Professional Identity: Who Are You? and What Do You Do?

Consultants report that the hardest part of helping artists and arts managers create a strategic plan is getting them to answer the questions: ‘Who are you?’ and ‘What do you do?’

Why is that? Why can’t we tell our audiences, patrons, customers, funders, or collaborators who we are in five sentences or less? Because we are complex, creative, multi-skilled people that have frequent transformative experiences.

“If I am so expansive and mutable, why do I have to define myself in such limited terms?” Because people who don’t know you will only give you a five sentence opportunity to explain yourself; before they turn their attention to the next headshot in the pile, the next poster on the wall, the next proposal on their desk, the next email in their inbox, or the next artist in the gallery. Also, if you don’t create a brief description of yourself and clearly communicate it, others will do it for you. Finally, knowing who you are in simple terms is the key to obtaining meaningful success.

Ironically, it takes a lot of reflection and research before being able to condense yourself to five sentences or less. You will probably fill notebooks trying to discover the core or your creative identity. Well, here are some steps to guide you through this process.

STEP 1 - Answer the following question without a filter and with complete honesty:

• What is your purpose?
• What do you do?
• What do you want to do?
• Where do you want to be in the future?
• What are your core values?

STEP 2 – Now you probably have a pretty hefty list of words, sentences, concepts, images, icons, graphs, doodles, etc. So, let’s whittle it down by getting really honest. Ask yourself:

• Which of these things really motivates you?
• Which of these things give you energy?
• Which of these things take your energy?
• Is anything on the list something you are “supposed” to want or do?

Answering these questions is really important, because sometimes we invest time/resources into things we don’t actually want. Sometimes the goal is not even consistent with who we are.

For example, let’s say you wrote on your list: “I want to act in a film.” Do you really want to be an actor? Maybe you b*tched and moaned in high school about wanting to go into acting, so your parents took out a second mortgage to send you to a big NYC theatre school. Somewhere in the back of your subconscious you discovered you didn’t like acting after your first semester, but felt so obligated to get some return on your parent’s investment that you finished a four year program and spent three years waiting tables trying to “make it” as an actor. The problem is you really want to paint. Your lack of motivation for acting is clear to the casting directors, so you never book a gig.

“Sunk costs” are very difficult to accept in life. However, if we are not honest with ourselves the “sunk costs” and the “opportunity costs” will increase. I had to attend an organizational management class in business school to learn that creativity and innovation require a willingness to fail and a willingness to scrap what doesn’t work. In fact, it is not a failure but a part of discovery.

Over the summer, I did a strategy analysis on Pixar and learned about their practice of“killing their babies.” Meaning, creators must be willing to divest a project completely if it is not working regardless of the time and resources invested. This philosophy has allowed Pixar to experience phoenix-like emergence from the ashes of disappointments.

The founding team members (Steve Jobs, Ed Catmull, and Alvy Ray Smith) were experiencing stagnation and setbacks in their careers when Pixar was formed and suffered $50 million losses during the first decade. They “killed their baby” in decade two, by abandoning the business model of selling computer hardware tailored to animators and became animators. This willingness to change direction led to a redefinition of the animated feature film industry, record breaking box office sales, $7.4 billion buy-out from Disney, and a significant spot in film history.

Honor yourself, do what motivates you and what works.

STEP 3 – Once you have eliminated the energy-depleting and “should” items from your list, you are ready to look beyond your needs. Unless you are a “masturbatory” artist (which is perfectly fine if that is your thing), I encourage you to consider your audience. Ask yourself:

• What tangible things do you offer your audience, patron, customers, etc.?
• What intangible things do you offer?
• What value do you create for your audience?
• Are you communicating in a way that your audience understands?

I do not advocate creating your work to meet perceived expectations of your patrons or audiences; that is usually a recipe for bad art. I encourage you to authentically create and find audiences where your work resonates. Also, if audiences don’t “get it,” you can cultivate their appreciation by clearly and concisely describing your work’s value.

Recently, I attended a gallery talk at the High Museum in Atlanta, where an artist spent over an hour discussing his work and his creative process with a group of 30+ patrons. Afterwards, I heard a patron comment on how glad she was that she came to the talk, because she didn’t “get it” before. The artist helped her acquire an understanding and love for his work by explaining the political statements, describing the hard work of the creative process, and sharing his personal story.

STEP 4 – Once you have a list of things you truly want to offer and have determined which offerings attract audiences, I encourage you to assess you resources and capabilities. For each creative offering on your list, ask these questions:

• What resources and capabilities do I need to make this offering?
• If I do not have the resource or capability, can I acquire it?
• If I can acquire it, how much will it cost? Monetary costs? Non-monetary costs?
• What will be the return on my investment of time, energy and resources? Monetary? Non-monetary?

After doing this assessment, you can see if there is anything you want to eliminate from the list. Perhaps you decide to focus on the low hanging fruit and tackle the more difficult projects as your resources increase and capabilities develop. Perhaps you decide to go for the projects with a better financial or emotional return. You will probably discover that your revised list is more focused, realistic, actionable, and likely to result in success.

STEP 5 – Create the following statements:

• A description of your creative offering (What do you do or make?)
• A vision statement (Where do you see yourself in the future?)
• A mission statement (What is the purpose of your work?)
• A values statement (What do you stand for?)
• A value proposition (What benefit do you give to others?)

*Try to keep your statements to five sentences or less.

For more information on this first phase of the strategic planning process, check out our online course: “Professional Identity: Demystified.” Just click on “Programs & Services” on the Fractured Atlas home page and select “online courses.”

Currently, we are in the process of reviewing course proposals submitted by numerous experts in the field of art and business in order to expand Fractured U.’s offering. For more information contact me at kamal.sinclair@fracturedatlas.org.

(Originally published on FracturedAtlas.org October 8, 2008)