My personality & mentality is probably far better suited to the days when most of what people had they produced themselves. The process of creating has always come so much more naturally to me than anything on the business side of things. I can find enjoyment in spending hours threading a loom, but creating a business plan or documenting my finances feels like a nightmare. I think this is probably how most people who find themselves in the craft 'industry' feel...but that doesn't make dealing with those necessary parts of owning your own business any easier.
As I try to grow my passion from a hobby into something I hope will eventually be self-sustaining and perhaps even provide me with a decent living, I've been giving a lot more thought to the business end of things. I've been finding myself thinking a lot about the importance of branding and self-promotion, both for my textiles business and for my (new) career as an RMT (registered massage therapist). I've always been uncomfortable with self-promotion, perhaps because the voice of my historically low-self esteem had always whispered I have nothing to offer...but I've been trying my hardest to transcend that lately & concretely define what makes me, and as an extension the products and services I offer important & valuable.
Especially in this new age of social media, there seems to be an incredible importance in having a cohesive online presence that clearly & meaningfully outlines what you have to offer. The more I look at & think about it, the more it seems to make sense. Both craft and massage are incredibly personal pursuits & on both fronts, it seems important that people are able to connect with who you are on a personal level in order to receive the most value out of what they're paying for. Many people are capable of creating beautiful objects...but I would personally rather spend my money on those objects knowing that the person behind them is someone with ideas and values that match up with my own.
When you purchase something that is handmade, you are telling the maker that they are valuable. Making is such a complex pursuit that is so integrally tied into who a person is...and if the finished result speaks to another person it seems understandable that there must be some common thread between the maker and their patron. So although I would love to hide myself away in the woods and stay secret, I have been trying to be more open about who I am, and what I think....to take the paradigm of self-branding and use it as a way to form genuine connections with people.
More and more it is becoming true that each dollar you spend amounts to a ballot cast in the voting box of what you think is valuable in this world. Although it's not always easy, and we're not always capable, money that is spent on handmade objects opens a space for those practices and those ways of life to continue in a world that is increasingly automated & impersonal. Money spent on small-scale production creative entrepreneurs means that these methods stay relevant, and the people who rely on creating for their wellbeing and sanity are able to feel that their strengths and talents are valued and useful.
As someone creative in an industrial world, driven by profit margins, knowing that someone values your inherent skills & creativity is everything. If I had been born at a time when people wove, knit and sewed all their own fabrics, my skills would have been incredibly and immediately valuable. These days we must struggle and fight to show the value of these skills...and while this can take a toll on a young creative's sense of self-worth, this is precisely why I think it's so worthwhile.