Smart Creative Women

Does it look like hanging out with Meg Biram would be fun? Well, it is! She is fun (and gorgeous!) verysmart and super down to earth! Meg is a social media and branding strategist, life style blogger andartist! I was surprised to learn that she got her start at Hallmark. She says she learned a lot working for a large creative company and it shows. Meg knows how to get things done, work with big brands and how to expertly adapt to the changing world of blogging and social media.

My guest today is blogger and creative community leader, Jaclyn Carlson. Jaclyn is an expat with a super cute accent who pulled up stakes in the US and moved to Australia. She was in search of creative folks to hangout with so Blog Society was born! Jaclyn is another fabulous example of a women gathering like minded people in her community and via the internet. Her community is not just growing in the country she resides in but It IS possible to hang out “in person” with people that love the same things that you do! The catch is YOU might have to be the person to put it all together! Think bravely and listen into this interview where Jaclyn talks about how she built this passionate online and offline community! She has SO many ideas, tune in! If you are listening from Australia, Jaclyn wants to meet you!!

Jane Hamill is my guest today and she is on a mission! Jane Says, "My goal is for every designer to make a living using their creativity while becoming business savvy – even if you hate sales and cringe at the idea of a marketing plan."

As a former fashion designer and retail store owner, she is a woman with experience and she wants to share her experience with YOU. I loved talking to her-she offers such great wisdom even if you aren't into fashion-she is offering up advice to any creator, maker, and artist in this interview. She talks about her own start which is a fabulous, gutsy story! Fashion Brain Academy offers online training courses and private coaching for fashion designers and creative entrepreneurs. She has a live bootcamp event this week in Chicago (and I get to go!) Too fun! You can check out all the course she offers on her site!

Tune into today's episode and soak up some of Jane's wisdom for the savvy creative business woman in you!

I met Stacy on a trip to New York City and loved her instantly. She is a bundle of fun energy and go get 'em attitude. You will enjoy her story, it is filled with good old fashioned ingenuity. She creates custom stationery and gifts for you and your furry friends at Inkspot Workshop. Her customized gifts would be perfect for a special back-to-school treat and would make terrific holiday gifts. Tune in and hear about her first forays into computer graphics! Stacy is the perfect example of working her business out. She didn't let anything stop her from figuring out what people want and then figuring out how to make her business happen!

Here is some Monday Motivation for you today! It is too easy to look at where someone else is and wonder if we will ever become all we desire to become. Even though we may admire people (ok and sometimes down right envy) we are all on the same journey. If you believe you are sitting on a part of you that is unrealized, I believe it will come to fruition! Understanding if you are in giving or receiving mode can help you stay the course and also prepare your heart to release your potential!

Tune into to see what I mean and then go to Smartcreativewomen.com to tell me what you think!

Everything about Merrilee Liddiard says, playful, imagination and creative! I had so much fun interviewing this artist, author, designer and blogger (and mom!) You are going to simply love her! She is the popular author of Mer Mag and she makes me want to be a kid again. She throws parties, she is always thinking up kids projects (so you don’t have to.) She has a fun “after school” workshop over onatly.com and she is about to release a new book, Playful. Don’t have kids? Don’t let that stop you from learning so much in this interview! She is a smart cookie and has developed a sense of style and business smarts that will keep her on your radar screen for years to come! This is a must see and she is a must follow (Yay! Makes me so happy!)

There is a such a fun innocence to what she produces AND she adds her own aesthetic to all her projects! That is why I invited her into Smart Creative Style to talk more about arriving at her style. (It starts Aug 25, 2014!)

Check out her adorable art in her etsy shop, Tuesday Morning and on her brilliant instagram account! We mention the hash tags #amidsummermingle and #tinytravelertilda

I have a question for you today! I want to know where you are in your journey! I came up with a list of popular "mental places" I have found myself in during my creative life. None of the places are bad places to be at all! It's is only bad if I am in a particular place for too long! Then I think that counts for being stuck (ugh!) Tune in to this video to see what I mean.

Here is my basic break down

1) Learning

2) Executing

3) Highly productive creativity

5) Unrest

6) Seeking

Did I miss one? Let me know what you think and where you are in your journey right now!

Also some exciting news! Merrilee Liddiard from MerMag is my guest on Wednesday (this is her art above!) She is a new addition to the Smart Creative Style course! She will be in to the course and will share how she formed her art style AND the look for her brand. I cannot wait for you to meet her, she's fabulous!

Smart Creative Style starts in just one week, Aug 25th! Make sure you don't miss it!

I have a fun guest for you today! Ani Alonso from Magia Pura! You may have seen her in the recent issue of Where Women Create or you may have seen her collecting fans on Facebook (over 81k and counting!) What you may not know is that this talented artist has quite an illustrious past (including a stint and a fashion model.) She has found her style and is comes across in everything she does in her dressing, her work and her relaxed and warm spirit. I found this interview so interesting as she told me how she is trying to overcome obstacles and government embargoes in her own country to continue to grow her brand. I love how determined she is. I am seriously impressed at how much she has done and problem solved to keep her art business growing over the years. Keep and eye on her as she is plotting to expand!

