For most of my career, I have been getting assignments just a day or two before the shoot. As a result, I have had a fair number of requests that had me grabbing my bag and running out the door.
Now when you get that call, are you ready? I got a call to fly to NYC and to pull this off quickly. Think about all you need for a shoot that requires travel.
Purchase Airfare
Book Hotel
Book Rental Car
Book Photo Assistant
Pack clothing bag
Pack photo gear
You are also sending emails/texts to your contacts planning your trip. You need to know your contact and their Phone #s, email for example, and let them know when you will arrive after you have already checked with them about when is best for you to be there.
Streamlining your process is as key as having your workflow down for post-production.
Every pro has a go-to bag, the first thing you grab for every job. Here is what is in my #1 bag.
Bag #1 Gear
(2) Nikon D4 Cameras – 2 extra batteries and charger
Nikon D750 with Grip – 2 extra batteries and charger
14-24mm ƒ/2.8 Nikkor
85mm ƒ/1.8 Nikkor
28-300mm ƒ/3.5-5.6 Nikkor
Sigma 70-200mm ƒ/2.8
Nikon SB-900
Nikon SB-800
(2) PocketWizard TT5
PocketWizard mini TT1
PocketWizard AC3
Battery Charger for AA batteries
ExpoDisc
Microfiber lens cloth
Nikon MC-30A Remote Trigger Release
Nikon ML-L3 Wireless Remote Control
Shure FP15/83 Lavalier Wireless System
RØDE VideoMic Pro
(2) Zacuto Z-Finder, Gorilla Plate V2, and Z-Finder 3.” Mounting Frame for Tall DSLR Bodies
ThinkTank Memory Card Holder
ThinkTank Airport Security™ V 2.0 Rolling Camera Bag
Often I need a run and gun lighting kit, two tripods, and light stands for video. Here is what is in the second bag I grab.
Bag #2 Gear
(2) Manfrotto 5001B Nano Black Light Stand – 6.” (1.9m)
(2) Interfit Metal Umbrella Bracket with Adjustable Flash Shoe
(2) Cowboystudio 33-inch Photography Studio Translucent Shoot Through White Umbrella
I just put this picture of the ThinkTank Glass Taxi to the point that I have a few specialized bags that I grab, like this bag for sports. It holds my Sigma 120-300mm ƒ/2.8 DG OS HSM | S, Sigma TC-2001 2x & Sigma TC-1401 1.4X.
What is your go-to bag?
It is easier to grab a bag than to pack a bag. Take your time to create the primary bag that will let you photograph most of the situations you do regularly. What is in that bag will be different for each person. You most likely have looked at my list and rolled your eyes. You are probably also wondering why I don’t have something in my bag that you consider key to doing great photography.
I think you need a basic lighting kit. I have two basic kits. One is a studio strobe kit, and the other is a hot shoe kit.
It is better to have a kit ready to go and not worry that you left something at home or the office when you need it on a photo shoot than to rush to pack a bag at the last second.
The cost of an extra bag ready to go is cheaper than the blow to your brand when you cannot deliver for the client.
Monetizing a Like on Facebook is more important to a freelance photographer trying to make a living than how many likes you can get.
We need to understand a Like on Facebook is someone walking by a newsstand and noticing a headline. Someone may even pick up that publication and glance through it for a moment, but unless they purchase the magazine, the photographer will not benefit.
You need to know what this acronym stands for as a business person. ROI is short for Return On Investment.
You will be able to recover all your costs and build in a profit if you understand ROI.
As you can see, Story and ROI apply to a profitable business, but likes will not alone make you money.
Lately, more of my friends are facing layoffs from working on staff as photographers, writers, and designers. While we can point to many reasons these organizations have a downside, I think it is wise for those losing their jobs to evaluate if the work they performed impacted ROI.
It is tough to connect communications to an ROI, but shouldn’t we as creatives are concerned if, after all, we have done on a story that the company is still losing money? Shouldn’t we be more concerned that no one is buying the content we are producing?
Who’s the Audience?
I believe many communications experts are more interested in if their colleagues like their work than if the client and their audience like them.
