchase a new bar code, and get the files to Peter at Conduit! Better get to it!
Friday, September 15, 2006
Working hard, or hardly working?
Aside from my missionary days in Portugal, I don’t think I’ve ever worked this hard before. I’m working 55-hour weeks at work these days and spending about 95% of my time at home working on some project. Yesterday, for the first time in months, I took a few hours off to unwind in front of the boob-tube, and with all the new season premiers starting, my Thursday-night excuse to not work has returned…Survivor and CSI, Las Vegas. Soon, Lost will come back to sabatage my Wednesday nights, and eventually 24 will return to knock out Monday nights. Yeah, I’ll admit it…. there are some really addicting shows on these days. I actually really LOVE the off-season (summer) just so I can remain productive from night to night.
Productivity, however, seems to be a challenge for me lately. Oh, I'm plenty busy alright, but it's what I'm busy doing that is the problem. I'll explain.
Productivity, however, seems to be a challenge for me lately. Oh, I'm plenty busy alright, but it's what I'm busy doing that is the problem. I'll explain.
While it’s important to stay connected to my clients through email, I find that I spend a lot more time CHECKING my email for correspondence than I really need to. While doing research on Google for images relating to logo or other graphic design jobs, I often find myself getting distracted by all there is to see on the web. The web isn’t to blame…I'm just a naturally curious guy. I was the same way as a kid with encyclopedias. I would open one to find out about something in particular, and end up spending hours (literally) just reading adjacent subjects that had little or nothing to do with my initial search. I spin my wheels a lot doing things that don’t really need doing. I mean, they're good things to do, but they’re not exactly moving my business forward.
For example, one of my very favorite things to “work” on is the look of my website. Just having a website should be sufficient. However, I find myself tinkering on it all the time. Sure I look like I’m working, and I’m even doing things for Tyed Art, Inc. However, they’re not things that need to be done in order to be productive. Some time ago I noticed something that Google does every once in a while with their home page. I really like it and have tried to imitate it with my own style. For applicable months, I try to create some adaptation of my company logo to the corresponding holiday of that month on my homepage. Spiders and pumpkins for October, four-leaf clovers for March, hearts for February, etc...
For instance, December features a Tyed Art, Inc. logo where the blue image has a Santa hat on it. Another has a glowing red-nosed center with antlers imitating a reindeer. December has a lot of possible iconic symbols to select from so I have done several of these holiday-adapted logo images and I change them out once a week or so. I rationalize this time-consuming hobby by tell myself that I do this so my clients will revisit my website. They’ll come to expect that this is a “living” website. In other words a site that is attended to, cared for, and updated regularly. This creates curiosity in the visitor and a desire to return in anticipation of “what’s next?” Sounds good, right? Even logical. I learned this little trick at a free seminar I went to a few years ago here in Vegas. While it’s fun for me, and cool for them, it presents a big problem. The problem is that this type of “work” is not really doing anything for my bottom line. I don’t get paid for it, and its really time consuming. In reality, it’s actually taking me away from doing things that would otherwise contribute to my bottom line. And this is only one example of this type of non-productive "work" that I do.
In one of my favorite books, “The War Of Art,” Steven Pressfield defines RESISTANCE as anything that keeps one from achieving long-term growth, health or integrity. That’s a gross over simplification, but it serves my point. In my case, I’m trying to help LittleLDS, my small insignificant product brand become independent. I want it to take root in the market, and become self-sustaining, and profitable. I want it to eventually even actively and significantly participate in my retirement. I’m counting on it. I’m vested in it. The bottom line, then (i.e., the eventual success or failure of LittleLDS) really matters. Where LittleLDS in concerned, it’s ALL that matters. That having been said, I can’t really afford to be messing around with the cosmetics of my website during my few available working hours!
Although it generates income, designing logos and other graphic design has become a major obstacle in my path to success where LittleLDS is concerned. It’s a total catch 22 though. LittleLDS needs the capital for marketing, production costs, and further development, but monopolizing my time with logo work hinders my ability to dedicate time to work on furthering LittleLDS. In short, and to paraphrase Robert Kiyosaki’s description of guys like me, I’m so busy, that I don’t have any time to be productive! For a guy with as little time as I seem to have, this is a HUGE problem.
For example, one of my very favorite things to “work” on is the look of my website. Just having a website should be sufficient. However, I find myself tinkering on it all the time. Sure I look like I’m working, and I’m even doing things for Tyed Art, Inc. However, they’re not things that need to be done in order to be productive. Some time ago I noticed something that Google does every once in a while with their home page. I really like it and have tried to imitate it with my own style. For applicable months, I try to create some adaptation of my company logo to the corresponding holiday of that month on my homepage. Spiders and pumpkins for October, four-leaf clovers for March, hearts for February, etc...
For instance, December features a Tyed Art, Inc. logo where the blue image has a Santa hat on it. Another has a glowing red-nosed center with antlers imitating a reindeer. December has a lot of possible iconic symbols to select from so I have done several of these holiday-adapted logo images and I change them out once a week or so. I rationalize this time-consuming hobby by tell myself that I do this so my clients will revisit my website. They’ll come to expect that this is a “living” website. In other words a site that is attended to, cared for, and updated regularly. This creates curiosity in the visitor and a desire to return in anticipation of “what’s next?” Sounds good, right? Even logical. I learned this little trick at a free seminar I went to a few years ago here in Vegas. While it’s fun for me, and cool for them, it presents a big problem. The problem is that this type of “work” is not really doing anything for my bottom line. I don’t get paid for it, and its really time consuming. In reality, it’s actually taking me away from doing things that would otherwise contribute to my bottom line. And this is only one example of this type of non-productive "work" that I do.
In one of my favorite books, “The War Of Art,” Steven Pressfield defines RESISTANCE as anything that keeps one from achieving long-term growth, health or integrity. That’s a gross over simplification, but it serves my point. In my case, I’m trying to help LittleLDS, my small insignificant product brand become independent. I want it to take root in the market, and become self-sustaining, and profitable. I want it to eventually even actively and significantly participate in my retirement. I’m counting on it. I’m vested in it. The bottom line, then (i.e., the eventual success or failure of LittleLDS) really matters. Where LittleLDS in concerned, it’s ALL that matters. That having been said, I can’t really afford to be messing around with the cosmetics of my website during my few available working hours!
Although it generates income, designing logos and other graphic design has become a major obstacle in my path to success where LittleLDS is concerned. It’s a total catch 22 though. LittleLDS needs the capital for marketing, production costs, and further development, but monopolizing my time with logo work hinders my ability to dedicate time to work on furthering LittleLDS. In short, and to paraphrase Robert Kiyosaki’s description of guys like me, I’m so busy, that I don’t have any time to be productive! For a guy with as little time as I seem to have, this is a HUGE problem.
The solution, as my wise bride has reminded me, is to go into the office with a planned objective. “Don’t go in there just to work,” she advises, “…go in there knowing what you want to have accomplished by the time you come out tonight.” She couldn't be more right. Needless to say, I’m still working on it.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Where business ends, and I begin
The other day a good friend that I’ve known for about 7 years contacted me. His approach to reconnecting with me was typical to many I get these days. He and some buddies have been tinkering with the idea of getting a band together and are looking for a logo design. As usual, I was immediately interested. That was my first reaction. Then, the internal battle began. I remembered then that I'm trying to wean off the "working for money thing." HHhhhh..... Unfortunately, I can't have my cake and eat it too. Alas, it’s true what they say, it does take money to make money and designing logos is my best method (for now) of raising capital to fund and support my LittleLDS brand. So, okay, I'll look into it. Of course, none of THAT is said out loud.
So my friend and I decided to meet for lunch last Monday. After eating lunch and chit chatting for a little while I reeled him in and reminded him that this was a lunch break and that our time was REALLY short (man, I really HATE working FOR someone). When he finally expounded on his idea, I just about pooped my pants! I was shocked that this idea was coming from THIS guy. Without getting too much into the specific details, it turns out that this friend of mine, who, I'll remind you, I've known for a very long time, and who is also an active member of the LDS Church, has decided to start a band and actually call it "Internet Porn - The Band". Before I go any further with this story, I have to say that at this point, I had already checked out mentally. He was obviously off his rocker (no pun intended to the music genre). However, for the sake of discovering where exactly my friend had gone so wrong, and to what extent he had actually thought this idea out - I just had to know - I decided to hear him out.
