42 Things I've Learned in My 42 Years…
Hope I get REAL cake for my birthday!
Jinkies, how did I get to be 42? I still, quite vividly, remember planning surprise parties for friends when we were all turning 13. Or making construction paper cars to put on a locker to make sure everyone knew a friend was turning 16… (and to make her embarrassed… wonder if Sue will read this post?) Let’s not forget turning 21… and the headache the day after.
Well now it seems I have somehow reached 42! Last year it was my son turning 16 not my friend. (I got 16 cars from the Dollar Tree and hung them over the table instead of the construction paper stand-by.)
Anyway, I’m fine with my age and thought it would be fun to sit down and write the 42 things that came to mind that I have learned in my 42 years. Some are silly and others just might make you go hmmm… (remember that song? The video is at the end of my list)
So here goes… 42 things I’ve learned in my 42 years
- I love my 40s! (and I knew I would!)
- Your mom isn’t always right… (unless your name is Kyle and I’m your mom.)
- Things you hear as a child STICK in a person’s head for years so be careful what you say to children!
- Big Boobs doesn’t necessarily = Sexy. There’s more to it.
- Being yourself is always the best way to go in the long run!
- Your education doesn’t have to determine the rest of your life.
- Risks are rewarded – sometimes with wealth and other times with lessons to be learned.
- There is always a silver lining if you are willing to look for it.
- Swollen feet on airplanes is not fun.
- I love to Twitter!
- Highlights aren’t for me – I have dark hair and I love it! (Gray isn’t for me either so I’ll dye the heck out of any that try and invade my head.)
- Being a parent is hard work – but worth it. You get out what you put in.
- Everyone doesn’t always choose the best partner. Pick again. (But not the same person with a different name – lots of people seem to do that too!)
- The internet isn’t a fad. Thank goodness! How did we survive without it?
- Live with no regrets, it makes for a happier life than second guessing yourself.
- I’d be really wealthy if all the “Lotto” winnings I got in my inbox were real!
- Shoe size has nothing to do with anything except how big your feet are.
- Finding someone who gets you is something to be cherished!
- Laughter is an awesome way to spend time.
- Travel to foreign countries expands your perspective.
- Trust your intuition, even if it goes against everyone else’s advice. You usually know what’s best for you.
- I can’t sing or dance… and I haven’t quite come to terms with that!
- My mom was right: “If you don’t ask, the chances of getting a “yes” are slim to none.”
- She was also right when she said, “The worst that can happen is they say no.” (I’ve discovered you can always survive that.)
- My dad was mistaken when he said, “They wouldn’t call it work if it was fun.” (Sorry dad) I have found a way to make work = fun. Yippee!
- If you do things right, you really do get wiser when you get older, so listen to those that are even older than you and see what you can learn.
- I actually do have a sense of humor. (phew!)
- Sometimes it really is ok to sit and do nothing… for hours.
- Sometimes you get what you pay for. Other times you get more or less… be careful how you spend your money.
- I don’t enjoy cooking.
- Not everyone is meant to stay in our lives forever but everyone that comes into your life serves a purpose or provides a lesson you need to learn.
- Doing the best you can with what you know at the time is all anyone can ask for.
- It’s ok to admit that you were wrong.
- Our beliefs don’t always make sense – even to ourselves! Keep the ones that work for you and try to change the ones that hold you back.
- Knowing yourself and being honest with yourself is the key to all things.
- Success is more than the size of your bank account.
- Time really does seem to pass more quickly the older you get! (I remember my mom telling me that when I was about 8 and thinking she was nuts!)
- I like to know how everything works. Which can cause me to do more than I should by myself.
- I’m “micro-social” – I would choose to be with small groups of people over large gatherings.
- I’m glad I was able to stay home with my son for 10 years but I’m really thriving building my business and being his mom at the same time!
- There is no “right answer” that will work for everyone. (No matter what the question is.)
- I’m excited to see what this next year brings…
No matter how many candles you have on your birthday cake this year I hope you are growing wiser and laughing more with each passing year! Now where’s my cake?
– Tara Reed
The Luck of the Artists: Mary Engelbreit to be March Ask Call Expert!
Well Leapin’ Leprechauns I did it! I have talked about persistence on many of the Art Licensing Monthly Ask Calls and if this doesn’t prove the power of persistence, I don’t know what does!
I have been contacting and updating Mary Engelbreit Studios about the ArtLicensingInfo.com site and Ask calls since December 8, 2008. While I was in Atlanta, I met with the Studio president (who I first met in person at SURTEX, another reason I love that show!). I gave him a few more details about the website, the goals, how the Ask calls work and he said three magic words I can still hear in my head, “She’ll do it!”