I think we need to be very aware of what the audience wants to consume and, at the same time, be forward-thinking about things we think they need to know about. Have we put too much emphasis on what we think is important over what they feel is essential?
Are you producing work for industry awards or the customer?
Personal Project
Now, this may seem highly narcissistic and counter to all my comments above, but we also need to spend time producing work from our hearts. So find something you are passionate about, take your time, and do your best to tell the story.
Show the world what you can do when you have no restrictions. You will need to fund this yourself; by doing so, you will finally have something to show people about what is possible. You will show people your style and abilities.
Once you have done this personal project, analyze it to see how this approach can be an excellent ROI for an audience and client. I think it is easier to figure out the audience first and then find a client that is interested in that audience that could use your approach.
When picking your project, be sure and think through the hypotheticals. If I produced what I think might work, then who is the audience that would WANT this, and what client can USE this to justify their ROI?
Liked or Loved?
When people buy what you produce, you are LIKED and LOVED.
This past weekend for two solid days, Todd Bigelow shared from his perspective business tips to the American Society of Media Photographers Atlanta Chapter. ASMP believes that if everyone is fully informed about the photography business, this will help photographers know how to run a successful business.
The Creative Circus hosted the meeting. The Creative Circus’s mission is to graduate the best-prepared, most avidly sought-after creatives in the marketing communications industry. Unlike traditional college programs, their emphasis is on portfolios and excellent ones. In addition, the teachers are all working professionals, unlike many professors who have been mainly in academia.
ASMP wanted to be sure that these students not only have a great portfolio but understand how to run a business.
Todd Bigelow believes in the 80/20 rule where 20% of how to be successful is your portfolio, and the other 80% is your business practices.
About 23 people were taking the class. Most of the class consisted of very successful photographers with more than 20+ years in the industry. So why were they taking the class, you might wonder?
Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 12800, ƒ/5.6, 1/20
While photographers are not required to do continuing education to maintain a certificate–everyone taking this class understands that continuing education keeps them up on the latest ideas in the industry.
Photographers join the Precariat Class.
In sociology and economics, the precariat is a social class formed by people suffering from precarity, which is a condition of existence without predictability or security, affecting material or psychological welfare as well as being a member of a proletariat class of industrial workers who lack their own means of production and hence sell their labour to live. Specifically, it is applied to the condition of lack of job security, in other words intermittent employment or underemployment and the resultant precarious existence. The emergence of this class has been ascribed to the entrenchment of neoliberal capitalism.
– Wikipedia
Todd Bigelow introduced me to Precariat, an excellent description of how my career had felt for many years. Of course, photographers are not the only ones going through this, but we have joined other professions with this sense of unpredictability.
Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 5000, ƒ/25, 1/40
Classmates become the professor.
It is pretty standard at all the workshops I attend that the other class participants will often chime in with expertise that is just as helpful and sometimes even more than the primary instructor.
Annalise Kaylor, who has more than a decade of experience as a social media strategist and content marketing consultant, was also taking the class. She was able to help the class understand some of the social media realms and gave some great examples of how companies are using photography.
One such example was a well-known company that used a photograph with their social media buy of 2 million dollars for a one-week use on social media.
We all learned how much photography was not just helping tell stories but being used to gather data that allows companies to do a better job of marketing and selling this information. Imagine if you had the names of the people hiring photographers for projects. Then, you could cut down on that 80% business and spend a lot more time on the 20% of the photography and increase it.
Another person taking the class was Mitzie Goldman, who was a CPA and was able to add information about taxes.
When we talked about working with NGOs besides my own experience, we had Gary S Chapman, who has specialized in this for his entire career since the late 1970s.
I mention these classmates as just a tiny part of what everyone contributed in class. When you take workshops like this, you will learn from the instructor and those taking the class. I think of this as the serendipitous bonus factor of continuing education. Sometimes these tidbits you pick up that you had no idea might happen are the best part of the class.
Workshop opportunity I offer
This January 9 – 16, 2016, I am running a workshop with my friend James Dockery in Chiapas, Mexico.
