Looking Back At 2008 & Forward to 2009!

When I went to college, I majored in illustration, but for some reason the course work didn't include any business or marketing classes. Last January I made a decision to learn about the business of art and marketing. Since then, the learning curve has been straight up and I know I have a long way to go, but I thought I would share some of the resources that got me started and have helped me along this past year.
First of all, I took the smARTist Telesummit, a professional art-career conference for visual artists.
The creator and host, Ariane Goodwin, put together a panel of several professionals who addressed all different aspects of the business side of art. I recieved a notebook full of notes and was able to listen to the presentations at my convenience. She has put together another promising panel of experts for this year.
I also took and organizing class from the Artbiz coach, Alyson Stanfield and purchased her book, I'd Rather Be in the Studio. Her class, book and her blog have been invaluable tools for me.
Another important resource has been David Allen's book, Getting Things Done. He provided the basic organizing skills I so desperately needed.
And for those of you in the Portland area, I took sereral workshops from the Regional Arts & Culture Council. There were several available, taught by local experts, and some of them were only $25 for three hours!
Also having an online presence and participating in social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook have been very valuable.
Now to the task of reviewing, refocusing, reorganizing and implementing for the coming year!