All of these e-books are licensed for free noncommercial distribution — as long as you credit me as the author, don’t alter them in any way, and don’t exploit them commercially, you are welcome to download and share them with your colleagues and contacts.
20 Creative Blocks – and How to Break Through Them
There are few things more frustrating than creative blocks – and they come in all shapes and sizes, so there’s no universal solution.
This free 114-page ebook covers many different types of block — and offers practical solutions you can use if you ever find yourself blocked.
The project started as an experiment on my blog, Lateral Action. I posted an invitation to my readers to tell me about their creative blocks, and promised to write a series of blog posts offering solutions to them.
More about the Creative Blocks e-book
Download 20 Creative Blocks (and how to break through them)
Freedom, Money, Time – and the Key to Creative Success
Illustration by Joan Vincent Canto, licensed from istockphoto
A creative person needs three things to be happy:
- Freedom – to do what you want, when you want and how you want it. Not just in
holidays and spare time – but also doing meaningful work, in your own way. - Money – to maintain your independence and fund your creative projects. Of course you want a nice place to live, but you’re not so worried about a bigger car than the guy next door. You’d rather spend money on experiences than status symbols.
- Time – to spend as you please, exploring the world and allowing your mind to wander in search of new ideas.
The challenge is getting the right combination, instead of one at the expense of the others. This ebook describes my unconventional career journey, as a poet and creative coach, and the lessons I’ve learned about finding the right combination of freedom, money and time.
It’s full of practical advice you can apply to your own situation, if you want to earn a living from your creative talent, or if you’re a freelancer or small business owner and want to make your business less stressful and more profitable.
Download Freedom, Money, Time – and the Key to Creative Success.
How to Motivate Creative People (Including Yourself)
An e-book for leaders, managers, directors — and other creative people
Photo by alexsey.const
A practical guide to getting the best out of creative people. Introduces a new model of motivation and many practical tips for inspiring people to do their best work — most of which have nothing to do with money.
“If you’re a creative director like me, it’s a must-read.”
Full review.
Tim Siedell, Fusebox“The kind of reading that should be required for new supervisors as well as those in the creative professions.”
Steve Roesler, Roesler Consulting Group
Download the Motivation e-book.
Time Management for Creative People
“Manage the mundane, create the extraordinary”
A practical and inspirational guide to maintaining your creative focus amid all the demands and digital distractions of 21st century life. Downloaded over 50,000 times, this e-book has garnered rave reviews.
“A really well done 32-page download that provides practical time management and productivity tips tailored specifically for those performing creative work.'”
Brian Clark, Copyblogger“Even if you don’t consider yourself a creative person, the ebook is chocked full of useful tips.”
Kyle Potts, Lifehacker
Download the Time Management e-book.
An Introduction to the Enneagram
Personality types for understanding and influencing people
Image by Sandra Renshaw
The Enneagram is a powerful and practical system of personality types. This e-book introduces the nine basic types and shows you how to use them for personal development and building better relationships – at work and in your personal life.
Originally published as a series on Successful Blog
Download the Enneagram e-book.
Creative Management for Creative Teams
Business Coaching and Creative Business
An introduction to coaching skills for managers of creative professionals. Explains how to use coaching skills to get the best out of creative people without turning into a ‘suit’.
More about this e-book.