Café Justo is a coffee grower cooperative based in Salvador Urbina, Chiapas, Mexico. You will work with one of the coffee farmers to capture their story of how the coffee cooperative helped to change their lives.
The design of the workshop is for photographers who want to add to their skill set multimedia. We will teach you how to create the storyline, capture your subject telling their own story using audio/video, create video/stills to accompany that story, and then put it together using Adobe Premier Pro.
One of the most challenging parts of storytelling is access to a great story. So we have put in place everything to help you tell a great story in an exotic location.
Another excellent opportunity for a workshop is the one ASMP/Atlanta is hosting with Michael Schwarz on Audio for DSLR Filmmakers. Michael shows how to get the best quality audio while shooting DSLR videos. Microphone selection, placement, and recording directly to the camera or with a digital recorder are critical to creating compelling motion projects. In addition, Michael explains step-by-step, simple best practices for shooting multi-camera interviews.
“Don’t start a business. Find a problem, Solve a problem; the business comes second.”
– Robert Herjavec, Shark Tank
Too many photographers are trying to start a photography business and fail because they are not solving any problems. If you are thinking of starting a photography business or have created one and are struggling, then I want to encourage you to stop and spend some time answering these questions.
Establish the need for your solution
What is the basic need? You focus on the condition at the heart of the problem instead of jumping to a solution. Example: Businesses and individuals have a tough time telling their stories [elevator pitches]. It is difficult for many businesses to explain what they do without using pictures to help tell their story. What is the desired outcome? Again, here don’t focus on a solution but on solving the problem. Example: Improve the engagement/communication of businesses with clients. Who stands to benefit and why? But, first, you must understand why the industry hasn’t already addressed this.
Justify the need
Does this fit with your strategy? Your solution should generate economic development and opportunities for local businesses. Therefore, it needed to involve something that people would buy because it is fulfilling a need. What are the benefits, and how will you quantify your success? Shooting stories for nonprofits will help them raise more funds to accomplish their goals. So you can find out how much money they raised before you helped them and afterward. Assisting organizations in raising funds will also help you later sell your success to other businesses.
How will you be sure your solution is carried out? It would help if you took ownership of the success of the project. That means you need to be sure the client understands everything that needs to take place for your solution to be a success. I have gone so far as to do social media publishing and putting packages up on YouTube and Vimeo and even written blogs for clients. Executing the plan is a must, or it will look like a failure for the company and you.
Explore the problem
What has been done before by your clients or potential customers? You need to understand why other solutions have not worked well.
What solutions have others with your skills offered? Essential to know how to differentiate what you are offering compared to other companies.
What is stopping them from acting? Many times there are restraints that your clients are dealing with, making it very difficult for them to perform. Do they have the funds even to afford this solution? Sometimes there are outside factors that keep them from using your services. For example, could showing people’s faces put their lives in danger?
Write your problem statement and solution.
A clear description of the problem helps people grasp the issue. In addition, it would help if you addressed why other solutions were failures. Finally, you will need to outline the necessary steps/elements essential for the success of the solution you are proposing. Include this outline proposal.
The notion that you get your portfolio in front of people and they will hire you will have little success today. You are just a commodity, making competing in today’s marketplace challenging.
Knowing how to ask clients a question that makes them think is critical. When they realize they don’t have an answer is when you have an opportunity to provide one for them. It would help if you established the need for your services. Lacking services mean they are not getting those needs met somewhere else.
Remember, you need to be helping others by solving their problems, or your services are unnecessary.
Nikon D2X, Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG APO OS HSM, ISO 400, ƒ/2.8, 1/1600
Self-sufficiency is another word for poverty.
I read that and immediately bristled, but as I listened more to Matt Ridley’s comment, I realized he was right.
Listen to Matt here:
The more we work for each other, the better off we are.
The key to how much work you get depends on how much networking you have done. What you learn from networking are two things that are extremely important to your being able to pursue your passion for photography.
What you do must benefit others.
No one cares, no matter how nice you are and how much you care. What matters is how those things inside you move you to action. You are measured by what you do and not by what you think.
