Money Be What? Question #7
“I Have My Own Jewelry Business, Using The Jar System Where Would The Money For Supplies, Etc. Come From?”
-Alex Argo
Note: “The Jar System” Is A Money Management System in which you split your money up like so…55%Expenses, 5% GIVE, 10% Play, 10% EDUCATION, 10%Long Term Savings, 10% Investments (IRA/IRA Roth/401k) To Learn More Go Here
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Congrats on your Jewelry Business! I’ll have to check it out…
I like to treat a business as a completely separate entity. There are several ways to manage your money with that in mind. One way to do it is to take the money you make from your jewelry, reinvest whatever the materials and other expenses cost and whatever else you would like to take to reinvest into your business from the gross profit margin.
Then pay yourself out whatever is left. That would be the money you would then use the Jar System with. So for example. You sell earrings for $40 It costs you $10 to make them. So you reinvest $15 into your business {an extra $5 or whatever you want to use for cushion if you’d like} Pay yourself out $25. That $25 you will then split up into your JARS.
Related Questions: What Is The Jar System?
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*Artwork By Claudia Escobar
I truly feel it is dangerous for only certain kinds of people to be encouraged to make money. I also find it interesting that Artists, and Creative Minded and Giving people (people who give back even when they have nothing to give) are often discouraged from making money when they are precisely the kinds of people the world needs to make money.
If you are an artist, you may have heard a lot of opinions and phrases floating around like “Broke Artist,” or “Starving Artist.” Maybe your parents told you to get a “real major” or a “real job.”
Maybe your friend blew their paycheck on eating out and drinking and decided that money was evil because they don’t know how to manage it. SO they dis empowered you by expecting you to model your life around their beliefs.
I believe they are strongly mistaken. I don’t think being an artist means you have to be starving. And I don’t think money is evil. I believe it is leverage, and an evil person can definitely have more power with money. But I’m not concerned with evil people or any other kind of failure for that matter. A Giving person will only give more when they have more to give and that’s where I will be focusing my attention on below.
We’ve all heard so many of the same things for so long. “The 5 Step Cure For The Broke Artist Syndrome” is just a different perspective. So thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy:)
Step 1: Be Honest With Yourself About Your Money Situation
Are you cool with your money situation?
If the answer is YES, then forward this to someone else who is not. Because you are doing well! “If It Aint broke, don’t fix it.” Creativity is a fine thing, but we should save it for our art. When you are already sitting on the recipe for success I wouldn’t stray too far away from what is already working for you.
If the Answer Is No, that’s COOL. This is where it gets fun. We’re going to fix that by getting really specific, so I’d grab a pen and a journal, or take a mental note.Because this is an important question to ask yourself.
WHERE DO YOU WANT TO BE? You can’t hit a goal you don’t see. So get REALLY specific with this.
Meh… “I want to be able to live off of my art.”
The Right Stuff…“By my 27th Birthday, April 15th 2010 at 2pm, I want to be making a $12,000 per month net profit off of selling my Jewelry.”
Step 2: Why Aren’t You Where You Want To Be ALREADY?
Now that we know there is something that could stand to improve. Let’s identify the actual problem. This part is a lot easier than you might think.
“The reason you are not where you want to be is because there is something you don’t know.”
T. Harv Eker, in Secrets of the Millionaire Mind describes this as being exactly what he needed to hear when he heard it from a friend of his father’s.
“No shit, Chantelle.” You are probably thinking. But humor me for a second, because I am going to go over how we can fix that, But First I need you to be 110% open. Because the sad fact is, you may have been hearing everything you needed to hear to take it to the next step in your personal, spiritual or financial situation. But right now, you are not the right person to hear it.
So…
Step 3: Time For Some Spring Cleaning! (This Is The Good Stuff)
The only thing in your way is YOU, Captain. FABULOUS News. Because no one has more control over YOU than YOU do. So YAY:)
It’s Time To Face Your Money Attitude.
Is It Cool if I Share Some Childhood Stories With You? Thanks!
When I was 10 years old my family was poorer than ever. We were living with my late Grandmother on a farm in a small town in New Jersey, Deerfield. My father got a chance to speak at Georgetown University and he was waiting on a check for $500.
