Art Career Development

Creativity defines the human experience. It sparks achievement and innovation in art, science, technology, business, sports, and virtually every activity. It has fueled human progress on a global level, but it equally is the source of profound personal satisfaction for individual creators. And yet the origins of creative inspiration and the methods by which great creators tap into it have long been a source of mystery, spoken of in esoteric terms, our rational understanding shrouded in complex jargon. Until now.

The man who created Bluefish, the internationally famous company that makes once-in-a-lifetime events happen for the rich and famous, reveals to the rest of us his trade secrets for making things happen. Steve Sims' day job is to make the impossible possible. With his help and expertise, his clients' fantasies and wildest dreams come true. Getting married by the Pope in the Vatican, being serenaded by Elton John, and connecting with powerful business moguls like Elon Musk are just a few of the many projects he has worked on.

In life, moments arise when you have to decide your next move. When choosing whether to accept a new job, purchase a house, attend a school, or start a relationship, how do you settle on which direction to take? Trey Gowdy has found that most consequential decisions boil down to three simple options: start, stay, or leave.

In 2010, award-winning journalist John Bowe learned that his cousin Bill, a longtime extreme recluse living in his parents' basement, had, at the age of 59, overcome a lifetime of shyness and isolation - and gotten happily married. Bill credited his turnaround to Toastmasters, the world's largest organization devoted to teaching the art of public speaking.

Does talking about your accomplishments feel scary or icky because you're worried people will think you're "obnoxious"? Does it feel more natural to "put your head down and do the work"? Are you tired of watching the loudest people in your industry get disproportionate praise and rewards? If you answered "yes" to any of the above, you might be self-sabotaging. You need to learn to brag better. Meredith Fineman shares the surefire and anxiety-proof strategies that have helped her clients effectively communicate their achievements and skill sets to others.

Creative people tend to see the world a little differently from everyone else. But that doesn't mean they can't zero in on their goals, get focused, get organized, and not only accomplish what they want to achieve but earn money doing it. In Get It Done, a beloved teacher and successful writer, actor, and comedian helps you get a handle on your own particular - even peculiar - creative process and harness your energies in positive, productive, and income-generating ways.

Have you ever walked away from an argument and suddenly thought of all the brilliant things you wish you'd said? Do you avoid certain family members and colleagues because of bitter, festering tension that you can't figure out how to address? Now, finally, there's a solution: a new framework that frees you from the trap of unproductive conflict and pointless arguing forever.

You see the giant footprints the moment you walk through the door. The conference room is a swirling mess of tension, heaviness, anxiety, and peanut shells. Something is very wrong with your team. Everybody knows it, but nobody is talking about it. It’s obvious there’s an elephant in the room. Is it an Avoidephant, feeding off the fears of retaliation and exclusion? Perhaps it’s a Blamephant—whom we love to feed because it makes us feel better about ourselves. In Don’t Feed the Elephants!, Sarah explores how you can address the true elephant in the room: avoidance.

The Art of Conversation will show you step by step how to converse skillfully and enjoyably with other people, at home, at work, on the phone, and in the street. Even if you're daunted now, discover the difference good conversation can make in every aspect of your life.

The Fieldbook is an intensely pragmatic guide. It shows how to create an organization of learners where memories are brought to life, where collaboration is the lifeblood of every endeavor, and where the tough questions are fearlessly asked. The stories here show that companies, businesses, schools, agencies, and even communities can undo their “learning issues” and achieve superior performance. If ever a work gave meaning to the phrase hands-on, this is it.

The Art of Influence will make you think twice about everything you've ever learned about influence. As Chris Widener's inspiring story reveals, it's not something you "do" to other people but rather something that starts with how you shape and transform your own life.

Your guide to becoming an explanation specialist. You've done the hard work. Your product or service works beautifully - but something is missing. People just don't see the big idea - and it's keeping you from being successful. Your idea has an explanation problem. The Art of Explanation is for business people, educators, and influencers who want to improve their explanation skills and start solving explanation problems.

Michael Gelb’s techniques will help you clarify and shape your message so that your audience - no matter how big or small, in person or virtual - will care about it. Once the message is clear, he teaches you how to convey it in memorable, creative, and effective ways. Gelb shows that public speaking is a skill anyone can learn and enjoy. Mastering the Art of Public Speaking will guide you to rediscover your natural gift for communication while strengthening confidence and presence.

If you want to improve your conversational skills - and achieve greater levels of personal and professional success - The Art of Talking to Anyone is the ultimate book. Rosalie Maggio has built a career on teaching people how to say the right thing at the right time - and she's made her techniques available to you.

Use this guide to storytelling as a sturdy foundation to change how you use stories. You can build solid stories to support your goals in business and life. The provided examples are from some of the world's greatest speakers, storytellers, with advice from leading experts. From best-selling authors to generation-changing motivational speakers, this audiobook covers all the fundamentals of outstanding storytelling. It will help you deliver stories to audiences that will leave them personally affected and motivated.

What if charisma could be taught? For the first time, science and technology have taken charisma apart, figured it out, and turned it into an applied science: In controlled laboratory experiments, researchers could raise or lower people's level of charisma as if they were turning a dial.

Have you bought in to “the new normal”? It’s a lifestyle based on heightened expectations and upward social comparisons. It sounds good, and it often feels necessary. But it’s killing us. In Own Your Happy, best-selling author Valorie Burton shares openly about her struggle against a lifestyle that seems normal but is far from natural. Even better, she equips listeners with the tools to create a lifestyle filled with breathing room - a lifestyle that empowers each of us to be fully present, more productive, and truly satisfied.

Your projects, programs, and career turn on the difference between "no" and "yes". Yet selling ideas, especially the kinds of ideas that make organizations work, is a skill shrouded in mystery. Part emotional intelligence, part politics, part rhetoric, and part psychology, selling ideas is not like tricking someone out of his money. It's about helping others to see things your way: engaging their minds and imaginations.

For too long, the term insubordination has evoked negative feelings and mental images. But for ideas to evolve and societies to progress, it’s vital to cultivate rebels who are committed to challenging conventional wisdom and improving on it. Change never comes easily. And most would-be rebels lack the skills to overcome hostile audiences who cling desperately to the way things are. Based on cutting-edge research, The Art of Insubordination is the essential guide for anyone seeking to be heard, make change, and rebel against an unhealthy status quo.

Optimism is your secret weapon in business and in life. It is custom designed specifically for you, and it is capable of bringing you everything you want. Optimism can overcome financial problems, physical disabilities, and personal challenges. In Jim Stovall's latest audiobook The Art of Optimism, he uses stories, studies, and personal experience to illustrate how adopting an attitude of optimism can change your life.