As I bit my tongue for about 10 days while we got the details and website ironed out, I mentioned to him that “I couldn’t wait to let the cat out of the bag!” He replied that if it were a cat and he’d been in charge, the poor cat would be dead. He has also referred to me as the “Queen of Follow-Up” more than once. (I wonder if Mary would illustrate that for me?)
Two great things came out of this – another great example to inspire you to keep going after your dreams and be diligent about follow-up and of course, we get to hear from Mary, a “Queen of Art Licensing” on Wednesday, March 17, 2010. (Yes, St. Patrick’s Day.)
If you have plans for St Patrick’s Day that you can’t change, don’t despair. The audio replay will be one of the forever freebies so you won’t miss anything. (Thank you Mary!)
Mary Engelbreit is known throughout the world for her distinctive illustration style, imbued with spirited wit and nostalgic warmth. Starting in 1977, Mary Engelbreit licensed her art for a greeting card line and today boasts a list that’s grown to include nearly 6,500 products in all, with more than $1 billion in lifetime retail sales.
What a resource for artists wanting to learn more about how to succeed in the art licensing industry! Mary will be the March 2010 Art Licensing Info Monthly Ask Call Expert… go to www.MaryEngelbreit.com/AskME/ to submit your question and get registered!
Here’s to your creative success!
– Tara
Twittering Leads to a Fun Tour of KATU with a Blog Reader!
How cool is that? Many people who don’t get or don’t like twitter love to use the excuse, “I just don’t care what you had for breakfast.” (I’ll blog more about that later!) They might also say they don’t care what I watch on TV on Sunday night…
But guess what? My tweeting about it led to a blog reader (Susan E) who happens to work at KATU in Portland to email me and ask if I’d like a Brothers & Sisters poster. Well sure! Why not!
Susan was also nice enough to give me, my son & my BF Craig a personal tour of the tv station. I’ve never seen a tv station the way I saw it with Susan! What a great learning opportunity for my 16 year old as well – who decided that none of the jobs he saw looked like good possibilities for his future – so maybe we are narrowing in on a career… or at least checking a few possiblities off the list!
My point in two-fold:
1. You don’t have to Twitter if you don’t like it but you just never know where a random comment could get you! and
2. THANK YOU SUSAN! You were a wonderful tour guide and the gesture was much appreciated.
NOW… where am I going to put my poster????
– Tara Reed
follow me on Twitter.com/ArtistTaraReed
How SEO for Artists is like kicking a "Google Field Goal"
I’m not a big sports person and I can tell you I was THRILLED to discover that my birthday does not coincide with the SuperBowl – would have really bummed me out! (Condolences to my friend Sue, whose does.) However, while wandering through a local Party Depot a few weeks ago, I was inspired by some Football Field Goal head gear. It got my brain going into full analogy mode and I realized the field goal posts were the perfect way to explain SEO, or Search Engine Optimization.
According to a study in October 2008 by Netcraft, there are more than 182 million websites on the internet. Sit with that a minute… a little overwhelming isn’t it? So how on earth will anyone find you, even if they are looking?
Well how do you find websites? You go to a search engine like Google or Yahoo or Bing… Many are also now turning to YouTube as a search engine – especially if you want to learn how to do something. A quick search of the topic will often find you free video content to help you out. Cool!
Still thinking about your own search habits, when you search a term, you might notice that Google comes up with pages and pages and pages of answers for you – how many pages do you look through before heading off to find the info? Which websites do you assume will be the most likely to give you what you need? Google found 5,250,000 results in .2 seconds for a pretty narrow search term “SEO for Artists”…
That is a bit overwhelming! Who has time to look at all those choices? If you are like the average searcher, you will look at 1-3 pages of results and choose a few of those website suggestions. That is why learning how to optimize your website so you are on those pages when someone searches a relevant term in so important. (That’s also why it’s called Search Engine Optimization or SEO.)
“But wait!” you say. “I don’t want to become a high-tech web designer, I want a website and then to focus on my art!”
Well you can have your SEO and painting time too! With some basic tips and techniques, you can learn how to move your website towards the goal of first page Google page rank without paying anyone thousands of dollars.
When you make your site, you put text and descriptions and keywords (I hope). Those are some of the things Google and other search engines use to evaluate your website and decide if you are inside or outside of the field goal posts when giving results on a search.
Daniel Tardent, an art marketer and artist website designer has created an eBook called, “SEO for Artists”. I bought a copy and have tweaked my websites to improve my SEO results – and I was doing pretty well already! He boils the technical topic down into understandable pieces and action items – explaining how to get the best results using art and artists as examples. Awesome! In fact, using these techniques I managed to get the February Ask Call website, www.AskAboutSEOforArtists.com on the first page of Google already.