I remember my mother would come to pick my brother, Chris and I up from school and my eyes would widen with hope as I asked, “Did the check come yet?” She shook her head for a week. Meanwhile my parents’ fighting grew more intense. And everyone in the house was on edge and full of stress.
Then one day, I asked and my mom’s eyes brightened and her entire face lit up. We got the check! All of the No-Frills black and white labels were gone! The house was full of colorful labels. My mom and dad were nice to one another. I think that was the first time I really truly was aware of the fact that I love money.
Then the money went away. The label colors went back to black and white, and my parents started fighting again. So at a very early age I knew I loved money but for some reason I would never have it. It never stayed around. And that made me very sad.
FLASH FORWARD 7 YEARS…
I was 17 years old. I had just moved from New Jersey to Los Angeles. I made an older “friend” at the time. He was in his thirties. He worked in Television as a writer.
As you can guess, my family was BROKE. Nothing unusual. I was really hungry. Went over my “friend’s” house. And I admitted I was starving. There are many things he could have done. He could have offered me food, he could have taken me out to eat, he could have done nothing, he could have given me money to go buy food, he could have loaned me money and given me a talk about money management. He did none of those things. Instead he asked me strip for him.
“The longer you strip for me? The more money you make. I won’t even touch you, promise.”
Before that moment. I was just sad that I “could not have money.” Now, he added anger to the mix. From that moment on, I believed that Money wasn’t for me. And it was because of people like him. Older, white men who hoarded all the wealth. And as a young woman of color I would have to degrade and exploit myself if I wanted to have any money. So I said, NO THANKS! to money.
I was VERY passionate about my beliefs. But they were based off of sheer emotions, with only two incidents I could call upon as my evidence or proof of my beliefs. I was DEAD WRONG about Money. I was also VERY wrong about most older white men. And when it came time for me to learn about money management, trading options and Investing in the Stock Market, and Business and Marketing, I came to call upon the knowledge of a few AMAZING older, white men who were excited that someone different was taking an interest in these subjects.
I HAD to get rid of my old beliefs in order to move on. If I was still prejudiced against men, or if I was still under the impression that money was a fly by night thing that would never happen to me again, I would never have opened myself up to hear what my mentors had to say. And I would have somehow subconsciously sabotaged any money that I did make. Because our beliefs are VERY comfortable. And if we have to challenge them, things could get rocky.
Let me give you a peak at the cheat sheet. Here. When you are comfortable, you are NOT growing. You want to take things to the next level in your life, you will get mighty uncomfortable. So have fun with it as much as you can.
So Are You ready To Let Some Things That Are NOT Serving You GO, and Some things that MAY Serve you IN? I invite you to kick anything you don’t like out of bed, but be open to the ideas and thoughts that may come up during this exercise that truly speak to your heart.
ATTENTION: You Want To Do This!
Take out a piece of paper and a pencil. Complete the following sentences below. Write down the FIRST thing that comes to your mind when you hear the following words. Read them aloud and write. No thinking, and no cheating;)
Money Is…
Wealth Is…
Rich People Are…
Investing Is…
My Bank Account Is…
When it comes to Money Artists…
The Stock Market Is…
Managing My Money Is…
Now I want you to circle which answers were negative, or clueless. LOL, Again, be honest. Pay CLOSE attention to the ones that are negative. Say, you wrote “UGH” For “The Stock market Is…” How are you doing in the stock market? I’m not a psychic but I’m going to go ahead and guess it’s not looking so good or you are avoiding it.
NOW…Think back on a specific incident that “proved” this. The further back you can think, the better. Take the most Negative words or sentences you wrote, and meditate on them. this may take a while.
When you find that experience. I want you to write about it. Just retell the story.
If you are willing to accept that that was an experience. And maybe not the ABSOLUTE truth, I encourage you to read the next step.
Step #4: Get EDUCATED!
Alright! Now that we are clear and open, let’s get educated! In this state of mind you may want to go back and take some courses or classes, or read some books over again. I promise you will walk away with much more from them. This is an amazing exercise to show you just how powerful your perspective truly is.
I would write down people you look up to. Very successful people in your field. Have they written a book? Are they offering any courses? Teaching any classes? You may want to check these out. I am sure College is GREAT for some people. I dropped out after One-Semester and I have the attention span of a squirrel. So I retain a lot more by actually doing things and then measuring a modifying. So I’m more of a seminar, Coaching Kind of person. But as long as you are applying what you learn and the information you are getting is coming from SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE. Then you’re good;)
If you are more clear on where it is you want to go in life, go ahead and journal it. This is very important. Remember I said, you can’t hit a goal you don’t see?