Want to make sure you have a recognizable brand like Ani’s? Smart Creative Style can help you get in touch with your personal creative aesthetic and direction like no other e-course on the market! It is the only course that let’s you explore you style in a manner where you can fully express who you are and your visual style and voice in the market place! You can enroll for the Aug 2014 class here

Check out these testimonials:

“Taking Monica’s Smart Creative Style class has helped me define what my style is and how that translates into building my brand identity , creating content for my blog and sharing on social media platforms. Her class is specifically designed to help each individual define for THEMSELVES what their stylistic voice is, and how to then take that and engage your audience. I would recommend Monica’s online course to anyone looking to better define their unique style and how to convey that as a brand for their business! And the exercises are fun!” -Melody Cassen

“Smart Creative Style is an unbelievable course! Through interviews, personal testimonials and written posts, Monica has created a curriculum that will allow you to define your unique style and create a plan that will bring that style to life. This is the perfect course for the creative entrepreneur who wants to create a business that stands out from the crowd. In a short amount of time you will learn how to apply your style to product development, branding, marketing and social networking. This course will be a game-changer for your business and I highly recommend it.” -Amber Savage

Being a creative business owner, make that ANY TYPE of business owner requires vision and a lot of it.

You have to have a lot of pieces in play to run a successful small business and it can be daunting. You know I am your constant cheerleader but I am also a practical cheerleader and I want solutions! How do you gain that vision and get yourself to a place where your passion assists the tenacity you need to grow your creative business?

I want to you to succeed, I want to you to ask yourself the hard questions and be able to do math and to tackle marketing and to make sure your product is unique to the market place.

How do you make it unique to the market place? By tapping into what makes YOU unique!

What I see happening again and again is that our inner critic can trip us up. We get so consumed with being “good enough” that we fail to launch or when we do launch we are still waiting to “be discovered” instead of taking a common sense approach to marketing what we do. I have come across SO MANY people that don’t have time to do any social media or blogging to drive traffic to the sites for sales. Hey, I have come across people who make it practically impossible to buy from them!? What???

I land on peoples websites and ask, “Who are they? What do they do? What are they selling?”I often see SO MUCH work (way too much to wade through) that tells a very confusing story about the creator. I also see businesses that seem to lack commitment to themselves. They cautiously model themselves after who they think is doing “it right” and end up with a business devoid of any real personality.

THIS IS NOT YOU! I want you to be successful! There is no shame in missing the forest for the tress, Lord knows I have been in quite a few forests myself! Let’s get you out of the forest and on a clear path.

This was the really motivation behind Smart Creative Style, it is really a Creative Business 101 course. First and foremost, we want you to tap into your own personal aesthetic! It is the foundation of the course. Early in the first few weeks we do a thoughtful and look at who are you really selling to and I am not simply talking about your ideal customer, I am also talking about basic business structure! Tom comes in and addresses marketing in a way that is EASY to understand and approachable. Khali and I really get detailed on how bigger brands operate and what you can learn from them.

I have interview a lot of women (and bring quite a few into the course!) and here are some consistent things that I see from ALL of them:

1) They know who they are, they understand their aesthetic. They have a unique style that suits THEM and they do NOT wrestle with it. They are not carbon copies of anyone else. They use their unique style to show up to be their very best.

2) They are able to use this unique personal style in all aspects of their business even if they change their products offerings.

3) They don’t WAIT to be picked. They daily choose themselves.

4) They don’t shy away from the hard stuff that comes along with being a creative business owner.

I want this to be you! If you feel like you are missing some components of this list then this is course for you. If you have 2 out of the 4 on this list, maybe you need an injection of life into your business because it is feeling stale, then this course is for you as well!

Let’s tackle this together in Smart Creative Style! Watch both the videos for more info! I’ll be back this week with more information and the fund raising project that happening along with this class run.

If you are not familiar with the name Lorena Siminovich then I am sure you are familiar with the fun and sophisticated style of Petit Collage. Argentinian born artist, author and designer, Lorena Siminovich is full of creative energy and good business sense. Petit Collage’s sustainable and chic children’s products are a fixture in stylish kid’s rooms everywhere.

In this interview you will hear how when she moved to NYC she got off a plane from South America, waited for Kate’s Paperie to open to buy a portfolio case and went straight to an interview. (I used to fly that trip-exhausting! It is an 11 hour flight through the night!!) She has not only creative, she has guts too!

Fast forward years later and she has grown her own company into an industry leading children’s brand. For this interview she tells us the real version of her story, don’t you just love that? I loved everything about this interview!This is a must see if you want to build a business and a brand with your original touch!

Lorena talks about her organic beginnings, how hard she has worked and how she has embraced strategic planning! I was completely inspired! Tell me how it inspired you!