THE INSPIRATION PLACE PODCAST
Paula Christen: It was getting towards Christmas and so people were thinking into gifts. So I just started calling people, and I started with the ones I thought who were the most likely to say yes. And the very first one, it was a friend of mine who had been dating a woman that he really likes. And I said, well, what are you going to get her for Christmas? And he goes, I don’t know. Do you have any ideas? And I went, yeah, I think you should give her a painting. And there was this little tiny pause and he goes, oh my God, what a great idea.
Speaker 2: It’s the The Inspiration Place podcast with artist Miriam Schulman. Welcome to the Inspiration Place podcast, an art world insider podcast for artists by an artist, where each week we go behind the scenes to uncover the perspiration and inspiration behind the art. And now your host, Miriam Schulman.
Miriam Schulman: Today’s guest is a full time artist based in the heart of the East Cascade Mountains, where the raw, rugged beauty of the Pacific Northwest shapes every brushstroke. Please welcome to the The Inspiration Place, Paula Christian. Well, hey there, Paula. Welcome to the show.
Paula Christen: Well, thank you so much. I’m so happy to be here.
Miriam Schulman: So Paula has been an inner circle member pretty much since you joined the incubator, is that right?
Paula Christen: Yeah, from day one.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. Okay, so. And you’ve been with me, I want to say nine months. Yeah. Six months. I started I.
Paula Christen: Think I started in mid-October. Yeah. Yeah, it’s been great. Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: All right. So where I want to help our viewers, by the way, I love the way you set up your background. So I hope those of you who are listening to the podcast hop on over either to the show notes or to YouTube to take a look at Paula’s magnificent watercolors. Really nice. I really like the way you set that up.
Paula Christen: Thank you.
Miriam Schulman: What I’d like to always do before we start sharing your Her successes is make sure we paint a picture about what your art business was like before you joined, which I know you had some success before you joined me. So it’s not that, but just so people can see what the difference has been. So take us back to when you first decided to join the Inner Circle and the incubator. What was your career like then or what was missing?
Paula Christen: Yeah, it it was it had ground down through circumstances of Covid. And then I also became the caretaker for my mother as well as my boyfriend. And so the time that I could a lot to art was very limited. And my promotion and my production both had, you know, hit a very low spot. So when both of those people in my life had passed on and Covid was no longer an issue, I just really needed a kick start. Art and everything I had learned previously is a full time artist, was really out of date. And so I needed to, you know, have the best information and the best way to do things. And that was the reason I joined.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. I mean.
Paula Christen: And it’s made a difference.
Miriam Schulman: Things change so quickly. I don’t know if you heard this, Paula, but we we are actually overhauling this summer the email templates because as being in the inner circle, you know, I keep saying to you, oh, yeah, this is the way I used to teach it. And this used to work ten years ago and five years ago, but that’s not how it works anymore. So things do change very quickly in the online world. It’s kind of like dog years. Five years are dog years. That’s a long time. So yeah.
Paula Christen: And I started, you know, in the early 2000 with a website. So everything that I had learned is definitely outdated. Dated. And so by being in your course, it’s really helped me get up to date and to just have a more professional, polished appearance in everything that I produce and present.
Miriam Schulman: Okay, so I know one of the biggest changes we worked on together was your messaging, and we will talk about that in a moment. But since you brought up the overhaul of your website, can you share with the listeners perhaps up to three things that you know that you had to change from our work together? That way they can learn from what it is that we’re talking about. I think the.
Paula Christen: Biggest challenge on my website was probably one of the most important, other than the art. People always go to about the artist.
Miriam Schulman: Yes.