It turned out that his idea was to capitalize on the already HUGE porn industry. His logic was that he could put the word PORN into his band, thus making his band’s name come up more in Internet searches by buying a high prioritized position in search results made by the sickos that surf for it. He rationalized that he would be a “distraction for good” to the lost souls who were already searching for Internet smut. Translation; he’s placing himself in a gigantic sewer, full of crap and stink, in order to attract the cockroaches to his own talent by naming it “crap and stink”. Hmmm… He said that he doesn’t want to promote the porn industry but to use it. He said that he thinks his idea is funny and that his t-shirts will sell like hotcakes because it’s poking fun at the porn industry. Hmmm….
Now, if I were a pure capitalist, motivated solely by my instinct to make money, I would jump all over this guy’s offer. Here’s a guys who is offering to pay me to create a logo for him, pay me to help him create a website, and pay me to modify the logo each time he has a new marketing spin to put out there. In all reality, we’re probably talking about $1000 or more. Good money for a bottom-feeder like me. I mean, to a PURE capitalist, it shouldn’t matter what content he’s offering the masses as long as I’m being compensated, right? Sure, I know this idea will go nowhere. I know that I will have collected my money and left a long time by then. But what is that $1000 really worth? Perhaps, in this world, it could buy me $1000 worth of stuff, but in the end, it would end up COSTING me my dignity. Even if I were to never post the finished version on my own website, like I usually do, it would COST me my moral conscience. Any other business probably wouldn’t think twice about taking this kind of job. For most of them, profit it profit. It’s the bottom line that counts. After all, it’s not like he’s actually promoting porn. Or is he? Unfortunately I’m not just a businessman. I’m an LDS businessman. I guess it’s instances like this that are thrown at you every once in a while that are supposed to be a test of what you’re willing to do to make a buck in this world. You couldn’t pay me enough to fail that test.
Needless to say, I’m not taking the job. How to convey this to my friend without offending him is what I’m still unsure about. In an attempt to guilt his conscience back in gear, I’ve already asked him all the deep questions. “With a name like ‘Internet Porn – The band’, aren’t you the least bit concerned about how you’ll affect your own children?” “What does you’re wife think about the idea?” “How would you feel if some 17 year-old teenager heard your music and liked it and, in an effort to find out more about your band, instead, found a porn site?” None of these questions have fazed him. He has clearly already misplaced his moral compass. I hope it isn’t permanent.
So my friend and I decided to meet for lunch last Monday. After eating lunch and chit chatting for a little while I reeled him in and reminded him that this was a lunch break and that our time was REALLY short (man, I really HATE working FOR someone). When he finally expounded on his idea, I just about pooped my pants! I was shocked that this idea was coming from THIS guy. Without getting too much into the specific details, it turns out that this friend of mine, who, I'll remind you, I've known for a very long time, and who is also an active member of the LDS Church, has decided to start a band and actually call it "Internet Porn - The Band". Before I go any further with this story, I have to say that at this point, I had already checked out mentally. He was obviously off his rocker (no pun intended to the music genre). However, for the sake of discovering where exactly my friend had gone so wrong, and to what extent he had actually thought this idea out - I just had to know - I decided to hear him out.
It turned out that his idea was to capitalize on the already HUGE porn industry. His logic was that he could put the word PORN into his band, thus making his band’s name come up more in Internet searches by buying a high prioritized position in search results made by the sickos that surf for it. He rationalized that he would be a “distraction for good” to the lost souls who were already searching for Internet smut. Translation; he’s placing himself in a gigantic sewer, full of crap and stink, in order to attract the cockroaches to his own talent by naming it “crap and stink”. Hmmm… He said that he doesn’t want to promote the porn industry but to use it. He said that he thinks his idea is funny and that his t-shirts will sell like hotcakes because it’s poking fun at the porn industry. Hmmm….
Now, if I were a pure capitalist, motivated solely by my instinct to make money, I would jump all over this guy’s offer. Here’s a guys who is offering to pay me to create a logo for him, pay me to help him create a website, and pay me to modify the logo each time he has a new marketing spin to put out there. In all reality, we’re probably talking about $1000 or more. Good money for a bottom-feeder like me. I mean, to a PURE capitalist, it shouldn’t matter what content he’s offering the masses as long as I’m being compensated, right? Sure, I know this idea will go nowhere. I know that I will have collected my money and left a long time by then. But what is that $1000 really worth? Perhaps, in this world, it could buy me $1000 worth of stuff, but in the end, it would end up COSTING me my dignity. Even if I were to never post the finished version on my own website, like I usually do, it would COST me my moral conscience. Any other business probably wouldn’t think twice about taking this kind of job. For most of them, profit it profit. It’s the bottom line that counts. After all, it’s not like he’s actually promoting porn. Or is he? Unfortunately I’m not just a businessman. I’m an LDS businessman. I guess it’s instances like this that are thrown at you every once in a while that are supposed to be a test of what you’re willing to do to make a buck in this world. You couldn’t pay me enough to fail that test.
Needless to say, I’m not taking the job. How to convey this to my friend without offending him is what I’m still unsure about. In an attempt to guilt his conscience back in gear, I’ve already asked him all the deep questions. “With a name like ‘Internet Porn – The band’, aren’t you the least bit concerned about how you’ll affect your own children?” “What does you’re wife think about the idea?” “How would you feel if some 17 year-old teenager heard your music and liked it and, in an effort to find out more about your band, instead, found a porn site?” None of these questions have fazed him. He has clearly already misplaced his moral compass. I hope it isn’t permanent.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Working for money
Last night Kim and I had an interesting discussion about the present and future of Tyed Art, Inc. and LittleLDS. I was expressing to her my great satisfaction at having just secured a new working relationship with PostNet last Saturday. I had walked into the store to find out what it would cost to ship 150 LittleLDS CDs to my new distributor in Salt Lake City, but ended up talking to the owner of the franchise about graphic design. I've been a client of hers for a while now, but after discovering what it is, exactly, that I do she told me that she frequently had little graphic design side jobs come in that she had to contract out and that it was cumbersome for her to do so because she didn't have one go-to guy. To make a long story short, we ended up shaking hands on a little deal that would enable her to pass the work along to me. She couldn't pay much, but didn't really have to as the work was pretty simple and would end up equating to good hourly money for me. A win/win relationship.
After telling Kim about this new source of income, we started talking about how stretched for time I already am these days. Between work in my yard (a HUGE undertaking), designing logos, working 12 hours per day at my full-time job, and trying to move forward with CD#4 of LittleLDS, I'm feeling a bit drawn and quartered. I have to fight to find time to eat, sleep, and play with my girls. It would seem, that in all the excitement of securing new business, I have neglected a very important rule of basic Kiyosaki 101... In fact, it's rule #1; "The rich don't work for money. Money works for them."
After telling Kim about this new source of income, we started talking about how stretched for time I already am these days. Between work in my yard (a HUGE undertaking), designing logos, working 12 hours per day at my full-time job, and trying to move forward with CD#4 of LittleLDS, I'm feeling a bit drawn and quartered. I have to fight to find time to eat, sleep, and play with my girls. It would seem, that in all the excitement of securing new business, I have neglected a very important rule of basic Kiyosaki 101... In fact, it's rule #1; "The rich don't work for money. Money works for them."
In other words, while securing work with PostNet might represent a good business relationship and good source of extra income, it really is only good if I want to keep depending on having to work.... and I don't. Not really. What I want is to eventually get to a stage when I can work - or NOT work - as I please without effecting my ability to sustain my standard of living.
It's time to get back to what I know. Time to get back to "minding my own business" and planting the seeds of my retirement. Time to stop working for money, and start making money work for me. The poem was written especially for this post.
It's time to get back to what I know. Time to get back to "minding my own business" and planting the seeds of my retirement. Time to stop working for money, and start making money work for me. The poem was written especially for this post.
