Every couple of days I send out a report to the entire staff at my day job. It details the sales that have happened each day and gives the cumulative progress toward the bottom line revenue number.
It's all the information you need about sales, good or bad, in one spread sheet.
Sending out the report was an idea started before I arrived. I'll be honest, I didn't love the idea when I arrived. I didn't like the idea of everyone, even people not in my department, knowing so much about what was going on. I figured that if I didn't know all of their stuff, why should they know mine?
But then I grew up and realized the value of that sort of transparency. One of the biggest benefits is that it teaches everyone - and reminds me - how important it is to never get too up or down about what happens on a particular day.
It doesn't matter if we sold $200 worth of tickets the previous day or $10,000, it's always good to remember that it is just one day. There will be others.
Life in the arts is hectic. Stuff happens. Tickets sell. Tickets don't sell. People come. They don't come. You sell a ton of art. You don't sell any. You can't let your ego get caught up in any particular result. It's like the weather. It will change.
Managing your emotions, and the emotions of those around you, is a huge part of life in the arts.
It's amazing how a simple spread sheet can help make that process easier.
Comments