This, in a nutshell (well, a large nutshell!) is why I think you should submit your questions and tune in to the February 17, 2010 Art Licensing Monthly Ask Call. Daniel has graciously agreed to give us an hour of his expertise so you can learn more about the process and decide if the eBook is something you want to invest in. (I’m glad I did!) If you can’t make the live call, the audio replay will be available for free after the call as well. But these calls are made great by questions from you – you create the content.
So I ask you – what do you want to know? Go to www.AskAboutSEOforArtists.com and submit your question today. We’ll talk to you soon! In the meantime, here’s a video telling you more about it…
– Tara
P.S. Don’t forget about the Art Licensing Story video contest – enter by 2/14 and the winner will be announced on the call. There is a $100 coupon or free hour of coaching to be won if you create a video to post at www.ArtLicensingInfo.com/stories.html – not to mention the sharing and inspiring so start recording!
Oprah’s “aha moment”— Is this your trademark’s “aha moment?” – Guest Post by Cheryl Hodgson
The following blog post has been re-printed with the permission of the author, attorney Cheryl Hodgson who has done two great “Ask” calls, the most recent on January 20, 2010. Read on to get some interesting food for thought about trademarks.
“Aha moment.” What do you think of when you hear that phrase? Or should I ask who do you think of? Oprah Winfrey would like it to be her! However, after her recent settlement with Mutual of Omaha insurance company, she might not be the only one that can use the popular phrase.
Oprah’s production company, Harpo Productions, had originally claimed that “aha moment” was a trademark from her television show. At oprah.com, you will find numerous videos showing the “aha moments” of various celebrity guests. Some of those moments include, “finding a different kind of happiness, learning to prioritize, and the courage to do something new.”
Harpo learned that Mutual of Omaha was using the slogan “official sponsor of the aha moment,” and sent them a letter asking them to stop use. Omaha responded by filing a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Omaha arguing that they had already been granted preliminary approval of a federal trademark for the slogan.
Harpo had previously applied for trademark protection of “aha moments” in entertainment services and in magazines, while Omaha applied to register “Proud sponsor of life’s aha moments,” “Official sponsor of life’s aha moments,” and “Celebrating life’s aha moments” in the insurance industry.
In doing a Google search, I found that Omaha also owns the domain <ahamoment.com> where they describe “A moment of clarity, the aha moment is a defining moment where you gain real wisdom—wisdom you can use to change your life.”
Even though Oprah had made the mark famous, Omaha alleged that she failed to police the mark and there was no opposition to its trademark application. The case was settled out of court. This story can be your “aha moment” in brand protection. I’ve written much about the importance of developing and maintaining a trademark monitoring program. Read our earlier post: http://brandaideblog.com. Enforcement means having a watch program in place to monitor new filings and counsel to give prompt notice of potential conflicts. Failure to police can mean complete loss of rights.
This all might not even matter much longer anyway, now that Oprah has officially announced her talk show will end September 9, 2011. Aha…
For more information on the importance of policing and monitoring your trademarks in the digital age, sign up for our blog and we’ll send you a free chapter from the Guide to Building and Protecting a Valuable Brand on the Internet, based upon the INSURE™ Brand Protect Sequence.
The lesson I learned? If you register a trademark, you better watch and enforce your rights because the “You Snooze, You Lose” rule applies!
Learn more about and from Cheryl Hodgson on her blog at www.BrandAideBlog.com. Watch for new art licensing information products from her in the near future!
– Tara
P.S. Get your free copy of Cheryl’s first “Art Licensing Info Monthly Ask Call” July 2009 mp3 replay if you haven’t already. The January 20, 2010 audio replay (1 hour long) is available for $15 thru 1/31 and $25 after that.
More great legal insights for artists from attorney Cheryl Hodgson
I don’t know about you but the Monthly Ask Calls just energize me! Even if I have had a less than spectacular day, by the time I am done talking art licensing for an hour, I’m smiling and raring to go!
The January 20, 2010 call with attorney Cheryl Hodgson was no exception. I’ve known Cheryl for a year now and find her to be a source of upbeat energy and sage advice. She can put legal issues into terms anyone can understand and isn’t afraid to be practical when sharing her opinions. (Any attorney that says it isn’t always the best choice to sue or go to court is ok in my book.)
If you missed the live call, here is what we covered:
- Is it ok to use licensee logos for links on my website or should I get permission first?
- If I create art as a person (outside of my business), but then want to license it via my business, how do I set that up?
- Do I need to move my business license each time I move to a different state?
- We have a licensee that hasn’t provided reports and after a year claims there is no revenue. Is there a way to handle this properly without exorbitant legal fees, or should we just walk away?