I remember the story where Jesus cursed the fig tree for not producing fruit [Mark 11:12-25]. But, of course, that was the purpose of the tree.
People will not buy what you produce unless it benefits them.
David Wong wrote:
Either you will go about the task of seeing to those needs by learning a unique set of skills, or the world will reject you, no matter how kind, giving, and polite you are. You will be poor, you will be alone, you will be left out in the cold.
Does that seem mean, or crass, or materialistic? What about love and kindness — don’t those things matter? Of course. As long as they result in you doing things for people that they can’t get elsewhere.
Nikon D2X, Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG APO OS HSM, ISO 400, ƒ/2.8, 1/400
Sell the Dream
No matter how passionate you are about something, nobody cares about it simply because you do.
I love to watch Shark Tank, the TV show. However, after you listen to them, I hear many who have ideas that are not marketable each week.
If you want clients or customers, you need to be concerned with why they should care about what you’re doing, even when you’re doing what you love. Don’t be so in love with your passion and busy doing it that you forget to look up and show others why they should care as much as you do.
Your challenge is communicating the gift of your passion, mission, and unique value.
Nothing succeeds like success.
One of the best ways to get people excited about your offer is to show them your success. Showing your successes is how many NGOs get their support. Here is the problem and a success story where we have made a difference. They then will show how there are many more to help and need your support.
Here is a great example that I helped Honduras Outreach produce this past year.
Summary: Don’t focus on being self-sufficient. Focus on being a service to your fellow man. The key to your success is not just to find your passion but to find out how this benefits other people. Once you have this nugget, you are well prepared to promote what you can do for others.
Fuji X-E2, FUJINON XF 18-55mm, ISO 1000, ƒ/2.8, 1/500
In the words of Joan Rivers, “Can we talk?” Let’s get honest here; we are often too concerned about ourselves and not enough about our clients.
Did you know that many people do what they consider loving actions to hurt someone? They are more often taking action because it makes them feel better, not their friend.
I learned about this when I was a Social Worker. We call this behavior enabling and not helping behavior.
Enabling occurs when you allow the addict, alcoholic, or afflicted individual to continue their destructive behavior. Enabling is often perceived as helping. However, the essence of enabling is permitting the addict to continue with their addiction, often by supplying money, shelter, legal aid, or any other help form.
I learned that enabling to avoid it requires you to know more about a situation. You must understand the root causes and not just the symptoms.
Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, ƒ/6.3, 1/250
Providing Solutions & Not Problems
I think many photographers approach clients with problems, not solutions. Unfortunately, they are just like those enablers–they do not understand the big picture and shoot themselves in the foot over and over.
I believe today, those who pitch ideas that are easy for a client to plug into their situation get more jobs than those who pitch ideas that require the client to do more work to use their contribution.
Here are some questions to ask yourself about your pitch:
What problem does my idea help solve for the client?
What does my client have to do to implement my opinion?
If my concept requires help, am I finding it and providing the total package or relying on the client to deliver something?
Does my pitch talk about how this addresses the client’s issues?
How do I know that my idea is good for the client?
Do I have more than one idea in case the client says they are not interested in some reason or another?
To boil this down, the fundamental question you need to ask is why the client should care about your idea. Don’t assume they understand how this will help them–you need to have that as part of your presentation. It will show them you do understand them, or it will show that you do not understand at all what they are doing.
While this may not seem to be about photography, it is about saving some time when ordering your breakfast, lunch, or dinner. As we know today, the most precious commodity we have is our time.
One of my favorite Apps and programs I use is the Delta Skymiles program. The loyalty program is excellent, and two main perks I love the most. The best part of the program is boarding early on all flights.
Having camera gear, I need to be sure this is on the plane, and I am handling it and not the baggage guys.
The second thing I like is accruing mileage to use towards future trips.
I now have another app saving me lots of time and giving me perks similar to the Delta App–Chick-fil-A’s new mobile ordering app.
I love three things about it: 1) Order accuracy, 2) jumping to the front of the line, and 3) No need to be a long-time user of Chick-fil-A to benefit.
