I personally have the victim of my own lack of pacing. There are times I rev at 150% only to crash hard, with no help of chemicals from without or within. I push myself beyond normal human limits. My recovery often reaches new depths. I say, “I am not bipolar, my life is!” But let’s face it, these are the results of choices I make, or at times, LACK of choice.
Similarly, I have struggled with the balance of the big and the little. This is the making of growing pains in some. Over expansion in others.
For the first time since 2019, I am in need of expansion on the management side. I personally survived 2020 and the years since because i know how to run small. I never let anyone go, but my need to hire folks at team lead rates, often double a regular artist rate on any given event, is back.
Our k12 outreach, corporate team building AND murder mystery divisions are all thriving. Clients we haven’t from in 6 years are finally coming back. New clients are finding us at great rates than recent times.
In order to keep the doors open, we need to make sure we are not growing too fast. But in order to grow, we need to have folks dedicate to making sure today’s client has ana amazing experience. We need folks focused on preparing for up coming gigs (casting ,client communications). We need folks focused on attracting new clients.
The flip side, is falling into the traps so many similar companies have fallen. Without naming names, so many other troupes that looked like us 20-40+ years ago, Artist driven edutainment companies fell into the common business traps. It is easy to lose the mission as the overhead explodes.
Many big names in comedy edutainment have come and gone. Many went out of business, only to be rescued by some venture capitalist. Their classes now cost double the rates from 5 years ago, because they have shareholders now.
I never want to stop serving those that need what we teach the most. Many of our clients are NYC students that cannot afford tutors, or worse, SAT test takers. They have to work and hustle for every inch, every penny, every opportunity, and in many cases are still set up to fail.
Sometimes, 5 minutes of agency playing an improv game in a 3rd grade workshop is all they need to flip the script on their story. Same can be said about a number of corporate team building workshops.
People feel stuck. I challenge YOU to apply my message above. Find that balance. What do you need to do today to get rent paid and family fed? What do you need do today to make tomorrow 1% better? What can you do today for t minutes to make 2031 100% better than 2026? (The 5 year plan).
And as an artist, or a solopeneur, remember, until you are spending 80 hours a week to make your dream come true, don’t waste money outsourcing. But when you reach the point your clients need more from you, you need to bring in help. You get to a point where you will make MORE money outsourcing 1 task here and there.
Eventually you can support yourself JUST managing the operation and when you want to have, go hop on stage. That’s my retirement plan.
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