Paula Christen: And you know, in my way of thinking, I had tried to make it very inclusive of the collectors that I wanted to attract, and it really wasn’t. It was kind of wonky and awkward. And so you helped me spin that around and really make it focused toward why you would want to be a collector of my art and what made it different. And so that’s really something amazing, because all of a sudden it just lifted my website up to a professional level and things just flowed easy. I had something I could really anchor my message in and get it out to people. So that was one very important thing. The classes that I was offering, it was a really long read and to way too much text and not enough pictures. So that got streamlined and made it interesting. You also showed me the advantage of, rather than having a four hour class for beginners, to cut that into half to make it a two hour class. And I think that is going to be a game changer for that. Yeah, I think that’s going to attract more clients. Yes, more more beginners. They’re very timid to begin with. So yes, two hours. That’s a lot to give them. That’s going to be great. And lastly, having a place where collectors or wannabes can sign up on my home page and calling it something other than a newsletter to, to and to make them want to join, and then the follow up emails that once you’ve joined, you get a welcome email the next day, and following that, you get a catalog. So that’s made a huge difference. I think that just adds so much value to what we’re offering.
Miriam Schulman: I love that you pulled out those three things and we’re going to, so we’re going to pick all three of those apart today during today’s conversation. So one it’s really how the messaging overall your entire website. So it’s more than just the story you tell on the about page. But just when people come, they know who it’s for, they know why they want it. And those words like, speak to them now in ways that your other website wasn’t doing before. We’re going to put a pin in that and come back to the messaging. But one thing that I definitely want to talk about right now, because many people, many artists, many not just artists, but many course creators always think that longer is better and that we’re giving more value. If it’s is it three hours? Is it 4 hours or 4 hours? That’s amazing. As course providers, we think we’re giving more value. But as I was saying, even this morning, Paula, to the people who just joined the incubator, somebody was asking, how long does the Ask Miriam anything calls take? And I say I keep them to an hour because I know that more isn’t better, shorter is more efficient. And as you can get people off of zoom and back into the studio, that’s a win for them. So I think it’s so important that you realized that the two hour class was better not just for you, but for your students.
Paula Christen: Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. Have you already been exploring offering that, or has it not been enough time for that to, like, um, make a difference yet?
Paula Christen: I haven’t really promoted that yet. This is the. Okay. The highway has just opened up, so. Right. Visitors. Tourists are actually able to make this great loop that we’ve marketed. Snow just cleared.
Miriam Schulman: Right. Because we always have.
Paula Christen: Hotels filling up.
Miriam Schulman: We have fake spring. Then we have second winter, right?
Paula Christen: Yeah. We also have a mud season in there. We have the spring mud season in the fall mud mid-season. So we have, you know, six seasons here.
Miriam Schulman: Amazing.
Paula Christen: So no, the visitor season has just opened up. And that’s a lot of the market. They’re staying in the hotel and they’re looking for something maybe on a rainy or a cloudy day when they don’t want to go biking or hiking. They you know, they’ve looked at the town, gone through the museum. It’s like, okay, what else can we do? Oh, look, we can we can go plug into an art class. So a lot of my, my students come from the visitor industry. And to go back to the very beginning, when I first started, I even gave these people lunch with my four hours. I know, I know, that was so over the top then.
Miriam Schulman: Is there gluten.
Paula Christen: Free.
Miriam Schulman: Or right? You thought you needed to give more because you weren’t respecting? Weren’t respecting your value. Yeah.
Paula Christen: Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: You’re not alone.
Paula Christen: You know, it became really clear that people’s attention span is not what it used to be. And they’ve always got. Especially when you’ve got maybe a mother or daughter or whatever somebody else is outside or just waiting for them. It’s like, okay, after this, we’re going to go do this. Yeah. So two hours is perfect, and I’ll be able to give them a good taste of what it’s like to play in watercolor, and maybe it’ll spark an interest and maybe it’ll just be a memory for them. But I think it’s a it’s a very good offering package.
Miriam Schulman: That’s great. We’ll make sure that that is linked in the show notes for anybody who is visiting your area and wants to dip into watercolor, whether it’s the first time or you just or maybe your husband’s taking a nap or your partner. That would be me, by the way. Like my my husband, I’ve now learned when I travel, I have to stay at a very nice hotel because we do spend a lot of time in the hotel, and the hotel needs to be like near something I want to go to. So when he’s taking naps, this is my you’ve.
