How to market yourself with integrity
Three years ago, I quit directing because I hated marketing myself.
Ok, there were a few more factors at play and I didn’t TOTALLY quit directing but I did stop seeing it as a viable career path.
I imagined my directing as a product on the shelves and thought that in order to succeed, I’d have to don a creepy Pat Sajak smile and convince everyone I met of my artistic brilliance.
Of course, what MADE me a great director was my ability to question, my love of moral complexity, my ability to listen deeply, my rejection of Pat Sajaking my way through the world. Which at that time in my life translated into a meekness around talking about my directing that didn’t lend itself to self-promotion.
I couldn’t reconcile the reality of needing to sell my art with my identity AS an artist, and I was tired of doing the day job / night passion dance and so I removed myself from the theater scene rather than try to wear clothes that didn’t fit.
The past week, I’ve been doing a marketing challenge, which is why you’ve seen more of me than you have in basically my entire time on IG.
I’ve put myself out there more directly in 7 days than I had in my entire artistic career. I started a mailing list. I created a coaching package. I invited you to work with me.
And yet I did not feel one ounce of falsehood.
It was scary, don’t get me wrong.
But overall I felt that the posts were a reflection of me simply because I WROTE them, and that I was serving my broader mission in life simply by posting. I actually felt PROUD of myself for showing up.
If marketing feels like an ill-fitting suit and you want to learn how to promote your art or your work in a way that not only doesn’t feel icky, but actually reflects you and your values, I can help.
If you want to put yourself in a position to get paid for your art, I can help.
I know what it’s like to feel like you have to protect the “purity” of your art by keeping it shielded from capitalism, AND I know that your art demands to be shared with the world.
I can help you bridge the gap between those two beliefs.