You Can Talk ALL Day About Your Art, But When It Comes To Money Conversations, You Stick Your Head In The Sand.

The Successful Artist Series gives more than the “just-do-these-three-quick-things-and-your-whole-professional-life-will-simply-fall-into-place” token pieces of training for artists.

It tackles the hard topics in a deep way to make a tangible, measurable difference in the life of creatives.

And it can work for you even if you’ve tried to “up” your fees and then quietly back-peddled because you feel like you are betraying your art or selling out.

And here’s the thing:

This is NOT superficial professional development. These are tangible tools you can easily understand and implement even if you’d rather shut your eyes and block your ears.

I’ve increased the prices of my early work… I don’t need to ‘chase’ any more.

Sarah. Artist and Lecturer in Painting. Melbourne

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“On the front foot of money conversations”

I am now on the front foot of money conversations rather than waiting for money conversations to happen to me.

Anne. Composer. South Australia

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“I feel a deeper confidence“

Josephine. Freelance Musician. Melbourne

INTRODUCING

The Art of Money Online Workshop
For Creatives

The Only Online National Professional Development Series for Creatives Across Disciplines with a Fresh, Holistic and Practical Approach to the Business Side of Art Making.

Join the inspiring Dr Katy Abbott, Composer, Educator and The Artists’ Mentor, in a captivating, affordable Professional Development online 4-part Workshop that you do in your own time.

Uncover the rarely talked about and taboo conversations when it comes to the business side of creativity so that your bank account can grow alongside your creative practice.

I asked the Artist community to fill in the blank:
“You know you’re an artist when…___” and here is one of the answers I received:

“You know you’re an artist when…
you are loading ten-thousand dollars worth of gear
into a five-thousand-dollar car.”

Maybe you can relate…

Most Artists put a lot of money and effort back into their craft and work hard at being excellent – and there’s not a lot left over for them to improve their quality of life. They wonder if they really have it in them to make a living from being an Artist.

What does the $5,000 car represent in your life and practice?

• Maybe you need to take on another job to support your Art practice?

• Maybe you haven’t ever had a holiday just for you because any travel or extra money involves travel for gigs or a show?

• Maybe the things that are important to you end up competing for time and attention because you feel you need to say yes to things you’d rather say no to.

This workshop is for you if:

~ You want to know when and how to talk about money stuff without being perceived as ‘too money-focused’ or the work going to someone else

~ Your artistic profile is growing but your bank account is not.

~ You feel sick when you anticipate the “how much do you charge” question.

~ You are consistently asked to perform for free (because “you love it”) and you feel conflicted because you both want to be generous and do the work AND you worry that asking for a fee, means the work might go to someone else.

~ You suspect deep down your Art ‘doesn’t count’ unless you have suffered.

~ People who offer you work somehow think that exposure pays the bills, and you don’t know how to turn the conversation to being paid in real money (in a way that feels okay for you).

~ You feel if you earn money from your creativity it somehow “lessens” the outcome and you will have less creative freedom.

~ You find yourself starting creative projects even though you are not really clear on how much you are being paid.

~ You feel backed into a corner and say ‘yes’ when you want to say ‘no’ because even though YOU know your value, you don’t know how to explain it to someone else in the moment.

You might be trapped in The Artist-Avoidance Cycle!

So how do you get out of The Artist-Avoidance Cycle?

What happens when you move from
Artist-Avoidance to Artist-Advantage?

Hear from other Artists who have stepped into their Artist-Advantage Cycle:

“…generosity… expansiveness…”

“A sense of generosity and expansiveness has replaced scarcity.”

Matthew, Musician. Queensland 

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“Incredible Process”

“What you do is so fabulous – the whole world deserves to know about this incredible process you lead, and do… Supersonic!”

James, Musician. Victoria

•

“Feeling Aligned”

“Feeling aligned and appreciated is worth its weight in GOLD”

Jude, Multidisciplinary Artist. Melbourne 

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“Protect[ed] from starving artist syndrome”

“[Katy] has helped me create processes to protect me from burnout, starving artist syndrome, and a constant sense of ‘should’. I am better for doing the course, as are my family and loved ones.”

Julia, Jeweller. Melbourne 

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“Less Like Doomsday”

“It feels less like Doomsday now and more like I can own it. I really resonate with your way of being in the world.”

Ella, Composer. Sydney

When you work inside the Artist-Advantage Cycle, you:

• Build on the last experience. More profile, money, recognition, and quality projects

• People expect to pay you more

• It gets easier to articulate your value.

Think of this Workshop as the ‘money-talk’ you wish you’d had years ago.

The talk you wished you’d had at Art school, at Uni, at College, by your teacher or from your mentor. You learned all about your craft, and your technique but not the business side of things. Or at least, not to the depth that you needed to walk you through YOUR specific circumstances.

Think of all the doors you’ve walked through in that time when you haven’t been able to articulate your value, and know how to open a conversation about your fee. Or you’ve accepted a fee for much lower than you’d first hoped or were led to believe.