The first thing you will do when you use the App locating Chick-fil-A restaurants near you that are participating. Over the next year, they are rolling this out in different markets. Lucky for me, in the Atlanta market, I can use the App. However, Chick-fil-A doesn’t expect to make mobile ordering available nationwide until 2016.
You tell them if you will pick up the meal: 1) Curbside, 2) Dine In, or 3) Carry Out.
Next, the App has you on the Menu page. Similar to the menu in the restaurant. You can pick a meal or à la carte.
Once you have ordered, you can save this order as a favorite. Held order is excellent for those customizations where you want more pickles or none, for example. Once you have that complicated or standard order, you can add that to your favorites.
Maybe you pick up for your family member as well as you, and you both have a standard order–this can save you time in the future.
There are combination meals, and once you pick one, you can change the drink’s size or side item like Waffle Fries.
Here you can customize your order as well.
Once you have the meal, it pops up, and you can review it. You can also see the Nutrition or Allergens by scrolling down.
Occasionally Chick-fil-A Cows might pop in with a suggestion as they did here with me.
Like Amazon, you put your credit card information into the App for easy paying. Payment in the APP speeds up the process.
You can also put money into the App. Money stored in the APP is excellent for parents with kids who need to keep them on a budget.
The last step is when you arrive; you click the button to tell them you are here, and they start your order. I don’t want those Waffle Fries just sitting around getting cold, so this keeps everything hot for you.
We had a group of about 25 photographers who gathered to hear Bob Rosato is the Chief Operating Officer of USA TODAY Sports Images.
To start our time, Gibbs Frazeur Atlanta-based freelance photographer, opened us up with a moment of reflection.
A good number of those attending have lost jobs due to budget cuts over the past few years. Gibbs pointed out how this can be a “fresh new start” for each of us. A fresh start is a much better way to look at our new situation than just Wallowing in Self-Pity.
Nikon D750, Nikkor 28-300mm, ISO 12800, ƒ/5.6, 1/320
Bob Rosato gave us a peek behind USAToday’s Sports Desk curtain. He helped us first to see that no matter who our clients we need a system that must be in place that meets their needs.
Bob walked us through the workflow that they have designed for covering events. First, using PhotoMechanic, they ingest images into their computers and go through a filter that puts the best photos into a picks folder. Then from their narrowing down those images, they will move to their online Content Management System.
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 6400, ƒ/3.2, 1/250
Continuous Quality Improvement is built into the system to improve speed and efficiency. Using “Code Replacement” is a way to improve the accuracy of spelling players’ names and saving keystrokes to get images in a timely fashion. Want to know more about “Code Replacement?” Here is a link where you can learn how to use this tool with PhotoMechanic here [http://wiki.camerabits.com/en/index.php?title=Speeding_Up_Captioning]
Nikon D750, Nikkor 28-300mm, ISO 12800, ƒ/5.6, 1/320
“Bob, what happens when Murphy’s Law strikes? Can you tell us of a time when things didn’t go as planned?” was asked to Bob and his response was you learn the most at those times. You are not as likely to get better when things are going well. It is when things go wrong that you learn from those mistakes.
Bob and Gibbs’s messages at that point collided with me. When we hit bottom, we can look at our world differently. We can choose to see our world differently.
Later during our 5-Minute shows, Jason Getz, who was laid off last December from the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, shared a photo that he would have never taken had he not gone through this experience.
He had to shoot weddings and, in the process, learned some new skills that he applied to one of the games.
When you feel like things are all coming apart and you are hitting bottom, you have an opportunity for a “Fresh Start.” First, take a good look at what brought you to this point. Not every time we hit bottom is it because we failed–sometimes those we produced work for can no longer afford your services.
Like a tornado that hits without warning and destroys a home, that family now has a “Fresh Start” and has to rebuild. You may, however, see that maybe there are things you did that you will avoid or handle differently in the future–you learned something valuable.
The most successful most likely have failed a few times. If you haven’t failed, you are not taking enough risks and will most likely produce mediocre work. So take risks and push yourself.
Nikon D750, Nikkor 28-300mm, ISO 7200, ƒ/3.5, 1/60
Why talking to other photographers is a great way to learn?
