7 Essential Reads for Creative Business Owners This Summer
Let’s face it, the summer months can be slow when you are a creative business owner, especially if you run a service-based business. However, downtime is important to avoid burnout, and these quieter months can be the perfect time to step back and work on some big-picture planning for your creative goals. So, to help you with this, today I’m sharing 7 books to add to your beach bag for summer reading.
1: More Sales Please by Sara Nasser Dalrymple
If selling or marketing your own work has always made you uncomfortable, then this book will change that FAST! Former photographer turned sales consultant for small businesses, Sara Dalrymple, shares all her best advice on how to make selling easy and how to make it feel like you and your brand with actionable steps that you can apply to your business as you read.
2: Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
If you’ve lost your creative spark recently or are looking to ignite your passion again, Big Magic is sure to leave you buzzing with excitement by the time you finish reading. Gilbert explores what the essence of creativity is, why some of us feel so connected to it, and how to tap into that ‘flow state’ in your own creative work.
3: The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
The Artist’s Way has been praised by creatives of all disciplines for decades and is widely renowned as the remedy to creative block and moving through fear and doubting about your own creative ambitions. This book is a perfect summer read due to its ‘weekly’ format - more like a creative course in a book, Julia guides you through each week of the program with inspirational essays and assigned tasks to get you out of your own way.
4: Walking in This World by Julia Cameron
If you’ve already read and loved The Artist’s Way, then Walking in This World may be the perfect refresher course for you. Formatted in a similar way to The Artist’s Way but with more actionable activities, this book by Cameron will give you plenty to keep you busy during the summer months.
5: Find Your Artistic Voice by Lisa Congdon
This mini book is the perfect beach read for creatives - its compact size makes it perfect for adding to your beach bag and the format of short essays and artist interviews makes it easy to pick up and put down when you have time. If you’ve been feeling a lack of clarity around your own artistic practice lately, this book is sure to get you inspired to take action again.
6: The Digital Marketing Handbook by Alice Benham
The Digital Marketing Handbook is designed to be a ‘North Star’ for small and creative business owners who are looking to grow online and leverage this in their own marketing strategies. Packed full of action steps and ‘fluff-free’ advice, this book will help you gain clarity and get visible in your business - perfect for pre-peak-sale-season reading!
7: Profit First by Mike Michalowicz
If you want to get better at managing the money in your own business, then Profit First is widely renowned for being one of the easiest money management systems to implement in a business of any size that will see the biggest impacts. While none of us love thinking about profit margins and tax while sitting poolside, this book will help make that part of running your business a little less stressful and a little more certain. No more guesswork necessary.
