Our Legacy

from it starts with - sarah k peckRecently it came to mind that I wanted clients who worked with us to feel like members of a select group. This is not to say that we would be exclusive, but more to say that once you worked with us you began to look at your business in a totally new way and only those that had also worked with us would get that shift. Writing it out now sounds pretty amazing actually. I can't say our vision is really that revolutionary, but I do think running your own craft/art based business means making a shift in how you see yourself, your product, your time and business in general.

This thought process started when I was listening to the audio version of Art Of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau and he talked about legacy work. What do you want to leave behind? I had truly never thought of any “work” I did in those terms, mostly because I didn’t see the work I was doing as life changing and that’s what I thought legacy meant. However, Chris’s words changed my mind. So I began to think what I wanted to leave behind, what I wanted to be remembered for.

The short version is that I want every creative person to know that they are capable of creating a business based on their talent and/or craft that will sustain them and the lifestyle they desire. I want people to know this because of the knowledge and advice we pass on and how they see us live our own lives.

I've written about our philosophy of business before and that really hasn’t changed, but I want to elaborate so that you understand more what this legacy is we're trying to build.

First we believe in story. Each one of you has one and whether you believe it or not it's interesting. Your story is what sets you apart and makes you stand out. I don't think any of us would argue that the handmade market, the arts and crafts market, is crowded. There are hundreds upon thousands of other crafty people out there making witty t-shirts, stunning silver jewelry, the most fabulously luxurious bath products, and the softest hand knit hats. It's the way in which you do what you do, the path by which you got to this point that is going to make a customer choose you over the other options. You don't need to corner the market on witty t-shirts, you need identify how yours are different and why that matters.

Then you need tell the people who care. We believe in social media and creative marketing as your most indispensable tools to reach this end. Once you have your story you need to determine who will be most engaged, excited, or amped-up by what you have to say. Then you need to tell them. You need to tell them over and over again in every possible way you can. This means finding them on Facebook and Twitter, appearing at events that your people go to, and writing or being written about in the blogs, newspapers and magazines that they read. This is what many call marketing, but I like to think of more as making friends. Doesn't that sound much easier to do?

The most important part of all this and where the legacy thing comes back in, is that you can't do this alone. Well, you might be able to, but it's so much easier and more fun when you've got a group of like-minded people around you to help generate ideas, pick you up on bad days, support you through the rough patches and celebrate the successes. We want to teach you the first two points, but we want to create the third and make it accessible to all who even have an inkling of entrepreneurial direction. We want to provide an environment, at first virtual, but eventually in real life, that gives you all the inspiration, support, knowledge and motivation you can handle. We want you to be a part of the Lightbox club.

What we want to leave behind is a group of people who've been able to make a shift and think of themselves as entrepreneurs and doers, think of what they do as valuable, think of their time as worth money and not to be squandered, and think of business as something they’re good at. We want to empower creatives to take over the world.

What's your legacy going to be?