Monday, September 11, 2006
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY VIII
The Art of the Tradeshow:
In November of 2004, my family and I attended an event at the Orleans Hotel & Casino called the LDS Festival, here in Vegas. It was the first of it’s kind. It was an assembly of small and large LDS businesses in a miniature tradeshow, wrapped (literally and figuratively) around an LDS concert. The concert hall itself was in the center and the huge exterior hallways were full of LDS venders, and professionals. It was a really fun event. Seeing this from a businessman’s’ perspective, I naturally wanted to know more. How had the venders been notified about the event beforehand? How much did it cost to host a booth? I wondered what kind of money this type of event might generate, and even MORE importantly, what kinds of buzz it must start about each company. THIS would be a GREAT way to introduce LittleLDS!! I sought out to find those in charge and was very pleased to discover that I knew several of them! Adam Dawson, who was the guy in charge, was a member of my own ward!! Khoren Ouzounian, another member of my ward was also one of the guys in charge of this production. I was very excited and started asking questions. I got some GREAT feedback. They told me that this was, in fact, the first show of it’s kind and that they were hoping and planning on doing subsequent shows in future years. For the rest of that day, I watched the venders and the buyers very carefully. I studied the different booths, comparing what they had to what I might have at my own booth.
I was prepared and informed for the next show. On November 12th, 2005, LittleLDS officially debuted at the 2nd-Annual LDS Music Festival and Expo. The cost to enter was quite large for a beginning sole proprietor like me. I invited Oak, my best friend, to come down from Salt Lake City and help me man the booth. Having done tradeshows before with previous companies, his input was very much appreciated. I had new t-shirts printed for Oak and me so that we looked like a team. I had business/pass-along cards made just for this event. I had a tri-fold display with my CDs and coloring pages on it. I had a large 6’x 3’ vinyl banner made for the booth too. I even ordered three hundred copies of the LittleLDS CDs for my inventory!!! One hundred of each title!! It represented a fairly large investment, but I was READY for business. I was able rationalized all the purchases because I knew this would definitely NOT be the last tradeshow I would ever do.
Call it inexperience, call it ignorance, call it whatever you like…. but when I closed the booth down at the end of the event, I was elated with the overwhelming success of my little company! We hadn’t sold out, by any means. As a matter of fact, we hadn’t even recouped our cost of entering the tradeshow, but we had a lot of GREAT exposure. After all, this was our debut. This event was merely our foot in the door, our introduction. That was the ultimate goal I was shooting for from the beginning. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t shooting for more, but certainly didn’t expect anything more. By the time the show was over I was totally sick with stomach pains and a migraine, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything! Even better than the outcome of the sales and exposure, was the experience I gained. I learned a LOT about different types of displays, giveaways, raffles, booth set-up, and salesmanship techniques.
Through another friend of mine, I was introduced to a group of LDS businesses who subscribed to a particular website organization. Building the Kingdom was the name of it. They offered a network of LDS business that you could work with. They even had a bartering service set up so that you could exchange professional business services and products. I signed up, paid my dues, but didn’t see much come from it at first. In the first year, I only had one logo design contract come from it, which was nice. Through a mutual contact, I also met a local non-LDS couple that had started their own t-shirt printing business here in Vegas. They were a funny couple from England who I enjoyed working with very much. They were VERY hospitable, and had wonderful intentions and aspirations. I had them do a couple of Tyed Art and LittleLDS t-shirts for me, but in the end I had to cease my business with them because their prices were too high for the quality they offered. They were just starting out and didn’t have the capability to do muti-colored gradient designs.
About a year and a half after originally signing up with BuildingTheKindom.com, and having not been involved with it for over 6 months, I received an email that interested me VERY much. The email had a subject line that said, “Your listing on Building The Kingdom.” Normally an email with a subject like that would have gone directly into my spam bin, but because I knew that BTK didn’t sell their members’ email addresses to third-parties, I decided to open it and check it out. I’m REALLY glad I did! It turned out to be from a man named Coz Green of USA Expos, who was inviting companies and individuals to participate in the first annual LDS Family Expo held in the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. I was really excited about this tradeshow because, not only was it going to be IN Salt Lake City, but also it was going to be over conference weekend! This would mean it would be a great place for people to go between sessions of conference while already in the downtown area! Not to mention the fact that I would have national exposure with all the different travelers coming to be a part of the overall conference experience! The event was being sponsored by some of the biggest names in that Salt Lake area, namely Channel 5 KSL TV, FM 100 Radio, KSL Newsradio 102,7FM & 1160AM, RootsMagic (a software company), and Liken The Scriptures.
Once again the cost to enter was a heavy burden for me, but totally worth it. I already had an inventory from the last show and booth display equipment in which I had previously invested. The LDS Music Festival and Expo that I did a few months earlier was nothing in comparison to this one. The last show was anticipated to have a turn out of about 2,000 to 3,000 visitors…this one was touting between 10,000 and 15,000 visitors! Excited, I ordered the necessary new equipment (floor covering, electricity, curtains, etc…) and was, once again, on my way!
This event was WAY better than the first! For starters, my genius brother, “Snott”, helped to simplify my buyer’s purchasing experience by helping me to create some spreadsheet automations in Excel. Now, when a customer wanted to purchase with a credit card, all I had to do was enter their information and a receipt was generated automatically WHILE creating an order that I could refer to and process after the show was over. Brilliant! He even helped me set up my booth the day before the show. It was fun working with him. My display was MUCH more approachable this time. Because the booth locations were first come first served, I jumped early to get a good spot. I got the very location I wanted! I was near a stage where artists would be performing, and where I knew there would be a lot of traffic. Not only did we choose a better location this time, but, instead of sitting behind a table, Oak and I had out tables lining the walls, while we stood out in the walkways and front of our booth actively meeting people. Shaking hands, passing out the pass-along cards I had prepared in GREAT number, and approaching young families that make up our main demographic. Kim even came for a few hours on one of the three days to help me man the booth. She was a natural, and even got a taste of the excitement by selling several of the CDs! Working with her was the best. Side by side…my real partner and me.
That show, was better in every sense. We sold more CDs, met more people, generated more leads, gained more experience and had much more exposure. We met folks from across the country and even some from other countries. All had the same reaction to our products, “Where have you been?” and, “This would be so great for my nursery classes!” We had a lot of Primary presidencies praising the idea, and many people interested in the up-coming CDs that we have planned. Since then, I’ve sold LittleLDS CDs in several different states here in the United States, as well as in England and Australia as a direct result of the tradeshow. The very best payoff, however, I have to say is when I’ve had sales for which I cannot find a link. In other words, they’re sales that seem to be generated from a referral or some other method of word-of-mouth advertising! Those sales are the best, because they tell me that the word is spreading! It means that talk of my product is being passed along and that there is real genuine interested in LittleLDS independent of my own personal salesmanship! It’s like planting a tree, watering it for a while, and then realizing that you don’t HAVE to keep watering it in order for it to keep growing! What a rush!
For the past few months now, good, bad, or indifferent, I’ve been inundated by logo design work. 2006 had proven to be the most productive for logo designs, by far. I’ve averaged about 4 logos per month for nearly 3 months now. Things are just now starting to settle down in that department, and I’m actually really relieved because I can turn my attention back to LittleLDS once again. I’ve been eager to get back to work on CD#4…. which pretty much brings this history to the present…
…Whew!
In November of 2004, my family and I attended an event at the Orleans Hotel & Casino called the LDS Festival, here in Vegas. It was the first of it’s kind. It was an assembly of small and large LDS businesses in a miniature tradeshow, wrapped (literally and figuratively) around an LDS concert. The concert hall itself was in the center and the huge exterior hallways were full of LDS venders, and professionals. It was a really fun event. Seeing this from a businessman’s’ perspective, I naturally wanted to know more. How had the venders been notified about the event beforehand? How much did it cost to host a booth? I wondered what kind of money this type of event might generate, and even MORE importantly, what kinds of buzz it must start about each company. THIS would be a GREAT way to introduce LittleLDS!! I sought out to find those in charge and was very pleased to discover that I knew several of them! Adam Dawson, who was the guy in charge, was a member of my own ward!! Khoren Ouzounian, another member of my ward was also one of the guys in charge of this production. I was very excited and started asking questions. I got some GREAT feedback. They told me that this was, in fact, the first show of it’s kind and that they were hoping and planning on doing subsequent shows in future years. For the rest of that day, I watched the venders and the buyers very carefully. I studied the different booths, comparing what they had to what I might have at my own booth.