Gibbs Frazeur and Johnny Cochran had not seen each other in 27 years when they were both students at Ohio University. Gibbs lost a great job years ago and can relate to what Johnny Crawford went through after being downsized out of a job at the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. Having someone come beside you while you are going through a tough time makes the journey not as lonely.
We learn from each other than just from making mistakes. Our colleagues can help shed light on things that they have experienced.
Hopefully, we will meet again soon and catch up with each other. The best part is seeing people who have overcome those “Murphy’s Law” moments.
[NIKON Z 6, 24.0-105.0 mm f/4.0, Mode = Manual, ISO 100, 1/125, ƒ/4, (35mm = 105)]
I had coffee yesterday with my good friend Robin Nelson [http://assignmentatlanta.com/]. Robin is one of the few freelancers that I know that most of the time is in good spirits.
When staff photographers lose their jobs many of them will call Robin and some have even called me looking for advice. He is always working for someone and has done so for more than 30+ years. Staff photographers basically want to do what Robin is doing–shooting assignments.
Successful photographers like Robin do something for other photographers–they bless them with the jobs they get called to do and cannot.
Robin gets calls and emails asking him if he is available and instead of just accepting and turning down assignments Robin solves the clients problem. If he is busy he finds someone for the client. Editors come to see Robin as not just a great photographer whose style they like, Robin knows other photographers who can meet their needs if he is busy.
I know of a few other photographers like Robin. Michael Schwarz, Billy Howard, and Gary Chapman are three other photographers I like referring work to when I cannot do it.
We all have these conversations with those who just lost a job or even newbies to the industry.
After our coffee time I decided it would be great to share what Robin and I would like to tell Staff Photographers who just lost a job.
Tips:
1) Losing the staff job is like going through a divorce. Being on a staff is like being married and being a freelancer can feel a lot like being single again. We recommend using those same techniques you used to court someone. Just like seeing and meeting a drop dead gorgeous person that you are sure God had destined for you, that person may not be aware God told you that.
2) The movie “Runaway Bride” is a predictable, but fun romantic plot about the importance of knowing and loving oneself before beginning the journey of marriage. You really need to know all that you have to offer to a client and not just your portfolio. Maybe you are a history buff and this can be a great asset to some clients.
3) Accept Rejection – Derek Jeter during interview about his career said he was really blessed to have a job that allowed him to fail 70% of the time and consider him successful. Successful business fails more like 85 – 90% of the time. Good rule of thumb is that for every 10 people you contact only 1 of those will be interested.
Jane Yandel Senior Photos [Nikon D4, Nikkor 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/400]
4) Court your clients – Don’t ever take your clients you have for granted. Keep the fire in the relationship.
5) Ideas are more important than your portfolio. All your clients and potential clients have a job to do. They have a problem to solve. You pitching ideas that solve their problems and not your perception of what their problems are is what will keep you busy. While great stories should be told, the channel for telling that story is not every channel. Just because you find a story in the clients audience it still must address the problems that they are tackling at the moment.
Honduras Outreach
[NIKON D4, 28.0-300.0 mm f/3.5-5.6, Mode = Aperture Priority, ISO 3200, 1/250, ƒ/6.3, (35mm = 65)]
6) Learn how to be a REAL friend. Number one key element to a good friend is someone who “listens.” You know they listen because all the words out of their mouth after you have talked communicate understanding and compassion for where you are in life. Calling and pretending to be interested in wanting to know me and because I don’t have a job for you right away you never call again is a great indication you are shallow and only interested in yourself. The client needs to be someone they can trust with their problem.
7) Don’t call only to ask about work. Contact your clients when you hear of something they may be interested in. Send them a card on their birthday.
8) Don’t become a problem. When the client calls and offers a job say yes you can do the job or no. Don’t start telling them all the things you need to move around. Do your very best to solve the clients problem without them knowing you had to get a babysitter or move some personal plans around. Saying I need just a minute to check my calendar and can I call you back in 5 minutes is OK. Then call in five minutes. Take that 5 minutes to solve your problems to accept the assignment, or find someone who can and then call them. I am sorry I am booked but my friend Michael Schwarz is available will be better than babbling on about your problems on the phone or even in emails to them.