Paula Christen: Got something to do.
Miriam Schulman: I know, and I’m actually I’m talking like he’s 85. He’s only 62, but he’s been like this for years. You know, like the the nap, the afternoon nap. So you’re on.
Paula Christen: Vacation. It’s a perfect time to do whatever you want.
Miriam Schulman: That’s the two hour window for me to do something while he’s, like, not doing something would be perfect. Hey there, artist, I have a question for you. When someone lands on your website or rolls past your art on Instagram, does your message stop them in their tracks or does it blend in with all the other noise? If you’ve ever struggled to put into words what makes your art irresistible, or if you’ve been staring at a blinking cursor trying to write your about page for the millionth time? Or maybe, maybe you put it into ChatGPT. But what comes out is like this soulless crapola that sounds like Doctor Spock wrote it. That’s exactly why I created the Artpreneur Messaging Vault, where I’ll help you craft a complete messaging system rooted in your art, your values, and your truth. You’ll walk away with a magnetic about page, a reusable message vault that you can plug your website, social posts, even pitches to the media, and the clarity to talk about your art in a way that finally feels authentic and powerful. Previously, this was only available to Inner Circle clients, but they’ve told me that this was the clarity that they didn’t know they needed. And the one thing that has made all the difference. If you’re ready to finally feel proud of how you talk about your art, go to SchulmanArt.com/VAULT and snag your spot. Let’s go back to your messaging and talk about like how you’re talking about it differently and what that process was like.
Paula Christen: The process in just talking to you about why I do things and where the Inspiration comes from. I could talk about it, but I couldn’t craft it into a message that reached my collectors or potential collectors. It felt awkward for me to do that. And so having your help pull out things and rearrange them. It really it really for me was wonderful and it’s truly authentic to me. I just did not have a way to put it. I don’t know, it felt like I was bragging about myself. I wanted to get it out there, but it just it for me, it just felt awkward. But having help do it and to be able to tell people how I came about, creating what I create and why it’s important to me and what I see happening if we don’t pay attention to just caring for the earth. It’s like I’ve lived through now three major forest fires, even where I’ve had to evacuate, leave everything in the studio and just get my car and go because we haven’t been taking care of the forests. I mean, I could see the flames from my house.
Miriam Schulman: Wow.
Paula Christen: And so this is, you know, we’re losing. And now when I look out there, part of it, you know, it’s just blackened. And it didn’t have to be. It could have been taken care of better. And climate change has also had an impact on that. So reminding people of what’s out there that’s that’s important to me. And I wanted to get that out, but I wasn’t very eloquent at it.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. And I was just remembering now when I met you in, I forget what year it was. I think it was 2016 or 2017. In Portland was when they were having those fires we were in. Um, you don’t live in Portland. You live in Washington State. But we were both right. Am I remembering this correctly? We were both in Portland the same time, and it was like the ash was falling from the sky. It was apocalyptic.
Paula Christen: Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. So does it feel like bragging now?
Paula Christen: No, it feels comfortable. And I’m proud. I’m proud to put that link in there, in anything I send out. This is me. This is why I do what I do. And it’s just out there for the world to see. And I’m really pleased. Really pleased with it.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. One of the things that surprises a lot of artists that when I do this, ah, messaging exercise with them is how much we talk about their personal values and their beliefs. Was that a surprise to you as well?
Paula Christen: It was because when we started talking about it and we were digging in through the layers, he actually almost started to cry. It was that close and we got down there. And so there. I think there are things that artists don’t talk about, and to have somebody else ask the questions and draw it out is good.