I was prepared and informed for the next show. On November 12th, 2005, LittleLDS officially debuted at the 2nd-Annual LDS Music Festival and Expo. The cost to enter was quite large for a beginning sole proprietor like me. I invited Oak, my best friend, to come down from Salt Lake City and help me man the booth. Having done tradeshows before with previous companies, his input was very much appreciated. I had new t-shirts printed for Oak and me so that we looked like a team. I had business/pass-along cards made just for this event. I had a tri-fold display with my CDs and coloring pages on it. I had a large 6’x 3’ vinyl banner made for the booth too. I even ordered three hundred copies of the LittleLDS CDs for my inventory!!! One hundred of each title!! It represented a fairly large investment, but I was READY for business. I was able rationalized all the purchases because I knew this would definitely NOT be the last tradeshow I would ever do.
Call it inexperience, call it ignorance, call it whatever you like…. but when I closed the booth down at the end of the event, I was elated with the overwhelming success of my little company! We hadn’t sold out, by any means. As a matter of fact, we hadn’t even recouped our cost of entering the tradeshow, but we had a lot of GREAT exposure. After all, this was our debut. This event was merely our foot in the door, our introduction. That was the ultimate goal I was shooting for from the beginning. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t shooting for more, but certainly didn’t expect anything more. By the time the show was over I was totally sick with stomach pains and a migraine, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything! Even better than the outcome of the sales and exposure, was the experience I gained. I learned a LOT about different types of displays, giveaways, raffles, booth set-up, and salesmanship techniques.
Through another friend of mine, I was introduced to a group of LDS businesses who subscribed to a particular website organization. Building the Kingdom was the name of it. They offered a network of LDS business that you could work with. They even had a bartering service set up so that you could exchange professional business services and products. I signed up, paid my dues, but didn’t see much come from it at first. In the first year, I only had one logo design contract come from it, which was nice. Through a mutual contact, I also met a local non-LDS couple that had started their own t-shirt printing business here in Vegas. They were a funny couple from England who I enjoyed working with very much. They were VERY hospitable, and had wonderful intentions and aspirations. I had them do a couple of Tyed Art and LittleLDS t-shirts for me, but in the end I had to cease my business with them because their prices were too high for the quality they offered. They were just starting out and didn’t have the capability to do muti-colored gradient designs.
About a year and a half after originally signing up with BuildingTheKindom.com, and having not been involved with it for over 6 months, I received an email that interested me VERY much. The email had a subject line that said, “Your listing on Building The Kingdom.” Normally an email with a subject like that would have gone directly into my spam bin, but because I knew that BTK didn’t sell their members’ email addresses to third-parties, I decided to open it and check it out. I’m REALLY glad I did! It turned out to be from a man named Coz Green of USA Expos, who was inviting companies and individuals to participate in the first annual LDS Family Expo held in the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City. I was really excited about this tradeshow because, not only was it going to be IN Salt Lake City, but also it was going to be over conference weekend! This would mean it would be a great place for people to go between sessions of conference while already in the downtown area! Not to mention the fact that I would have national exposure with all the different travelers coming to be a part of the overall conference experience! The event was being sponsored by some of the biggest names in that Salt Lake area, namely Channel 5 KSL TV, FM 100 Radio, KSL Newsradio 102,7FM & 1160AM, RootsMagic (a software company), and Liken The Scriptures.
Once again the cost to enter was a heavy burden for me, but totally worth it. I already had an inventory from the last show and booth display equipment in which I had previously invested. The LDS Music Festival and Expo that I did a few months earlier was nothing in comparison to this one. The last show was anticipated to have a turn out of about 2,000 to 3,000 visitors…this one was touting between 10,000 and 15,000 visitors! Excited, I ordered the necessary new equipment (floor covering, electricity, curtains, etc…) and was, once again, on my way!
This event was WAY better than the first! For starters, my genius brother, “Snott”, helped to simplify my buyer’s purchasing experience by helping me to create some spreadsheet automations in Excel. Now, when a customer wanted to purchase with a credit card, all I had to do was enter their information and a receipt was generated automatically WHILE creating an order that I could refer to and process after the show was over. Brilliant! He even helped me set up my booth the day before the show. It was fun working with him. My display was MUCH more approachable this time. Because the booth locations were first come first served, I jumped early to get a good spot. I got the very location I wanted! I was near a stage where artists would be performing, and where I knew there would be a lot of traffic. Not only did we choose a better location this time, but, instead of sitting behind a table, Oak and I had out tables lining the walls, while we stood out in the walkways and front of our booth actively meeting people. Shaking hands, passing out the pass-along cards I had prepared in GREAT number, and approaching young families that make up our main demographic. Kim even came for a few hours on one of the three days to help me man the booth. She was a natural, and even got a taste of the excitement by selling several of the CDs! Working with her was the best. Side by side…my real partner and me.
That show, was better in every sense. We sold more CDs, met more people, generated more leads, gained more experience and had much more exposure. We met folks from across the country and even some from other countries. All had the same reaction to our products, “Where have you been?” and, “This would be so great for my nursery classes!” We had a lot of Primary presidencies praising the idea, and many people interested in the up-coming CDs that we have planned. Since then, I’ve sold LittleLDS CDs in several different states here in the United States, as well as in England and Australia as a direct result of the tradeshow. The very best payoff, however, I have to say is when I’ve had sales for which I cannot find a link. In other words, they’re sales that seem to be generated from a referral or some other method of word-of-mouth advertising! Those sales are the best, because they tell me that the word is spreading! It means that talk of my product is being passed along and that there is real genuine interested in LittleLDS independent of my own personal salesmanship! It’s like planting a tree, watering it for a while, and then realizing that you don’t HAVE to keep watering it in order for it to keep growing! What a rush!
For the past few months now, good, bad, or indifferent, I’ve been inundated by logo design work. 2006 had proven to be the most productive for logo designs, by far. I’ve averaged about 4 logos per month for nearly 3 months now. Things are just now starting to settle down in that department, and I’m actually really relieved because I can turn my attention back to LittleLDS once again. I’ve been eager to get back to work on CD#4…. which pretty much brings this history to the present…
…Whew!
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY VII
Transitioning from Hobby to Business:
During the course of working on the project, it became obvious to me that I was approaching an important benchmark in the life of Tyed Art. I was going to HAVE to legalize the company. Because I was going to be selling this product to stores and in tradeshows, I was going to need bar codes, licenses, and a Tax ID number. This would also be necessary in order to open a business account at any bank so that I could deposit checks written out to “Tyed Art, Inc.” For this, I went to Todd McMillan of Nevada Registrations, Inc. Yes, the guy from the radio program. I was glad I did it. I finally FELT official. Along with a real product and real plans, I now had a real corporate identity. Tyed Art, Incorporated was official!
Once I had finished creating the software in which my coloring pages were embedded, I sought out to find ways to produce my CDs. I found one company called Mixonic online pretty easily. They were inexpensive. It was easy to navigate through their design process and so I made a few prototypes. A good friend of mine, after seeing my CDs, told me about his uncle who was a part owner in an LDS distribution company up in Utah. On his recommendation, I called to set up a meeting with him regarding my CDs. He was happy to set an appointment with me, and I couldn’t have been more excited!
The meeting with Granite Distribution was a tremendous success. I think it became a much better educational opportunity, however, than a business negotiation. Interest in the product was obvious, and its novelty appeal was acknowledged. He told me that my retail price seemed a bit high, but that he wanted to run this product by his committee for further consideration. The only real commitment I got was a promise to be contacted after the committee’s review. I came out of that meeting beaming, having learned what types of marketing strategies might help, what kinds of profit margin to expect, what the price threshold was for my market, who my main buyer demographics were, and what types of things might be expected of a distribution contract.
I began modifying some things that I felt would make future such meetings a little better. I purchased bar codes for each of the CDs so that they would be “store ready” at a moments notice. I found a new printing and duplication company too. I was very lucky to find Conduit. Peter Jensen, the sales manager, worked really diligently to help me discover ways to package my CDs more securely and more cost-effectively. This ended up saving me several dollars per unit – a very big deal when large quantity orders are filled. I was also more comfortable working with Conduit after learning that Peter was LDS. This is, after all, an LDS product.
