The first day of the CIDA course seemed to be a great success, reflecting on yesterday’s events we are very pleased to have Lee Corner and her dedicated team of mentors work with us at Bar Lane. A range of topics were covered, all catering to support the creative entrepreneurs that have chosen to take part in the course. Those involved in yesterday’s events included York-based photographer Keith Findlater, Carl Letman of Agathon Productions and Six Lips Theatre along with many more talented and interesting people.
Topics covered in the opening session were balanced to take into account the creative mind at its best and the good points including the art of Strategic Thinking (the fact that creative people are very good at recognising opportunities), as well as Commercial Aptitude (the fact that creatives are also good at understanding the best practice within their chosen profession and then learning from it and improving), Persistent (the idea that they are determined enough to operate from out of hope of success rather than fear of failure) and, Making Things Happen (the fact, [and we enjoy this the most] that creative people are very good at turning ideas into reality.
Obviously as the programme’s director, Lee is no stranger to motivating people through truth and what’s quickly established through a nice balance of humour, real-life experience and community is that CIDA, will be able to help most of (if not all), the representatives that have chosen to attend from York St John‘s Phoenix Centre, DesignWorks and Bar Lane Studios over the next six months. It’s not all positive stuff mind, the talk also examined the challenges that creative people face on a daily basis trying to make a living as painters, writers, designers and photographers. Such challenges include the fact that creatives don’t always conform to traditional industrial processes like distribution and reproduction when going into business and as such, they tend to be much more collaborative, also that they can be perceived as being “flaky” by banks, friends and other important people in their lives (don’t you love that word? Click for a definition!) It was also discussed that creative people can often have difficulty accessing finance, which of course is a massive problem for anyone starting out, or even someone who has been in business for many years.
One of the highlights to come out of this part of the discussion though, was the examination of individuals’ values as Lee went around the room in an effort to familiarise the “class” with each other and to get them to talk about their projects and the ideals that inspire them to continue despite adversity. Supported by worksheets those in attendance responded well by listening to others and offering feedback where appropriate in order to offer constructive and welcome advice.
Another interesting point in the day came when those involved were asked to examine their own “toolkit” which meant that each person was required to examine their key characteristics, attributes, behaviours, skills and resources along with a group of other people from different businesses. This was particularly effective as it gave those involved a unique insight into each other’s personalities and from out of this discussion we saw many people offer to support others and extend help, support and resources that could help benefit their business.
The CIDA course successfully brings together a variety of different businesses, people and skill-sets to support each other under the “wing” of the Lee and also with the help of personal mentor sessions from friendly and experienced industry professionals. It is the hope that with the skills people learn from these sessions, they can become self-sufficient and can learn to support themselves by making profit as a creative person within their desired industry. We managed to catch up with Lee once the day had concluded to talk a little bit about what has kept her inspired to continue helping creative people over her 35-year career. She explains that while managing 25 people is much more of a “tall order” than she has been used to in the past, she is more than ready for the challenge. “I do prefer speaking to individual people and catering for their needs usually, but with all of my experience I have been able to learn about dealing with a variety of people in a range of sectors,” she says. “The people who are a part of this course just need more confidence in their abilities.” Moving on to talk about her inspirations and what has kept her going, she examines how creative individuals benefit people around the world and not just in York. “The contribution that the creative community has made to society seriously improves on the quality of our lives,” she adds. “I will fight to the death for creative freedom.”
We would like to wish every participant on the CIDA course the very best, and good luck in the future. Especially considering that there will be a session coming up which will examine finances and the concept of survival and business income! It’s a fine balance!
Kindest regards to all of our readers and best wishes,
Bar Lane Studios