Miriam Schulman: It’s very difficult to do by yourself, so it’s never anyone who has trouble doing it. I don’t want anyone who’s listening out there. Or you, Paula, to think there’s something wrong with you or why couldn’t I do it myself? It’s very difficult to do this yourself. It’s because I like to say it’s kind of like you’re a fish in the water and what’s all around you. It’s like you’re just. It’s water. You know, you don’t realize you’re in water, so it’s hard to do that yourself. What was another surprise that you found with that exercise?
Paula Christen: I think just realizing what I could offer, I’m an artist. I create mostly in watercolor, and that box was all I could see. And so by reading my own, you know, my own statement there, it’s like, okay, I can offer people a connection to nature. I can offer them relaxation. It was just an opening up of seeing myself in a different light. All right.
Miriam Schulman: I’m so honored to be part of that journey with you.
Paula Christen: Thank you. I’m so glad I took the journey.
Miriam Schulman: What else would you say has been the biggest transformation in both your art yourself and your art business? Any of those three categories with our work over the last seven months?
Paula Christen: There’s a lot to choose from. I think mindset is a good one for me to to bring up. Even though I’ve been practicing art for a long time, you still have some fears in the background. Imposter syndrome is a great one. Even this morning, as I’m journaling, I’m going. I don’t know why I’m on this this podcast. I’m not really anybody important. I’m not, you know, doing anything that I think is major. But I realized I’ve taken a pretty significant journey, and I think there are other people out there who would benefit. Mindset also had to go to how much information and how many times I connected with my collectors, and I was actually getting to the point before I took your course of saying, well, maybe four times a year is enough to say, hi, I’m here, you know, here’s my new work. And I realized that they want to hear from you more. And I’m thinking that, you know, all of the the Macy’s and all the other bed Bath and Beyond, and I don’t even know if they’re still in business, but how many times they send you an email, people open it if they’re in the mood for that, or they want to see what’s for sale or they’re interested and it’s like, you need to be more like that, Paula, you need to send it out weekly. And that was scary. But I did it and I’m still doing it. There are a few times when I’m maybe it’s ten days between, but that’s just life. But I really make it a priority to stay in touch with them. And hey, I’m still here. This is what I’m up to. Totally up to them if they read it or not. But I’m trying to make it interesting. Something they want to open. I’ve gotten, you know, very good at crafting, you know, an opening line. So that’s another good thing, is just staying in touch.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. So many artists struggle to overcome that fear of worrying that they’re bothering somebody. Yeah, yeah. I think it also falls a lot on gender lines because women have been socialized to be quiet, play small, be nice, don’t take up space and be accommodating and be people pleasing. So it plays into a lot of that socialization as well, that we’re so afraid to speak up and be heard and be visible. Mhm. Would you agree with that.
Paula Christen: Oh yeah. I’m from the generation where you know you are always expected to be a nice, quiet girl. Yes. And that’s, you know, rules have changed a little bit. Speak up, stand up, let people know you’re here. And if they choose not to listen, that’s okay. You just let them go. They’re not your. They’re not your people.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. So you’ve made a lot of sales. I know I sent you one of my $10,000 milestone mugs, so she’s got it with her. Look at that.
Paula Christen: I’ve got it with me in the studio. Yeah, that was. That was a big challenge for me. Yeah, actually, I hadn’t been in your.
Miriam Schulman: Let’s talk about how that happened, because I’m thinking back now, I remember specifically, I think it was like November when I challenged the group, how much money do you want to make before the end of the year? Do you remember that?
Paula Christen: I do.
Miriam Schulman: What’d you say?
Paula Christen: Yeah, and it was, I said very meekly. I said, I think I can make $5,000, you know, maybe. 80 and you came back and said, I think you can double that. I think you can make ten, right?
Miriam Schulman: It was like one of those hell no girl.
Paula Christen: You know, like, no, no, no. I was like, oh my God, she called me out on this. Yeah. And I just kind of gulped. And, you know, I was we were with other artists and it was like, well, I can’t say no. It’s going to be embarrassing. So, yeah, I could do this. I’m up for the challenge. And then when we got off the call, it was like, how the hell are you going to do this?
