Grow Your Illustration Business

Okay, this blog post is for me. Sometimes I need to give myself a little advice. Maybe it will be helpful to someone else, so here it is:

1. Don't focus on the past. Put your energy toward moving ahead and reaching your next goal.
2. Work this business like you do your day job.
3. Study the best children's books, read them, all of them and school thy self on what makes a fantastic picture book and art for children.
4. Have written goals and a marketing plan.
5. Work everyday toward those goals. Even if it is sketching or updating your mailing list for 15 minutes. 
6. Be honest about your work, does it wow? If not, get busy improving and exploring!
7. Be Flexible. Do you only work in one medium? Do you have black and white samples in your portfolio? Does your work only cover one age group? Can you add another section to your portfolio to expand your target audience?
8. Make your own work while you wait for new assignments.  Get creative.