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Kristina Snyder is a former photography agent, photo editor, photographer and travel writer. She's worked in the photo industry as an editor and researcher at magazines like Newsweek, Time and People. Today, Kristina is the founder and CEO of SNYDER, one of the best known and most well-respected artist representation agencies in the world with offices in the US and the UK.

Although Kristina’s story clearly ended with success, it began with imposter syndrome, uncertainty, and a long string of failures (just as any other true success story usually does). Kristina shares all the many ways she was able to not only manage the difficult times, but use them for extreme growth. In our conversation today we cover many topics, including surrounding yourself with the right people and trusting your deeper intuition, even if you feel uncertain about where you’re ultimately headed.

Whether you’re an artist (in whatever form that may be) that is looking to transition your work into a different genre entirely, struggling to “make it” in your current form, or looking to further expand on the success you have already built, this episode is for you. Kristina's insights come from both an artist's perspective and that of a business owner who connects artists with clients, making our conversation a wealth of knowledge.

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Here's What You'll Learn:

The importance of surrounding yourself with the right people in order to succeed
The power of listening to your intuition (and how to do it)
How Kristina overcame her impostor syndrome when she was struggling as a freelancer
Kristina’s view of failure and how she deals with it (and fast!)
What SNYDER does and how it helps artists of all kinds
Looking to transition your career as an artist? Kristina has some very important advice for you as an agent
How to transition your career but pay your bills in the meantime
How to stay focused on the “long game” when you’re making a difficult career transition
Kristina’s advice for artists when they fail (because failure is inevitable)
How you can expand a single opportunity into many

Useful Resources Mentioned:

SNYDER

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, Ph. D.

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Guest Bio:

kristina-snyder-bio Kristina Snyder

As a successful entrepreneur grounded in creativity from an early age, what sets Kristina Snyder apart is her belief in taking risks, parlaying one opportunity into the next and using her innate creative sense in everything she does. Kristina is a former photography agent, photo editor, photographer and travel writer, and has meandered through the creative communities in New York City since she arrived from her native Sweden in the late 80’s. During the day, she worked in the photo industry as an editor and researcher at magazines like Newsweek, Time and People, and in the evenings she was “the girl who schlepped music equipment from CBGB’s at three in the morning” after her husband's gigs.

Today, Kristina is the founder and CEO of SNYDER, one of the best known and most well-respected artist representation agencies in the world with offices in the US and the UK. Kristina has used her experience and insight in the field to build a reputation for developing excellence in the illustrators, animators and visual artists that the agency represents. Many of the SNYDER artists are award winners and have been featured as speakers at industry events and festivals. Kristina has won multiple awards for Creative Direction for promotional pieces from Communication Arts.

Kristina is in the very beginning stages of writing a book on creativity, incorporating her strong conviction that taking risks is a major part of success, and that you should incorporate creativity into your mindset to get the best outcomes. Her own creativity is derived from her deep connection to nature, and art, books, photography, film and creative writing.

Show Credits:

This episode was edited by Curtis Fritsch, and the show notes were prepared by Debby Germino and published by Glen McNiel.

The original music in the opening and closing of the show is courtesy of Joe Trapanese (who is quite possibly one of the most talented composers on the face of the planet).

Ep215: How to Build Your Community, Intuition & Resilience in Order to Succeed as an Artist | with Kristina Snyder

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Ep215: How to Build Your Community, Intuition & Resilience in Order to Succeed as an Artist | with Kristina Snyder