Another installment of Epic Interrogations, slightly later than I intended because I spent most of yesterday recovering from the Alestorm gig and pirate partying of this weekend (You know this isn’t a typical business blog when I will shamelessly link to a bunch of photos of me drinking mead, dressed as a wench and singing onstage at a pirate metal show). But I have an amazingly awesome lady to introduce to you, and I didn’t want to wait a minute longer.
Laura Simms runs the awesome blog and creative business at Create as Folk. Laura is one of those people that was BORN to be creative and an inspiration to others. She shares my love of archaeology, but went into acting instead of digging up the dead things, which honestly probably paid more. Now she’s an amazing creative coach and blogger – simply reading her blog gets me psyched about my art. It’s no surprise she works as a creative consultant, helping her clients form their creative careers from their sometimes chaotic lives (she knows our type well, you see). I won’t hog the stage a moment longer – bring it on, Laura!
Firstly, we just want to know who you are, and what you do:
I’m Laura Simms, and I coach creatives at Create as Folk. My work with clients is at intersection of where creative career strategy meets quality of life coaching.
For most of us, the story of how we got to be where we are today begun when we were very young, doodling on the furniture or whatever. But it might have taken a long time and a series of random experiences before we figured out what we truly wanted to do. Can you share your journey from mini-Laura to Create as Folk?
As I kid I wanted to be a vet or archeologist. I loved animals and history and mystery. I was active in theatre. I studied history in undergrad, realized I really wanted to be an actor, and have been pursuing that professionally for about 10 years. I still love acting, but the last few years it has not been as fulfilling as it always was. I started looking for something else meaningful to add to my life. I knew I wanted to help other people make things or make things happen, and eventually found my way to coaching.
As of today, right now, how’s business going? What are your current projects? What are you excited about?
It’s going great. I just reorganized my coaching packages to reflect what my clients were asking for. I’m in the process of developing a workshop to teach in person and am quite excited about the idea of getting a bunch of people in the same room to work together.
How long did it take you to grow your business from the initial idea to where you are today?
I officially launched just 4 months ago, but there were about 4 months before that of working like crazy to get things up and running. But the idea of what I wanted to do percolated for a long time before I really took action on it.
Did you go to university? What was your experience like? How useful has your degree been in getting you to where you are now?
Yes, I have a BA in history and an MFA in acting, and both were great experiences. The MFA taught me how I work as an artist, how to teach other artists, and gave me the tools & vocabulary to do much of the work I do through Create as Folk.
How did you learn about the business side of your industry? Do you have a mentor/business coach/critique group/association or did you learn it all yourself?
I did coaching training through the Creativity Coaching Association, which provided some business basics. I’ve loved the Failproof Your Business training from The Launch Coach. But most everything else has been gobs of reading or just trying things and seeing what works. You can find my recommended resources on my website.
Who or what has been a support or inspiration to you throughout your journey?
There is a whole network of creative business women online that I’ve become a part of, and they inspire me every single day. I so admire their tenacity, creativity, and the heart they put into their businesses. I’m also greatly inspired by my clients; they really go for the work and I feel honored to be part of their growth. But on the days I’ve felt really pitiful or discouraged, my husband has always supported me, reminding me that I’m on the right track and that I’m good at what I do. Everyone needs to hear that sometimes.
Making Money:
The upside and the downside to being on your own is the fact you don’t just swap hours worked for money earned. How are you finding this? Do you earn more now or less than when you worked a normal job?
I’ve never worked a “normal” job for more than a couple months, so it’s a tough comparison for me. I definitely earn more per hour now. My big challenge now it to keep a steady flow of clients so that the hours add up and up. Never had to think about that at normal job!
How long did it take you to earn enough to go full-time? If you’re not full-time, why not?
I’m not full-time yet. Create as Folk is still a babe, and I’m glad to have a part-time job as I build. I anticipate that CAF will grow so it’s my most significant source of income–right now it and my PT job are neck and neck. I’m betting on CAF to win the photo finish before too long, though.
What’s one thing you’ve done that dramatically improved your earnings?
ACTIVELY SOLD TO MY MAILING LIST. Duh. Took me a while to figure that one out. So simple.
Promotion:
I’d love to talk about promotion. You’re quite a prolific blogger, but we all know that simply writing a blog isn’t enough. What have you done to bring new readers to your blog?
I’m a regular contributor to Scoutie Girl, a sizable homemade & DIY blog–that’s been a great platform for new people to find me. Strategic guest blogging brings me some new traffic, and I also hosted a blog series that featured 7 other bloggers called From Passion to Profit that introduced a whole lot of new readers to my site. A few interviews like this one as well.
What have you tried that doesn’t work? Why do you think that is?