During the course of working on the project, it became obvious to me that I was approaching an important benchmark in the life of Tyed Art. I was going to HAVE to legalize the company. Because I was going to be selling this product to stores and in tradeshows, I was going to need bar codes, licenses, and a Tax ID number. This would also be necessary in order to open a business account at any bank so that I could deposit checks written out to “Tyed Art, Inc.” For this, I went to Todd McMillan of Nevada Registrations, Inc. Yes, the guy from the radio program. I was glad I did it. I finally FELT official. Along with a real product and real plans, I now had a real corporate identity. Tyed Art, Incorporated was official!
Once I had finished creating the software in which my coloring pages were embedded, I sought out to find ways to produce my CDs. I found one company called Mixonic online pretty easily. They were inexpensive. It was easy to navigate through their design process and so I made a few prototypes. A good friend of mine, after seeing my CDs, told me about his uncle who was a part owner in an LDS distribution company up in Utah. On his recommendation, I called to set up a meeting with him regarding my CDs. He was happy to set an appointment with me, and I couldn’t have been more excited!
The meeting with Granite Distribution was a tremendous success. I think it became a much better educational opportunity, however, than a business negotiation. Interest in the product was obvious, and its novelty appeal was acknowledged. He told me that my retail price seemed a bit high, but that he wanted to run this product by his committee for further consideration. The only real commitment I got was a promise to be contacted after the committee’s review. I came out of that meeting beaming, having learned what types of marketing strategies might help, what kinds of profit margin to expect, what the price threshold was for my market, who my main buyer demographics were, and what types of things might be expected of a distribution contract.
I began modifying some things that I felt would make future such meetings a little better. I purchased bar codes for each of the CDs so that they would be “store ready” at a moments notice. I found a new printing and duplication company too. I was very lucky to find Conduit. Peter Jensen, the sales manager, worked really diligently to help me discover ways to package my CDs more securely and more cost-effectively. This ended up saving me several dollars per unit – a very big deal when large quantity orders are filled. I was also more comfortable working with Conduit after learning that Peter was LDS. This is, after all, an LDS product.
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY VI
Desperate times, Desperate measures:
While still employed with that same company, I had another idea. The idea was to create cartoon images of children doing religious things, like taking the sacrament, or reading the scriptures, and then making packets out of them for kids to color while in church. My boss thought this was a very good idea and, as usual, offered all kinds of encouragement. I didn’t really do much about it then, but the idea was good enough that it was placed in the back burners of my mind to simmer.
In 2002, now, with a child, a non-working wife, and a mortgage, the real pressure was on. The wheels in my head shifted into overdrive. The logo income was steady. Of course it was never enough to replace my regular income provided by a full-time job, but it was steady nonetheless.
In June of that year my boss “let me go”. I’m still not sure what happened. One day I was in his good graces, a project manager, and friend. The next day…I was unemployed. I have to say, the wind was truly knocked out of me that day. Although I honestly harbor no hard feelings now, it's taken me a while to get to that point. As with many unexpected blows, I was in denial for the first couple of days. Shock and confusion followed, and anger after that. Eventually I accepted the fact that I would probably never know what happened, but began to intentionally remember the good experiences I had as his employee, student, and friend. Now, though I still don't know what happened the day I left, I recognize the fact that I am better for having known him. I guess sometimes you just don't get the luxury of a tidy closure. Instead, sometimes you need to fabricate a synthetic one made from fond memories and valuable lessons learned.
In a rush for some security, I ended up getting a temporary position with Nevada Power about 2 months later designing power distribution plans. In so doing, I took a substantial pay cut. Although never really considered EXTRA money, “Tyed” Art income would never be more useful that during that time period. As we all do, we made it work. The ideas never stopped flowing throughout all of this. My idea to create coloring pages for kids had, of course, resurfaced as I scrambled for income and for the first time it was an idea that didn’t seem unattainable. THIS was an idea that I could work with. Because the pages were all LDS-themed, I needed to come up with a name that fit the product, but also the genre. “LittleLDS”, it was decided, would be the name for my coloring page creations. This would be a brand name under the umbrella of the “Tyed” Art Company. Although I new what I wanted the kids to color, I hadn’t worked out, yet, HOW I wanted to present them.
Little by little, Tyed Art was progressing. I had spreadsheets designed that organized and tracked all my Tyed Art spending and income. I found a website called “VistaPrint.com” that allowed me to design my own business cards for dirt cheap, so I created and ordered new cards. I had also been looking into website design for a while, and spoken to a friend who mentioned that she had created her own website. Knowing that I would eventually go through with it (whether that meant designing it myself or hiring someone else to do it), I purchased the URL “www.tyedart.com” and parked it for later use. One of my clients told me that her husband was looking for a logo for his website design business. I jumped on the opportunity to barter services with him. Not only did he custom build my website for me (with all the design specifications and graphics that I had design myself), but he also maintained it for me. The only problem with this arrangement was that the web designer didn’t always get to my updates within the timeframe I needed. He was running his own business, after all, and couldn’t always get to my work right away. I was sure this couldn’t be a long-term working relationship. I saw this as a potential problem.
Sure enough, about 8 months or so into our agreement he dropped off the face of the Earth. He was unreachable. As far as I was concerned, he was just AWOL. Baffled and paralyzed, my website quickly became outdated and embarrassing. Finally, I contacted the hosting company to see if they could shed some light on things. They explained that he had turned all his business clientele over to them. All in all, I decided to be thankful for a good lesson in bad business. It worked out for the best though. I had TechPro give me access to the FTP server where my website was hosted, I downloaded the website and all it’s files to my hard drive, and I taught myself how to manage it. It was a bit of a set back and took some time to get over the learning curve, but I know I’m better off for having gained the autonomy. Now I can change my website however AND whenever it suites me.
Another benefit to having learned how to manage websites was that I also learned how to create new ones. I started to create a template for a brand new website for LittleLDS. Although it wouldn’t be published for some time, I purchased the URL “www.LittleLDS.com” early so that I wouldn’t have any competition for it later.
I started drawing the individual coloring pages for the coloring books and digitized them by scanning them into my computer. These images grew in number to become a database of images. Eventually, I had three distinct LittleLDS titles finished. “In Church I can…” was the first to be completed. “What do missionaries do?” and “I’ll keep the Sabbath Day holy by…” followed. At one point, I had considered taking on a partner. For some reason, having a business partner appealed to me. I needed a partner who was willing and able to work on this idea with me at a faster pace. Or did I? After some consideration, I decided that taking on a partner might not be in my best interest. It was my brainchild, after all. Having a partner, although fun would have meant less profit for me in the end.
The idea to put my LittleLDS coloring pages onto CDs really was a great one, and I was all over it. I started looking around for methods of achieving this end. I contacted a friend of mine from the old days. He was a software engineer and computer guru. I figured he might be able to, if nothing else, point me in the right direction. Although not a member of the Church, he was able to see past the religious application of this idea and thought it had a LOT of potential. As it turned out, he himself, would take on the project…. for free! He was more than willing to help me as I had done some logo work for him a few years earlier while he was trying to get his own software products off the ground. I couldn’t have been luckier!
So, we got started. All in all, it took us just over 2 years to completely finish the first CD exactly the way I wanted it. With many iterations and reiteration, we finally had a product we were both VERY pleased with. Once the first CD programming was done, the 2nd and 3rd were virtual turnkey processes. He was very innovative in the way he built the software. He actually had built, first, a program that would automate the process that married my images with his background software, so that when the artwork was finished for the subsequent CDs, he would be able to just take my images and run them through the program that built the entire interface. It was really well thought out. The idea to create digital coloring books (i.e. virtually never-ending coloring books), it turns out, was so unique of a concept that he suggested that I apply for a patent. To see if it was even patentable, he referred me to his patent attorney who performed a search. Charles footed the bill of several hundred dollars, reasoning that I would be helping him in the future with more logos and graphic artwork. The patent search came back a few months later with shocking results. My idea WAS patentable!
While still employed with that same company, I had another idea. The idea was to create cartoon images of children doing religious things, like taking the sacrament, or reading the scriptures, and then making packets out of them for kids to color while in church. My boss thought this was a very good idea and, as usual, offered all kinds of encouragement. I didn’t really do much about it then, but the idea was good enough that it was placed in the back burners of my mind to simmer.
