RISK TAKINGYour next area for examination is your willingness to take
risks. Risk taking is a part of our daily experience. We get in
cars, we drive, and we step off curbs into busy streets. While
these daily actions don’t seem to pose a risk, they do. Anything
could happen at any time. Successful photographers have
maintained the attitude that risk taking is a daily experience.
We are not talking bungee jumping here; an example of every-
day risk taking can be seen in the way you choose to service
your clients.
When you shoot for clients do you take their ideas as is? Or
do you give your input? Most photographers tell me that they
take the ideas a client gives them and unless it’s undoable they
shoot directly to layout. No creative input. No risk taking.
Clients welcome creative input from photographers.
A photographer who listens carefully to a client’s needs and
then gently adds his or her suggestions is a valuable supplier.
Don’t assume that your clients know what they want or have all
the answers. People hire you to know what will work technically,
but they are also hiring you for your creative skills. Successful
creatives know this and they bring all areas of their expertise to
the table.
Successful creatives take this risk.
One common trait that links photographers who are suc-
cessful is that they show up for themselves.
Do you find that you have no trouble meeting your client’s
needs, but somehow you never meet your own? Do you have
endless ideas but no follow-through? All professionals need to
create marketing campaigns for their businesses. Is yours in
place? Photographers need to shoot constantly in order to
continue to grow their vision. Do you set time aside for your
portfolio build?
Photographers who answer yes are poised to embrace suc-
cess. If you find that one or more of these tasks are still waiting
in the wings for your attention, don’t despair. Experiencing and
getting stuck in despair is the ultimate distraction. Simply get to
work.
One of the most common complaints that I continue to
hear from my clients is, “I have no time. I can’t find the time toCHAPTER6 / CREATINGSUCCESSChapter 06.qxd 6/27/07 9:02 PM Page 41