If you are interested in starting your own business or you already own one, DEFINITELY read up on running a business, and put MOST of your attention, time and focus on MARKETING and SALES. If you aren’t a fan of these then outsource them, or go back to QUESTION #3 And explore why it is you don’t like them in the first place;) I recommend the following resources…
The Fashion Designer Survival Guide…for anyone in the Fashion/Accessories Industry
Guerilla Business School...GOD this helped me out so much I can’t begin to explain. Every second was worth it.
The World’s Greatest Marketing Seminar
Natasha Westcoat…her blogs are awesome, and she is all about marketing your art! This particular one she wrote I follow just about every week.
If you are interested in Investing, The Stock Market, Replenishing Your Retirement I Recommend the Following…
Trading For A Living…If you want to trade options READ THIS BOOK.
Extreme Wealth I had no idea what a “net worth” truly was until I attended this seminar. So awesome to see so many women up on stage as well:)
My Very Own Options Blog…”A Girl’s Gotta Have Options” I write a lot about personal experience and psychology. People don’t pay enough attention to their psychology. It’s 80% of the game when Investing in my experience.
Natalie Pace…She is The Retirement Queen if you ask me. I am applying everything she taught me in my IRA and she speaks a lot about “Recession Proofing” Your Retirement. She focuses on not losing any money. But I have to say I am definitely seeing some nice gains in my Retirement. She Kicks Retirement ASS!
And of course, you can ask us absolutely anything about money. If you have personal stories, ideas, advice, or anything else you want to submit. Please, feel free. I answer all the questions in the order I receive them and you can let me know if it’s an Emergency. We pick our favorites and post them on this site as well! So YAY! Click the button BELOW…
Step 5: Don’t Do It ALL Yourself! Find A TEAM of Like Minded People
Find a team of like minded people to surround yourself with. You can all hold one another accountable. Do yourself a favor and right now think of the top three people you hang out with the most. Think of their daily habits, their weight, health, income, attitude about life. Now look in the mirror. Sound familiar?
We ARE who we surround ourselves with. NEVER Forget that. So keep introducing new, and Positive people into your life. We are social creatures by nature. We are meant to do things as a team and meant to get and give support.
Don’t go on a ONE-MAN, ONE-WOMAN tangent. It won’t work. And it’s boring.
Bonus STEP: Why Are You Doing All Of This?
If you walk into my room on a piece of green card stock paper in BIG Navy Blue Letters It Reads “BECAUSE ANY YOUNG WOMAN WHO SPENDS 5 MINUTES ON MY SITE WILL NEVER FEEL LIKE SHE HAS TO STRIP FOR ANYONE SHE DOES NOT WANT TO STRIP FOR.”
I READ THIS EVERY MORNING.
WHAT Are You Going To Give Back? I promise you when your PURPOSE stands for something larger than you, that desire to give back is what will get you through the rough times. Because if I don’t feel like typing, or if I don’t feel like waking up early enough to get these things done, there is a lingering fear, that I could be a day away from posting something the right person needs to hear at the right time.
So…You are going to start making money in your life. What are you going to GIVE back? Because if people are just going to make money to sit on it and wait for it to hatch, we’re screwed. The person sitting on their money is screwed too, because they are missing the point.
THE MORE YOU STAND FOR, THE MORE DRIVE AND PASSION YOU WILL HAVE TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS, WHETHER THEY BE FINANCIAL, SPIRITUAL OR OTHERWISE.
I hope you found this to be useful. I want to thank T. Harv Eker Author of Secrets of The Millionaire Mind for introducing me to a lot of the ideas and concepts I mentioned in The 5 Step Cure For The Broke Artist Syndrome. His was the first book I ever read about money. SO GLAD I let myself be uncomfortable:)
And Thank YOU. We only get so much time on this planet, thanks for choosing to spend some of your time with me. And again, if you have any specific problems, questions, ideas, thoughts or just want to say HELLO, Email me at lessworkmoreart@gmail.com and I’ll get back to you. Promise. I get excited when I get questions and ideas in my Inbox! I am THRILLED to get them, so send them my way.
Cheers,