In 2002, now, with a child, a non-working wife, and a mortgage, the real pressure was on. The wheels in my head shifted into overdrive. The logo income was steady. Of course it was never enough to replace my regular income provided by a full-time job, but it was steady nonetheless.
In June of that year my boss “let me go”. I’m still not sure what happened. One day I was in his good graces, a project manager, and friend. The next day…I was unemployed. I have to say, the wind was truly knocked out of me that day. Although I honestly harbor no hard feelings now, it's taken me a while to get to that point. As with many unexpected blows, I was in denial for the first couple of days. Shock and confusion followed, and anger after that. Eventually I accepted the fact that I would probably never know what happened, but began to intentionally remember the good experiences I had as his employee, student, and friend. Now, though I still don't know what happened the day I left, I recognize the fact that I am better for having known him. I guess sometimes you just don't get the luxury of a tidy closure. Instead, sometimes you need to fabricate a synthetic one made from fond memories and valuable lessons learned.
In a rush for some security, I ended up getting a temporary position with Nevada Power about 2 months later designing power distribution plans. In so doing, I took a substantial pay cut. Although never really considered EXTRA money, “Tyed” Art income would never be more useful that during that time period. As we all do, we made it work. The ideas never stopped flowing throughout all of this. My idea to create coloring pages for kids had, of course, resurfaced as I scrambled for income and for the first time it was an idea that didn’t seem unattainable. THIS was an idea that I could work with. Because the pages were all LDS-themed, I needed to come up with a name that fit the product, but also the genre. “LittleLDS”, it was decided, would be the name for my coloring page creations. This would be a brand name under the umbrella of the “Tyed” Art Company. Although I new what I wanted the kids to color, I hadn’t worked out, yet, HOW I wanted to present them.
Little by little, Tyed Art was progressing. I had spreadsheets designed that organized and tracked all my Tyed Art spending and income. I found a website called “VistaPrint.com” that allowed me to design my own business cards for dirt cheap, so I created and ordered new cards. I had also been looking into website design for a while, and spoken to a friend who mentioned that she had created her own website. Knowing that I would eventually go through with it (whether that meant designing it myself or hiring someone else to do it), I purchased the URL “www.tyedart.com” and parked it for later use. One of my clients told me that her husband was looking for a logo for his website design business. I jumped on the opportunity to barter services with him. Not only did he custom build my website for me (with all the design specifications and graphics that I had design myself), but he also maintained it for me. The only problem with this arrangement was that the web designer didn’t always get to my updates within the timeframe I needed. He was running his own business, after all, and couldn’t always get to my work right away. I was sure this couldn’t be a long-term working relationship. I saw this as a potential problem.
Sure enough, about 8 months or so into our agreement he dropped off the face of the Earth. He was unreachable. As far as I was concerned, he was just AWOL. Baffled and paralyzed, my website quickly became outdated and embarrassing. Finally, I contacted the hosting company to see if they could shed some light on things. They explained that he had turned all his business clientele over to them. All in all, I decided to be thankful for a good lesson in bad business. It worked out for the best though. I had TechPro give me access to the FTP server where my website was hosted, I downloaded the website and all it’s files to my hard drive, and I taught myself how to manage it. It was a bit of a set back and took some time to get over the learning curve, but I know I’m better off for having gained the autonomy. Now I can change my website however AND whenever it suites me.
Another benefit to having learned how to manage websites was that I also learned how to create new ones. I started to create a template for a brand new website for LittleLDS. Although it wouldn’t be published for some time, I purchased the URL “www.LittleLDS.com” early so that I wouldn’t have any competition for it later.
I started drawing the individual coloring pages for the coloring books and digitized them by scanning them into my computer. These images grew in number to become a database of images. Eventually, I had three distinct LittleLDS titles finished. “In Church I can…” was the first to be completed. “What do missionaries do?” and “I’ll keep the Sabbath Day holy by…” followed. At one point, I had considered taking on a partner. For some reason, having a business partner appealed to me. I needed a partner who was willing and able to work on this idea with me at a faster pace. Or did I? After some consideration, I decided that taking on a partner might not be in my best interest. It was my brainchild, after all. Having a partner, although fun would have meant less profit for me in the end.
The idea to put my LittleLDS coloring pages onto CDs really was a great one, and I was all over it. I started looking around for methods of achieving this end. I contacted a friend of mine from the old days. He was a software engineer and computer guru. I figured he might be able to, if nothing else, point me in the right direction. Although not a member of the Church, he was able to see past the religious application of this idea and thought it had a LOT of potential. As it turned out, he himself, would take on the project…. for free! He was more than willing to help me as I had done some logo work for him a few years earlier while he was trying to get his own software products off the ground. I couldn’t have been luckier!
So, we got started. All in all, it took us just over 2 years to completely finish the first CD exactly the way I wanted it. With many iterations and reiteration, we finally had a product we were both VERY pleased with. Once the first CD programming was done, the 2nd and 3rd were virtual turnkey processes. He was very innovative in the way he built the software. He actually had built, first, a program that would automate the process that married my images with his background software, so that when the artwork was finished for the subsequent CDs, he would be able to just take my images and run them through the program that built the entire interface. It was really well thought out. The idea to create digital coloring books (i.e. virtually never-ending coloring books), it turns out, was so unique of a concept that he suggested that I apply for a patent. To see if it was even patentable, he referred me to his patent attorney who performed a search. Charles footed the bill of several hundred dollars, reasoning that I would be helping him in the future with more logos and graphic artwork. The patent search came back a few months later with shocking results. My idea WAS patentable!
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY V
A New Perspective:
September 11th, 2001 changed the entire world. For me, among other things, it was the reason I started listening to talk radio. it was the best way to stay connected to the world on a minute-to-minute basis. I listened to a lot of informative shows ranging in topics such as finance, diet & health, business strategy, real estate, law practices and illegal immigration (the hot topic these days).
I started exploring different business options (other than Tyed Art and drafting). One particular business really caught my eye. Self-Storage. Americans are becoming ever greedier. We are so caught up in the rush of buying cool toys that we don’t stop to think about where we are going to PUT them all once we have them. What’s more, we never throw anything away! America is full of pack rats! Knowing this about people, it became clear to me that this trend was not likely to change, and that it presented an opportunity. I could capitalize on this American trait. I’ve been looking into it ever since then, and, having seen many of these self-storage units go up all over the Las Vegas valley, have been kicking myself relentlessly for not having jumped on the opportunity when I FIRST thought about it back in 2001. Plagued by other ideas, alas, I’m still just “looking into it.”
One show that caught my ear and earned my devoted interest was a 30-minute program hosted by D.J. Truman “Tru” Hawkins and his featured guest Todd McMillan of Nevada Registrations, Inc. I tuned into KDWN (720AM) every Friday at 11:30am to listen to Tru ask Todd about incorporating in Nevada. They discussed things like tax benefits, litigation protection, asset protection, business clout, and many other things that I had never heard of. I was fascinated. I began wondering if I would benefit from incorporating “Tyed” Art. Just the thought of it was exciting, but again, very intimidating. I created excuses for not incorporating at that time by reasoning that I didn’t make enough to warrant having a corporation.
September 11th, 2001 changed the entire world. For me, among other things, it was the reason I started listening to talk radio. it was the best way to stay connected to the world on a minute-to-minute basis. I listened to a lot of informative shows ranging in topics such as finance, diet & health, business strategy, real estate, law practices and illegal immigration (the hot topic these days).
I started exploring different business options (other than Tyed Art and drafting). One particular business really caught my eye. Self-Storage. Americans are becoming ever greedier. We are so caught up in the rush of buying cool toys that we don’t stop to think about where we are going to PUT them all once we have them. What’s more, we never throw anything away! America is full of pack rats! Knowing this about people, it became clear to me that this trend was not likely to change, and that it presented an opportunity. I could capitalize on this American trait. I’ve been looking into it ever since then, and, having seen many of these self-storage units go up all over the Las Vegas valley, have been kicking myself relentlessly for not having jumped on the opportunity when I FIRST thought about it back in 2001. Plagued by other ideas, alas, I’m still just “looking into it.”