- What if anything can I do about a company who has blatantly copied a design of mine and is selling it if I haven’t registered it with the Library of Congress?
- How do you work with multiple manufacturers in the same category without getting into conflicts of interest?
- I’ve recently been told that because I do different kinds of art – I should use a pseudonym (like a stage name) to differentiate my styles. What are the legal ramifications of this?
- My web site artwork was © in 2005 Now that it’s 2010, should my website say ©2005-2010? Do I need to re-register with the copyright office?
- Several questions and more details about how to register groups of art in a single submission to the Library of Congress to save time and money.
So whether you were on the live call or not, you just might want to invest in the mp3 replay and make sure you didn’t miss anything. The audio is available and a mere $15 through 1/31. The cost goes up to $25 on 2/1. (Still a great deal!) Click the button below and get your copy today!
We also promised you a link to get the PowerPoint tutorial on how to register copyrights online so here it is…
Learn more about Cheryl and keep up with her blog at www.BrandAideBlog.com
Here’s to your creative and legally savvy success!
– Tara
P.S. Next up… www.AskAboutSEOforArtists.com – learn how to get the right traffic to your website so you can concentrate on your creativity.
P.P.S. Don’t forget, the winner of the “Art Licensing Story” video contest will be announced on the 2/17 call, when we explain “link love” in more detail. Have you entered yet? CLICK HERE for all the details!
P.P.S.S. Did you hear??? Mary Engelbreit will be the Ask Call expert in March! www.MaryEngelbreit.com/AskME/
Art Licensing Story: David Billings
aka – Sparky Firepants. I just LOVE that name and it fits him because believe it or not – I’ve actually met the man ‘live and in person’! (He lives outside of Portland.) Without further ado – I give you your next Art Licensing Story and await your info in my inbox so I can broadcast yours as well!
Here’s to sharing and creative success!
You can send me your video info anytime but if you enter before Valentine’s Day you will be entered to win prizes! See the blog post with all the details…
– Tara
P.S. A little “link love” for David – learn more about Sparky Firepants at www.SparkyFirepants.com
P.P.S. Want to know what “link love” and other ways of getting quality traffic to your art website? Go to www.AskAboutSEOforArtists.com – the February Art Licensing Info Ask call will be all about getting your website working for you, so you can get back to work in the studio!
P.P.S.S. Like a good marketer / sales person, here is a video tutorial to show you how EASY it is to film a movie right in iMovie. Your excuses are dwindling – I’ll be waiting for your story soon! 
Free Webinar Event Information: Font License Compliance
I got an email from a reader about a free webinar that will talk about Font License Compliance – a topic I did an ask call on last year but is always worth revisiting. Here is the information – it is free and I have no vested interest in telling you about it (FTC compliance and all) but think it might be of interest to artists who use fonts in their work.
Date and time: Tuesday, January 26, 2010 11:00 am
Pacific Standard Time (San Francisco, GMT-08:00)
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 2:00 pm
Eastern Standard Time (New York, GMT-05:00)
Duration: 1 hour
Description: An Extensis Webcast featuring Type Expert Thomas Phinney
Join host Thomas Phinney, Extensis Senior Font Product Manager, for this insightful look into the world of font license compliance. He’ll share why font license compliance is of critical importance to any organization using even a few fonts and up to thousands in some cases. You’ll see real-life examples of companies who didn’t comply and the consequences they faced. Thomas will guide you through options available to help you control compliance and avoid similiar situations.
At the end of the presentation Thomas will be available for a live Q&A.
Here’s to your creative & compliant success!
– Tara
P.S. Don’t forget! The monthly Ask Call is TONIGHT with attorney Cheryl Hodgson. Go to www.AskCherylHodgson.com if you don’t have the info.
Art Licensing Legal Advice – Listen in Live!
Tomorrow, Wednesday, January 20, 2010, attorney Cheryl Hodgson will be the expert on the Art Licensing Monthly Ask Call. We could tell you listened to the call she did in July 2009 because quite a few of the questions were follow-ups to her information so we will have more ‘how-to’ details coming your way!
It is too late to have new questions considered but if you haven’t registered for a call in the past and didn’t receive the reminder email on Monday with the dial in details – head to www.AskCherylHodgson.com to get registered. Simply put “no question”, enter your name and email and you’ll be all set. You will also receive the link to download the free mp3 replay of Cheryl’s July call if you don’t have it already!
It will be another great call and it’s free if you listen live! The audio replay will be available after the call for $15 through 1/31 and $25 after that. Still the bargain of the century if you’ve ever priced legal advice.
Let’s talk legal issues of art licensing! Hope you can make it…
– Tara
P.S. Have you checked out Cheryl’s blog? Lots of great info flowing there… www.BrandAideBlog.com
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