Early on I did a book giveaway that I was just sure was going to have people flocking to my site, and it wasn’t effective. I’ve learned that my people will spread the word about a post they find valuable far more than they will a giveaway. At least for my readers, a powerful post is more moving than a fun freebie.
Networking:
How important is networking?
It keeps me in business.
Do you get more out of face-to-face or online networking?
I think both are important. So far I’ve concentrated my efforts more online, but I’m learning that face time is really powerful for my biz, so that may be shifting.
How do you approach online networking? What tools and techniques do you use? Do you actively seek out people you’d love to get to know, or just let the whole thing happen organically?
I love Twitter. I absolutely make a point to get to know specific people. Sometimes great people just appear, and that’s lovely, but I make conscious connections with people I think I can help or can help me with something.
What kind of face-to-face networking events do you attend? How do you approach this kind of networking?
Anything can be a networking event. Dinner with friends, neighbor’s cookout, professional gathering. My goal is always to be a person first, connect as a person, and bring up what I do. I’m not a hard sell person. I believe in what I do, so I want to make sure people are aware of what I offer, but I let the rest speak for itself.
The Entreprenurial Life:
What are three tools of your creative business you absolutely could not live without?
This may sound obvious, but a computer, WordPress, and Skype. Twitter as #4.
What have been some of the best things to happen to you because of Create as Folk?
I have to be really connected to my intuition, sense of self, values, and priorities in order to help other people with those things. The more I do this work, the more all the pieces of my life just plink plink into place. There’s no where for the boogies to hide!
Describe your typical day?
I wake up without an alarm clock, which I love. Up between 5:30 – 7:30 and immediately working. A couple hours of writing, client calls, relying to emails, developing new products or workshops. At some point I eat, exercise, and take a shower, but not always in a logical order. It’s more of the same kind of the work in the afternoon. I do hop on Twitter and Facebook to connect and get the word out about what’s new with my biz, but I *try* to keep that to a functional minimum. I read blogs, other websites, or go outside for a short while when I need a break. I’ll go on sometimes ’til 6, other times until 10 or so. It really depends on what needs doing and my ability to stay engaged on that particular day.
Are you a workaholic? How does your business impact your personal life?
No. I think that word gets bandied around a lot amongst online business people without much regard for what it really means. Do I work a lot? Yeah. Do I enjoy it? Almost all of it. Do I sacrifice other activities in order to work? Yes. Is my allegiance to my work detrimental to my health and relationships? No. I’m not a workaholic.
What have been your priorities when setting up your business? What were the reasons you’ve set things up in exactly this way?
I guess my biggest priority has been doing the work I’m best at with the people I can most help and want to work with. It can be tempting to do something or sell something because you think you can make a buck off it, but I’ve been deliberate with what services I choose to offer, and spell out on my website what kind of people I prefer to work with. I’ve done work I don’t like with people I don’t like before. That’s the opposite of what Create as Folk is about for me.
Working for yourself, how do you deal with procrastination tendancies?
I’ll be honest, I feel like I’m above average on the procrastination meter, but I still have to watch it. When I catch myself, I always think, “What am I afraid of?” If I’m avoiding work, it’s always always always because I’m afraid of something. Making the wrong choice, failure, success, whatever. Once I can name what’s going on, it’s much easier to move on from it.
Have you ever had negative press or cooments made about yourself or your business?
No–I’m kinda looking forward to it like some sort of initiation or badge of honor, though.
What’s the best thing about Create as Folk?
1. It’s mine.
2. I get energized from a good coaching call.
3. I’m always working in partnership, which I love. It’s never just up to me–I love the improvisational aspect of working with different people.
Is there any negative side to working for yourself?
It’s just me and my little brain. I’m constantly looking for new sources of ideas and inspirations to things don’t go stale for me or my clients.
What do you think the future holds for Laura Simms? What exciting prohects loom on the horizon or in the back of your imagination?
If you’re reading this I’m sure you can relate: What’s not looming in the back of my imagination? I have so many ideas I wonder if I can do them all in this lifetime. Probably not. Mega daydream: I would love to own a patch of wild countryside and build an artists retreat. I imagine it in Central Coastal California or Rockbridge County, Virginia, both little patches of heaven.
Thank you Laura for being awesome and taking the time to answer questions. I recommend all of you check out Laura’s site, especially if you’re feeling devoid of creative inspiration of late. If you’ve got any questions, shout out in the comments.
Email me if you’re keen to participate in an EPIC interrogation. Never miss an interview or article by signing up to receive blog updates by RSS or Email. While you’re in a signing-up mood, don’t forget the Grymm & Epic Gazette, which, in addition to the FREE ebook “Unleash the Beast: Release Your Inner Creative Monster”, you’ll now be getting a weekly dose of creative inspiration.