One show that caught my ear and earned my devoted interest was a 30-minute program hosted by D.J. Truman “Tru” Hawkins and his featured guest Todd McMillan of Nevada Registrations, Inc. I tuned into KDWN (720AM) every Friday at 11:30am to listen to Tru ask Todd about incorporating in Nevada. They discussed things like tax benefits, litigation protection, asset protection, business clout, and many other things that I had never heard of. I was fascinated. I began wondering if I would benefit from incorporating “Tyed” Art. Just the thought of it was exciting, but again, very intimidating. I created excuses for not incorporating at that time by reasoning that I didn’t make enough to warrant having a corporation.
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY IV
The Gift Basket Era:
I’m still not sure how, but by some miracle, I received an email one day from a lady in Wasola Montana, who had actually been to my “website”, seen my photo album…ahem, I mean, online portfolio, and wanted to know how much I would charge her to design a “Tyed” art Name Design for her. I was in shock! Not because she wanted me to do a name design for her, but that my plan to generate clientele through an online presence had actually worked!!! Stunned, I replied to her inquiry and ended up not only designing a Name Design for her family, but also securing a contract with her for a logo design for her new gift basket company. After creating the logo for her in only 2 days, I had a check in hand and my first satisfied logo customer. I was ecstatic!
In our final exchange of emails, Liz told me about an online forum that she belonged to It exclusively consisted of gift basket makers and companies who posted ideas to exchange with each other. She said the one of the most commonly asked questions was if anyone could recommend a good, affordable logo designer. Liz told me that she had written all about her experience with “Tyed Art” and even posted a picture of her new logo there. In the next few years, gift “basketeers”, as they call themselves, would become a staple of “Tyed” Art income. I’m still amazed at how BIG the gift basket industry really is!
To date, as I write this (August of 2006) I’ve designed over 40 different gift basket logos! To my utter surprise, I’ve still not totally run out of ideas for these companies. Word of mouth, along with a growing portfolio has led to other industries contacting me to design logo as well. I started designing logos for start-up companies of all kinds, all over the country. I’ve even done a few over seas. To date I’ve designed 84 logos.
I’m still not sure how, but by some miracle, I received an email one day from a lady in Wasola Montana, who had actually been to my “website”, seen my photo album…ahem, I mean, online portfolio, and wanted to know how much I would charge her to design a “Tyed” art Name Design for her. I was in shock! Not because she wanted me to do a name design for her, but that my plan to generate clientele through an online presence had actually worked!!! Stunned, I replied to her inquiry and ended up not only designing a Name Design for her family, but also securing a contract with her for a logo design for her new gift basket company. After creating the logo for her in only 2 days, I had a check in hand and my first satisfied logo customer. I was ecstatic!
In our final exchange of emails, Liz told me about an online forum that she belonged to It exclusively consisted of gift basket makers and companies who posted ideas to exchange with each other. She said the one of the most commonly asked questions was if anyone could recommend a good, affordable logo designer. Liz told me that she had written all about her experience with “Tyed Art” and even posted a picture of her new logo there. In the next few years, gift “basketeers”, as they call themselves, would become a staple of “Tyed” Art income. I’m still amazed at how BIG the gift basket industry really is!
To date, as I write this (August of 2006) I’ve designed over 40 different gift basket logos! To my utter surprise, I’ve still not totally run out of ideas for these companies. Word of mouth, along with a growing portfolio has led to other industries contacting me to design logo as well. I started designing logos for start-up companies of all kinds, all over the country. I’ve even done a few over seas. To date I’ve designed 84 logos.
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY III
A Seed In Fertile Soil:
Moving to Las Vegas turned out to be one of the best decisions we would ever make. It was here that my infant entrepreneurial seed took root in fertile ground. After being in Vegas for a few months I found a job working for a drafting company as a project manager and lead drafter. My employer quickly became a very influential teacher and dear friend. He was the first real entrepreneur I had ever met.
A small business owner, it was he who converted my raw, unfocused energy into precise determination. He never tried to teach me anything directly. It was all through osmosis. Watching him work inspired and even enabled me to envision how I could turn my artistic talent into motivation for financial freedom. More importantly, it was my boss who got me excited about business in general. Everything about him got me excited about business. He didn't just own the drafting company, but was ALWAYS out there looking for the next big thing, the next contract, or good idea.
He and I discussed our passions and our ambitions in the world of business. I watched my boss as he negotiated with larger companies to secure, renew or augment business contracts for the company. He was always priming the pump. He always had his eyes open for the next opportunity. It was exciting just to observe the way he worked. My boss was the one who introduced me to Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad, Poor Dad," my entrepreneurial bible and motivational battery to this day. Even now, anytime I feel deflated, or unmotivated, I pop in that book on CD and recharge. It works EVERY time! He didn't just employ me. He empowered me. During my 2 years at that company, every day seemed like a crash course in business education. Whether by design or unintentionally, he was mentoring me, grooming me. He taught me about leadership, budgeting, marketing, inter-office politics & policies, and about seeking out opportunity.
Our move to Las Vegas marked the beginning of a phenomenon in my life that I don't like to talk about it much. A fastination with invention. I don't consider myself an inventor, but I've had so many ideas that I started, a long time ago, to record them in an idea log book called "Brain Vomit". I call it that because it is, in fact, a jumbled mess of free flowing, disorganized ideas that have been mentally regurgitate with little regard for pragmatic application. I created a free "website" which became my first real introduction to having an "online presence." My page was crude, simplistic and extremely amateuristic and FREE. Although it's almost embarrassing now, I was pretty darned proud of myself for having done something to move forward with my business ideas.
My site was only able to hold one free image before charging me for additional images. It allowed me to set up to 5 free hyperlinks before charging me for any extras, and one of the links HAD to be a Webspawner link. Lame, I know, but I had a plan. I ended up creating several Yahoo online photo albums (also for free) and posted a bunch of my artwork there. I then used my free links on my Webspawner site to hyperlink to my free hotmail business address, and my free Yahoo photo albums. in other words my online portfolio. I used my one free image on the Webspawner site to post my Tyed Art logo to give my page a more professional feel, and wrote a short little synopsis about my business. Again, its pretty dumb now as I look back, but at the time I was pretty proud of myself for having been so resourceful while maintaining unwavering frugality.
Moving to Las Vegas turned out to be one of the best decisions we would ever make. It was here that my infant entrepreneurial seed took root in fertile ground. After being in Vegas for a few months I found a job working for a drafting company as a project manager and lead drafter. My employer quickly became a very influential teacher and dear friend. He was the first real entrepreneur I had ever met.
A small business owner, it was he who converted my raw, unfocused energy into precise determination. He never tried to teach me anything directly. It was all through osmosis. Watching him work inspired and even enabled me to envision how I could turn my artistic talent into motivation for financial freedom. More importantly, it was my boss who got me excited about business in general. Everything about him got me excited about business. He didn't just own the drafting company, but was ALWAYS out there looking for the next big thing, the next contract, or good idea.
He and I discussed our passions and our ambitions in the world of business. I watched my boss as he negotiated with larger companies to secure, renew or augment business contracts for the company. He was always priming the pump. He always had his eyes open for the next opportunity. It was exciting just to observe the way he worked. My boss was the one who introduced me to Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad, Poor Dad," my entrepreneurial bible and motivational battery to this day. Even now, anytime I feel deflated, or unmotivated, I pop in that book on CD and recharge. It works EVERY time! He didn't just employ me. He empowered me. During my 2 years at that company, every day seemed like a crash course in business education. Whether by design or unintentionally, he was mentoring me, grooming me. He taught me about leadership, budgeting, marketing, inter-office politics & policies, and about seeking out opportunity.
Our move to Las Vegas marked the beginning of a phenomenon in my life that I don't like to talk about it much. A fastination with invention. I don't consider myself an inventor, but I've had so many ideas that I started, a long time ago, to record them in an idea log book called "Brain Vomit". I call it that because it is, in fact, a jumbled mess of free flowing, disorganized ideas that have been mentally regurgitate with little regard for pragmatic application. I created a free "website" which became my first real introduction to having an "online presence." My page was crude, simplistic and extremely amateuristic and FREE. Although it's almost embarrassing now, I was pretty darned proud of myself for having done something to move forward with my business ideas.