Sometimes, the artistic scope changes or the timeline goals move. But your fee does not. When you don’t know how to position yourself, it results in frustration for the project and the cycle continues.

So how do you know what’s appropriate to say?

I want to have with you, the money-talk you wish you’d had right back at the start of your career.

Let’s have that money talk today.

We will cover:

a. Understanding and articulating your value
b. When to have a money talk
c. How to have a money talk that feels right, light and like you.
d. Find out the two key things to having clear, digestible money conversations that I’ve never heard discussed inside the Arts.

What To Expect In The Art Of Money Online Workshop For Creatives

In this Workshop, we focus on things that needn’t take up so much worry and air-time: your fees, your value, authentic communication, niggly up-at-4am hoo-ha and all the implications.

At the end of The Art of Money Online Workshop for Creatives, you will:

~ Know how to value your work

~ Know how to communicate the value you bring to a creative project

~ Improve your relationship with money in your creative life

~ Learn WHEN to have a conversation about money

~ Learn HOW to have a money conversation with ease and results

~ Have a plan you can implement so that you don’t waste so much energy and time circling money conversations.

~ Get downloadable templates and activities to implement right away (including getting language and ways of communicating that feel right to you so you might actually want to implement changes and see results)

It’s a no-brainer.

Have the money talk you should have had years ago!

Over $1000+ in value

Simply email your completed worksheets along with the reason you are requesting a refund within 7 days of enroling

Imagine feeling comfortable and confident to speak freely about your fees and value with collaborators…

This is Billie’s* story. A composer with 20 years of experience shifts the financial well-being of her practice in just 6 months: from hobby-rates to confident-professional.

Billie* used to wait with a lump in her throat for her commissioners to ask what her fee would be. The creative conversations flowed but when the conversation turned to money, she’d wildly attempt to guess what she thought they could afford before just making up a number.

It felt unwieldy, random and awkward.

Billie’s Artist–Avoidance Cycle

Billie was deep-stuck in the Artist–Avoidance Cycle.

Here’s how it showed up for her:  Billie often asked for a much lower fee than she wanted because she worried they’d think she was priced too high and give the work to someone else. Or that it wouldn’t match their budget and they’d think she was too big for her boots.

She got used to operating this way.

Making the Switch to the Artist–Advantage 

In her work with The Artists’ Mentor, Billie:

• created her fee structure

• learned how to confidently communicate her fee.

• started getting paid her fee

• became the person who built the money conversations into the project conversation – so that everybody was on the same page

• all without ANYBODY blinking or caring or questioning.

Billie’s New Norm 

Billie started getting MORE work and at a HIGHER rate when she began operating like this. She had more energy for her work, stopped being resentful about the time, and was able to take less work because she was getting paid more. Her confidence grew and she was doing the work she wanted to be doing.

I’ve supported many artists like Billie, to dramatically mature their art practices.

Here’s what other Artists’ say:

“Profound… grateful”

“I’m trying to find the words to express how grateful I am and how profound this process has been.”

Musician, Sydney

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“Transformative”

“Katy is genuinely energised by others’ success and passes on strategies she has found transformative, sharing her own experience with honesty and insight.”

Painter, Sydney 

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“Depth, insight and REAL solutions”

“Katy is not all talk and promises. But rather, she provides depth, insight and real solutions to the complexity and messiness of being human. Her way of working was kind, genuine and warm and I now have more tools to use not only in my creativity but in my life.”

Author/Actor, Melbourne 

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“…made back the cost…”

“I’ve easily made back the cost of the Program and then some.”

Visual Artist, Melbourne

Dr Katy Abbott

Katy Abbott illuminates and inspires the heart of us both in her music and as a mentor to high-performing artists. She is a highly experienced educator and mentor with a 30-year track record of impact in artistic and artist development across school, tertiary, and industry settings. Her own creative practice as a composer uses music to weave compelling stories of heart and courage, driven by her forensic curiosity about what makes us human.

Katy’s artistic impact and achievements as a composer are significant including five solo albums on ABC Classics and MOVE Records labels. She has received many national and international awards, as well as commissions from some of Australia’s most renowned orchestras and chamber musicians. Her music resonates globally and is performed, broadcasted, and recorded around the world. She is 2024 Composer-In-Residence for The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

Katy Abbott is a visionary artist mentor who empowers established and mid-career creatives across various disciplines to build dynamic and impactful careers with a lasting legacy.

Her flagship program, CATAPULT, is a 6-month artist mentoring virtual residency that offers personalised guidance and strategy to help artists take their careers to not just the next level, but well beyond.

With a deep passion for empowering artists to use their voice and make a difference, Katy now also offers The Successful Artist Series, a groundbreaking professional development program that tackles tough (and often neglected) topics with a fresh and powerful perspective.

This Professional Development Series equips artists with the skills they need to thrive in the short and long term, providing them with the tools they need to succeed and leave a mark on the world.

Frequently Asked Questions

Enrol below for ‘The Art of Money’ Workshop for Creatives