Forget about being a struggling artist or your bad credit. Plan your creative career better with the help of these top 5 finance tips for artists.

Going down the path of a creative career has many benefits and rewards to it.

However, it also comes with financial hardship at times. This is even more of a complication if you don't have credit or have bad credit. 



Whether you're just starting out or have been doing it for a while, if you need financing tips, then you'll want to continue reading below. We've put together finance tips for artists looking to plan their creative career with a healthy finance strategy.

1. Develop a Finance-Planning Strategy 
Your first step is to develop your finance-planning strategy. As an artist, it's important that you don't simply brush off the financial aspects of your career. To begin planning your strategy, create a monthly budget. 

This budget should include your career costs, all of your bills, and money needed for your savings account. Having a savings account isn't only good for when you're low on funds and need extra cash or for when an emergency happens. Having funds in a savings account means not having to accept jobs that you're not interested in. 

This helps you keep your focus on your passion and only doing jobs that allow you to put your passion to use. 

2. Separate Business and Personal Accounts
Speaking of bank accounts, be sure you have separate accounts for your business and your personal needs. It shouldn't cost you much, if anything, to open up these two separate accounts with your bank. And doing so will come in handy. 

For example, you might find yourself needing to go back and find an order that you placed for an awesome canvas. You want to make this same purchase again and will need the information for the order. Now, imagine having to scroll through pages and pages of transactions including your fast-food pitstops. 

Narrow down the traffic by keeping these accounts separate. 

3. Use Online Checking and Set Up Notifications
Once you have your accounts set up, take full advantage of your bank's online checking account. Accessing your accounts online is free and many banks even offer mobile options such as mobile apps for downloading. This makes staying on top of your finances much easier. 

You can check your accounts from anywhere. And once you have your online accounts set up, you'll want to set up notifications for them as well. It doesn't cost extra to have notifications put in place and they'll come in handy in many situations. 

For example, notifications can alert you when statements are ready for downloading, when certain transactions are made, when bills are due, and more. 

4. Put an Auto Overdraft Protection in Place
You'll also have the option to put an auto overdraft protection in place. This is another feature offered from your bank that shouldn't cost you extra to use. Although you don't want to put your account close to zero, it sometimes happens. 

To protect yourself from possible overdraft fees, be sure to have this protection in place. In many cases, the bank will set up your checkings account to take from your savings account when an overdraft happens. It's worth having it done so that you're not charged by the bank and put yourself even more into the negatives.

5. Review Monthly Statements and Print Them Out
Put a reminder in your phone's calendar each month to remind you to review your monthly statement. Every month, you'll need to read through your statements to ensure that nothing suspicious has taken place. If there are any suspicious charges, contact your bank immediately to have them resolved.

The sooner you find any issues, the quicker and easier it is to resolve it. You'll also want to print these monthly statements out and keep them in your records. This will come in handy when filing your taxes and keeping up with all of your career expenses. 

6. Look Into Different Credit Card Options
If you don't have credit or have bad credit, there are some options to look in to. There are credit cards for bad credit. There are also some options that don't require a deposit to qualify.

Credit cards come in handy for many circumstances, but remember to use them wisely. You don't want to find yourself in debt because you overspent with your credit card. Only use your card when it's a necessity.

And keep the balance paid off. If you can use a credit card responsibly, then it's a great option for you!

7. Create an Automatic Savings Account
Because you'll need a solid savings account to support your career, consider creating an automatic savings account. This means, each month, there will be an automatic payment from your checkings account submitted into your savings. It's best to look at this as another bill rather than an option. 

Never look at your savings money as money to spend. Choose an amount that you know you can afford and have that placed into your savings each month and never look back. 

8. Hire a Qualified Financial Professional 
When possible, hire a qualified financial professional to help you with your finances. But don't just hire anyone. Speak to other artist and see who they have helping them. Consider hiring a bookkeeper, financial advisor, and an accountant. 

Having these professionals by your side will put your mind at ease, allowing you to focus on what you love rather than worrying about finances.

Follow These Finance Tips for Artists  
If you're an aspiring or experienced artist, you'll want to follow these finance tips for artists. Doing so will keep your finances where they need to be to support your career!
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