My site was only able to hold one free image before charging me for additional images. It allowed me to set up to 5 free hyperlinks before charging me for any extras, and one of the links HAD to be a Webspawner link. Lame, I know, but I had a plan. I ended up creating several Yahoo online photo albums (also for free) and posted a bunch of my artwork there. I then used my free links on my Webspawner site to hyperlink to my free hotmail business address, and my free Yahoo photo albums. in other words my online portfolio. I used my one free image on the Webspawner site to post my Tyed Art logo to give my page a more professional feel, and wrote a short little synopsis about my business. Again, its pretty dumb now as I look back, but at the time I was pretty proud of myself for having been so resourceful while maintaining unwavering frugality.
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY II
From Product to Identity:
In 2000 I had been creating customized artwork using creatively arranged names of family members as a side hobby since my Portugal days. I did them as favors and gifts for family and friends, but was eventually commissioned to do them for a profit. Eventually I was doing them semi-regularly and my style of customized artwork needed an official name. “Tyed” artwork was made up of inter-woven or “tied” words & names. Of course, this name wouldn’t have worked had my name been anything but Ty. I thought it was clever, and it stuck. I think it was at this point that the seed was planted. I had gotten a little taste of what it felt like to produce, sell and be satisfied. It was business in its adolescence.
“Tyed” artwork evolved into “Tyed” Art, my unofficial company’s name, rather than just the name of an artistic style. My company, at this point, was still unofficial because I wasn’t registered or licensed to do business (let alone pay taxes), but was collecting small tax-free paychecks just the same. I really wasn’t making enough to make it worth it anyway. As an artist, I had friends referring me for different art projects all the time. One of these friend's projects was to design a logo for a company called InterSolutions, Inc., in Washington DC. They were an interim staffing agency. They were revamping their overall image, and needed a new look for their company logo. Although I had done some graphic design work for I-Sim Corporation back in 1997, this was my first real experience in designing a logo for a company as a self-proclaimed “Professional Logo Designer.” It was official enough that I decided to work on my own “company’s” image. Heck, I really wasn’t a company at all, but playing one was a lot of fun. I designed my own logo and specifically designated an email address for my “Tyed” Art business dealings... “tyedart@hotmail.com”. Needless to say, at this point, I didn’t use it a whole lot, but it FELT good to have it. I made business cards, too, just in case.
In 2000 I had been creating customized artwork using creatively arranged names of family members as a side hobby since my Portugal days. I did them as favors and gifts for family and friends, but was eventually commissioned to do them for a profit. Eventually I was doing them semi-regularly and my style of customized artwork needed an official name. “Tyed” artwork was made up of inter-woven or “tied” words & names. Of course, this name wouldn’t have worked had my name been anything but Ty. I thought it was clever, and it stuck. I think it was at this point that the seed was planted. I had gotten a little taste of what it felt like to produce, sell and be satisfied. It was business in its adolescence.
“Tyed” artwork evolved into “Tyed” Art, my unofficial company’s name, rather than just the name of an artistic style. My company, at this point, was still unofficial because I wasn’t registered or licensed to do business (let alone pay taxes), but was collecting small tax-free paychecks just the same. I really wasn’t making enough to make it worth it anyway. As an artist, I had friends referring me for different art projects all the time. One of these friend's projects was to design a logo for a company called InterSolutions, Inc., in Washington DC. They were an interim staffing agency. They were revamping their overall image, and needed a new look for their company logo. Although I had done some graphic design work for I-Sim Corporation back in 1997, this was my first real experience in designing a logo for a company as a self-proclaimed “Professional Logo Designer.” It was official enough that I decided to work on my own “company’s” image. Heck, I really wasn’t a company at all, but playing one was a lot of fun. I designed my own logo and specifically designated an email address for my “Tyed” Art business dealings... “tyedart@hotmail.com”. Needless to say, at this point, I didn’t use it a whole lot, but it FELT good to have it. I made business cards, too, just in case.
TYED ART, INC - HISTORY I
An introduction:
I’ve decided that’s it is very important, as an aspiring entrepreneur, to keep a regular record of my thoughts, fears, epiphanies, struggles, triumphs, and aspirations. From the mundane days when nothing really seems to happen at all, to the monumental lunges forward, I'm hoping my entries prove at least interesting. My entries will likely be less focused on my social and familiar experiences, and more so on my strategies, methods and trials in moving Tyed Art, Inc. forward.
The Beginning:
For about 6 or 7 years now, I’ve been trudging along the gradual upward path towards ownership of a successful business. By ownership, I don’t mean a simple purchase of a turnkey or out-of-the-box operation, but actually conceiving, initiating, nurturing and fortifying my very own homegrown company.
As a kid, long before the Internet, I remember fantasizing about becoming a famous artist and selling my artwork in some way, shape or form. I never aspired to being an actual “business owner”, per se. Just the sound of that was too intimidating. As a kid, owning my OWN business, at least the way I imagined it, always just seemed so time-consuming, cumbersome, overwhelming, and unrealistic. As an adult however, my perspective has changed. Now I happen to know how time-consuming, cumbersome, overwhelming…yet genuinely realistic it actually is.
Technically and simply stated, a business is really just an income-producing entity that has an owner (or owners) and customer(s). Economically speaking, it’s a contributor to the on-going balance of supply and demand.
I’ve been drawing all my life. I never really set out to consciously make any money at it until after I had graduated form High School. Until then, it was only a gratifying and crowd-drawing hobby that earned me a lot of compliments. Flattering, but rather un-profitable. I graduated in 1998 with my Associates of Applied Science Degree in Computer-Aided Drafting and Design, and merged onto the working middle-class super highway. I’ve been searching for my exit’s off-ramp ever since.
I’ve decided that’s it is very important, as an aspiring entrepreneur, to keep a regular record of my thoughts, fears, epiphanies, struggles, triumphs, and aspirations. From the mundane days when nothing really seems to happen at all, to the monumental lunges forward, I'm hoping my entries prove at least interesting. My entries will likely be less focused on my social and familiar experiences, and more so on my strategies, methods and trials in moving Tyed Art, Inc. forward.
The Beginning:
For about 6 or 7 years now, I’ve been trudging along the gradual upward path towards ownership of a successful business. By ownership, I don’t mean a simple purchase of a turnkey or out-of-the-box operation, but actually conceiving, initiating, nurturing and fortifying my very own homegrown company.
As a kid, long before the Internet, I remember fantasizing about becoming a famous artist and selling my artwork in some way, shape or form. I never aspired to being an actual “business owner”, per se. Just the sound of that was too intimidating. As a kid, owning my OWN business, at least the way I imagined it, always just seemed so time-consuming, cumbersome, overwhelming, and unrealistic. As an adult however, my perspective has changed. Now I happen to know how time-consuming, cumbersome, overwhelming…yet genuinely realistic it actually is.
Technically and simply stated, a business is really just an income-producing entity that has an owner (or owners) and customer(s). Economically speaking, it’s a contributor to the on-going balance of supply and demand.
I’ve been drawing all my life. I never really set out to consciously make any money at it until after I had graduated form High School. Until then, it was only a gratifying and crowd-drawing hobby that earned me a lot of compliments. Flattering, but rather un-profitable. I graduated in 1998 with my Associates of Applied Science Degree in Computer-Aided Drafting and Design, and merged onto the working middle-class super highway. I’ve been searching for my exit’s off-ramp ever since.
A NEW BEGINNING:
After reading a few of my last blog entries, compiled over the past couple of weeks, I've realized that to me, my entries make perfect sense because I've been living my own experience. However, to someone who might be reading this blog for the first time, it might seem really scattered and random. It has occurred to me that it might make a lot more sense to my few readers (if there are any - I don't exactly advertise my blog) if I were to start out my whole blogging experience with a bit of history. A little glimpse into who I am as an aspiring entrepreneur, and why I'm subjecting myself to this test of ingenuity, strategy, and capitalism. Therefore, I have removed the past 23 blog entries, edited them, and have turned them into a more complete and comprehensive history. One that might make it easier to understand how I got to where I am, and why I'm doing some of the things that I now find myself doing.
Enjoy:
Enjoy:
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