Miriam Schulman: Okay. And so what did you do? And then what happened?
Paula Christen: Okay. I had listened to podcasts that you had done, and it talked about putting boulders in rocks and pebbles and sand into a jar and how to fill it up quickly. And you said you started with the boulders. So I said, well, boulders are your biggest items. What can you sell the most of quickly. Obviously it can’t be cards at $5 a piece. It’s going to take you a long time. So okay, biggest boulder I have in my my yard is I have commissions. Those are my highest priced brand things. So I got out my list of people that I’ve sold work to or that are really close friends that I can call. And luckily it was getting towards Christmas and so people were thinking into gifts. So I just started calling people, and I started with the ones I thought who were the most likely to say yes. And the very first one said, oh my gosh, I love the idea because it was a friend of mine who had been dating a woman that he really likes. And I said, well, hey, what are you going to get her for Christmas? And he goes, I don’t know. Do you have any ideas? And I went, yeah, by the way, I do. I think you should give her a painting. I think you should give her actually a gift certificate for a painting that she can choose the subject of. And there was this little tiny pause and he goes, oh my God, what a great idea.
Miriam Schulman: I love this story so much. This is so awesome.
Paula Christen: That’s what he and I said, okay. All you have to do is send me a deposit. And I said $1,800 because I didn’t know how big. And I explained that to him. I said, you know, you can choose a price. We’ll just take this as a deposit. Choose whatever size you want to give her. We’ll make up after she, you know, gets gets it delivered. So that was one down. That was very easy. And that’s how I continued to to get there was just I just worked on getting this right away.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. I’m so and that.
Paula Christen: Just built me up. It was like okay I can do this. Yeah. Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: So spoiler alert because she just held up that mug. She made the goal of 10,000. Was it more than 10,000? Was it actually like 11 or 12? What was it?
Paula Christen: It was. It was closer to 11.5 by the time I was finished. Yeah. Congratulations. Was in. That was in six weeks. Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah.
Paula Christen: And the great thing about those were just the deposits. So there was more money coming after the finished work is done? Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: So it was really like 20,000, right? Yeah.
Paula Christen: Yeah. Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: I sent you another.
Paula Christen: It was some in and some down the road, which is always nice.
Miriam Schulman: Fantastic. Are you making your art the star or is your message holding it back? Listen, if you want collectors, fans and the media to get what makes your art special, you need words that do your work justice. That’s exactly what we do inside the Artpreneur messaging vault. I’ll help you lock in your signature messaging and create a vault of words that you can use on your website, email, social posts, you name it. No more staring at a blank screen. No more cringing when somebody asks. All right, so what do you do? What kind of art do you make? Head on over to Schulman Art and we’ll unlock your message together. Is there anything else you’d like to share with me or listeners before we wrap up?
Paula Christen: I really want to share that investing in yourself is the best money you are ever, ever going to spend. And if it scares you, you know the price scares you or whatever, that’s even more reason to invest. It’s that you’re going to make sure that you get your money’s worth out of what you’ve put out. And so I say go for it.
Miriam Schulman: Well that’s beautiful. All right, Paula, it’s been such an honor having you here with us today. And it’s absolutely been my privilege to coach you along this journey. And yes, there’s a lot of people out here who really wanted to hear your message, who wanted to hear from someone like you that you spoke directly to them, and maybe what they might be thinking and feeling right now where they are in their journey. So we’re grateful that you came here today to talk to us.
Paula Christen: So my pleasure to be in your class. And I’ve I’ve got your book and I still go back to it and yeah, I think I’m well on my way to having a really great year.
Miriam Schulman: You are. All right, my friends. So thank you so much for being with me here today. And I’ll see you at the same time, same place next time. Until then, stay inspired. Bye for now.
Speaker 2: Thank you for listening to The Inspiration Place podcast. Connect with us on Facebook at facebook.com/schulmanart, on Instagram @schulmanart and of course, on SchulmanArt.com.
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