9) You are starting over. If you have been shooting 6 – 8 assignments a day or even just one a day those days are over unless you get a staff job. Extremely successful photographers are maybe shooting 100 assignments a year. That is averages to about 2 a week. Starting out you may only have a few assignments that first month. You also will have times of feast and famine. You may work really hard for a couple weeks and then go a month or more with little or no work in those first few years of freelancing.
10) Find a mentor who is a successful photographer. Be sure you treat them like a friend and don’t just use them. Offer to take them to lunch and you plan on paying for their meal. Don’t try and get everything for free from your mentor. Remember they are giving you valuable information that will not just save your money but help you make more money.
Here are more posts that talk about business tips as well:
Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm, ISO 12800, ƒ/4.5, 1/60 [President of Honduras talks with Maria Saporta]
Do you feel like you are working hard but are not getting any traction? You might even feel adrift in this world.
Here is a good indicator you are struggling and not getting traction to move forward in your life. Look at your calendar and see if you can see things on it that you put there that are different than what you had on your calendar last week, last month, or even last year. If things look the same all the time, you are in a rut.
Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 5000, ƒ/6.3, 1/30 [Vince Dooley talks with the President of Honduras. They are building a soccer field in the Agalta Valley that will be named Vince Dooley field]
Once you are in motion on a bicycle, the wheel’s spinning helps stabilize you due to angular momentum. You may remember a physics teacher taking a bicycle wheel and then spinning it at high speed and maybe sitting in a chair and having a student move it and watch how it impacted them.
Using this principle of angular momentum, you must change to move. For example, if the bicycle wheel spins and you do not turn the handlebars, you will remain going straight.
Change
The most significant obstacle to improving your life is your willingness to change your routine.
While I do not recommend doing something different today than you have in the past, it will change your life. So why not just do anything other? Well, that will likely result in you turning your bicycle into a ditch.
The other day I was in the Delta Airlines corporate offices board room. This room was magnificent and where the airline’s board meets. This room is where change happens for Delta.
Fuji X-E2, 18-55mm, ISO 5000, ƒ/5.6, 1/500
While my board room is our kitchen table, changes around here affect our family just as much as discussions around the board room tables change.
Here are a few tips to help you steer your life in a new direction:
Brainstorm–Take some time and dream.
Pick the best ideas
Be SMART
S–Specific
M–Measurable
A–Achievable
R–Relevant
T–Trackable over time
Since many who read my blog are photographers, you might have goals in several areas:
Portfolio–You may want to grow artistically and add new images to your present portfolio or even completely change it
Financial/Career–You may want to achieve working for certain media or corporations. You may also want to have a certain income.
Lifestyle–This can be family goals of marriage, children, or moving to a new place
Attitude–You may want to be more positive and not as negative
Health–Maybe you want to lose weight or get into better shape
Volunteer–Maybe you want to give back and find an organization you can plug into to do more public service
I can tell you from my own life two types of changes have had profound effects on my life.
First are those accidents or things that were from more outside forces. For example, car wrecks, layoffs, health emergencies, and you get the idea, but all of these dramatically impacted my life.
Second, are those things where I made conscious decisions. Marrying my wife was one of the most profound and life-changing things I could have ever done. Having a child was life-changing. Going to college and later to seminary changed my life.
Here is my challenge to you. Take some time, sit still, and ponder where you are and if this is where you want to be. Then, brainstorm what could be if things are not where you want to be.
Be realistic in your thoughts. Your plan that you come up with will be very similar to your planning a vacation abroad somewhere. First, you will have to have picked your destination and what you want to see and do. Then you will put aside the money and make all the plans to make it happen.
TIP
You can easily set a goal to retire at age 35, and many have done this. However, I recommend a plan that all those who reach that goal then put into place—setting a goal that gives your life meaning and purpose. This way, you are much happier every day than having a plan that you eventually realize was empty.
Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM, Sigma 2x EX DG APO Autofocus Teleconverter, ISO 640, f/5/6, 1/2000
The other night on the TV show Shark Tank, Robert Herjavec talked about the worst thing for a startup: too much cash.
After he said this almost immediately, Mark Cuban jumped in to agree. They talked about when you have a new idea; you assume you know what you are doing and will throw millions into a bad idea, assuming you are successful and have the cash to make it happen.
Winning football coaches are hard to get their attention, but a losing one is interested in changing their situation.
Best Clients
Your best clients are the ones that can afford your skills and pay you what you are worth. But, unfortunately, the reason they are your potentially best client is also why it is so hard to get their attention.
They are highly successful already. The best clients are not in a crisis and are looking for someone to help turn their company around. Because they are so successful often, they are experts on anything they do in their minds.
Be desirable. Just like Steve Jobs created the tablet before we knew we wanted one, we, too, must create work that makes people want to use us and have us on their team.
A personal project is the best way to get people to notice your skills. Go and do what you do best and then show it around. If your work is not just on par with everyone else but genuinely different, you have a great chance of getting people’s attention–even if they don’t “NEED” you, they will “WANT” you.
Be Authentic. If your only reason for treating someone nice is the hope of getting something from them, this is just the opposite of being authentic. Instead, be genuinely interested in them and treat them with honor, dignity, and respect.
Nikon D4, Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM, Sigma 2x EX DG APO Autofocus Teleconverter, ISO 900, f/5/6, 1/2000
Be a friend. Try and become good friends with your clients. Listen to them and support them. Congratulate them on their success.
First, before you can decide on what to listen for when dealing with a client, you must tune in your listening skills.
These listening skills are not just in your ears but your eyes as well.
You will listen for more than just words. For example, you listen to their tone while reading people’s body language. You pay attention to all the small details.
A great example is an above photo. You may see different things by observing each girl’s body language.
Avoid the first mistake of listening, forgetting to clarify. I might ask the girl at the board if she needs any help or if I may help. She may not need me at all and is just thinking, or she may be stuck.
Nikon D4, 28-300mm, ISO 4000, ƒ/5.6, 1/250
What to Listen for
As a service provider of specific skills, I listen to how I can assist the person.
But more importantly, I must first listen to their crisis. This is where the subject needs some help with something.
Take the time to explore with clarifying questions to be sure you are correct that this is their problem.
Learn to not just listen for what you can fix but also think of your network. Can you give the subject the names of people that could help them?
Nikon D4, 28-300mm, ISO 125, ƒ/14, 1/200
One of my favorite scriptures is the passage where Jesus washes his disciple’s feet. To me, this is so important in relationship building–Do for others the most menial jobs. Serve one another. The more you practice this, the better your listening skills will become.
Jesus Washes the Feet of His Disciples 13 It was before Passover, and Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and to return to the Father. He had always loved his followers in this world, and he loved them to the very end. 2 Even before the evening meal started, the devil had made Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot,[a] decide to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that he had come from God and would go back to God. He also knew that the Father had given him complete power. 4 So during the meal Jesus got up, removed his outer garment, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 He put some water into a large bowl. Then he began washing his disciples’ feet and drying them with the towel he was wearing. 6 But when he came to Simon Peter, that disciple asked, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered, “You don’t really know what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8 “You will never wash my feet!” Peter replied. “If I don’t wash you,” Jesus told him, “you don’t really belong to me.” 9 Peter said, “Lord, don’t wash just my feet. Wash my hands and my head.” 10 Jesus answered, “People who have bathed and are clean all over need to wash just their feet. And you, my disciples, are clean, except for one of you.” 11 Jesus knew who would betray him. That is why he said, “except for one of you.” 12 After Jesus had washed his disciples’ feet and had put his outer garment back on, he sat down again.[b] Then he said: Do you understand what I have done? 13 You call me your teacher and Lord, and you should, because that is who I am. 14 And if your Lord and teacher has washed your feet, you should do the same for each other. 15 I have set the example, and you should do for each other exactly what I have done for you. 16 I tell you for certain that servants are not greater than their master, and messengers are not greater than the one who sent them. 17 You know these things, and God will bless you, if you do them.
