EP 57: Whether we are aware of it or not, we often abide by conventional wisdom for lighting. A softbox is used for portraits, a beauty dish for beauty, a reflector for contrast. But is following these formulas really what...
π― π― π― "In order to manage your business with as much ease as possible, you need to be practiced in a broader concept of finance, which is to separate your personal money from your business money."
π― π― π― "learn how to write an article, learn how to interview people learn how to be an editor, and determine what the publication needs photographically versus just seeing it from the photographer's vantage point."
π―π―π―"Visualize how seriously some photographers prioritize their relationships, you should take that part of the process and apply it to your business."
π― π― π― "As a freelancer, no one else is going to willingly increase your rates. The only person that has the power to do that is you."
π― π― π― "When your costs go up and your client work goes down, you want to do the best that you can to maximize your time efficiency."
π― π― π― "gratitude, truth be told is not innate. It isn't something that you're born with, it's a learned behavior. And I think that surprises people when you tell them that, but that is why gratitude must be practiced."
π― π― π― "If you're living rent free, you have this rare opportunity to kill off debt so much faster than the average working professional who has five times a living expenses as you do."
π―π―π― "Is your photography improving? Is your understanding of backend business getting more advanced? Are you working well with people? If the answer is yes, then don't give up on that. When you have a good process, trust that process."
π― π― π― "We as a community are really way too quick to spend 1000s and 1000s of dollars on equipment and not a penny on marketing."
π― π― π― "Don't overpay in taxes. Keep what is yours. Learn how deductions can help reduce your taxable income, it is one of the most powerful tools at your disposal."
π― π― π― "It's not about the gear at all in any way. No one's gonna hire you because you had a 600, no one's gonna hire you because you have a phase one, but both those you can rent, β¦
π― π― π― "you're not just an employee, but the business owner as well. So naturally, you're going to be responsible for 100% of your Social Security and Medicare costs, as opposed to just fronting 50%."
π― π― π― "a credit score is a numerical measurement of risk that a borrower poses to a lender, basically, it's an indication of how likely you are to repay a loan on time. The higher number that you have, β¦
π― π― π― "There are over 1 billion Instagram accounts, there are over 600 million blogs, and over 37 million YouTube channels, all of which are growing each and every day. You know how many podcasts are out there? Under β¦
π― π― π― "By splitting your money so that your emergency fund is on its own, you allow the ability for that fund to stay disciplined for such a rainy day disaster, as well as amplify your ability to contribute β¦
π―π―π―"Just because you play a lot of golf doesn't mean you're inherently good at it. If experience truly equated to success, then everyone who has worked for somebody else would have gotten multiple promotions, multiple raises just based on the β¦
π― π― π― ""As a freelancer, I don't get the guarantee of work. I don't get company gear, I don't get a 401k, I don't get health benefits. So what do I get? I get the copyright to my work. β¦
π― π― π― "having a mentality of seeking out Win Win scenarios puts you in a great position to build empathy with your lead and come up with a brand new client"
π― π― π― "Good professionals study their business, they research their business, they get feedback on it, they test strategies, retest strategies, and they adjust when they fail."
π―π―π― "My obligation is to be straight with my partner. This is how you develop trust. If you hold things back from your partner, and you mess up, you're not getting that trust back very easily. mistakes can be forgiven β¦
π― π― π― "If they can advise me on how to do my job just a little bit better, than they will naturally feel a little bit more open to suggestions that I might make as well, which then leads β¦
π― π― π― "your client is trusting you so much that they'd rather fly you out instead of hiring someone local. So by understanding how to manage all this travel minutia, you can maintain focus on the job at hand, β¦
π― π― π― "If you currently participate in any email marketing in the United States, or plan on it down the road, you need to be aware of a law called the can spam act of 2003."
π― π― π― "I don't believe that 'fake it till you make it' thing. I don't believe in that. You do have to believe in your work and yourself. But for those starting out with a marketing plan, you've got β¦
π― π― π― "If you reduce your physical clutter, you can manufacture more space. If you reduce your professional clutter, you can manufacture more time. And if you reduce your personal clutter, you can manufacture more energy."
π― π― π― "Every time I've gone into a setting, thinking about connection, I've come away with a richer experience, I've been able to find common ground faster, create more unique conversations, and even show my personality and sense of β¦
π― π― π― "To me succeeding at any type of social media comes down to three basic principles, value, engagement, and consistency. If you are not providing these three elements, it may not matter at all what platforms you end β¦
π― π― π― "I want you to define what makes something affordable for your business so that you can make decisions that are based on actual budgetary capacity and not emotional ones."
π―π―π― "The overarching principle that I subscribe to is that your bio your about page, it shouldn't just be about you, it should actually be about the person reading it."
π― π― π― "So the IRS states that your hobby turns into a business, when you start trying to earn money. a legitimate business has the primary purpose of income or profit."
π― π― π― "There is a fundamental misconception people face when starting their own business, one that is actually so pervasive and flawed that it kills almost all businesses within the first few years of its launch. Whether you're a β¦
π― π― π― If you're going to be a professional freelancer, you will encounter jobs that are going to require you to front production costs or travel expenses before you get paid. So having this cash flow in your favor β¦
π― π― π― "It actually makes the most sense to start visualizing the word profit as an accounting term, as opposed to actual money. In fact, your books, your financial records, they're actually going to recognize profit when an invoice β¦
π― π― π― "If you want to be a very efficient ninja with your workflow, to do things as fast as possible like a sports photographer on Super Bowl Sunday, the key is kind of doing a little bit of β¦
π―π―π― "If you never learn anything about creative fees, intellectual property licensing or amending contracts for the rest of time, but you consistently do these reactions, you will set yourself up for tremendous success as your talent and experience grows."
π―π―π― "Having that list of clients you'd like to work with gives you a visual frame of reference from where you are currently, to where you want to go. Think of it as your roadmap."
π―π―π― "If our entire retirement and economic freedom is left up to our decision making and our self-discipline, only, then we will inherently fail, we will never build up savings, we will never contribute to retirement, and we will be β¦
π―π―π― "If we're going to talk about the aspects that encompass what it means to be a creative entrepreneur, then part of that is talking about things like anxiety, depression, feelings of inadequacy, or loneliness. I mean, to me, they β¦
π―π―π― "Commercial and editorial photography is determined by its use, not by its process and not by its publication. It doesn't matter how it was shot, or lit, or whether it was journalistic or not. It doesn't matter if it's β¦
π―π―π― βLeonardo da Vinci says that βcolor is the children of lightβ, which I found beautiful. You could assign any emotion that you wanted to color. There are no rules to say that red is powerful, or blue is this β¦
π―π―π― "If you are frustrated with how low you're pricing yourself, start here, start presenting yourself as an intellectual property business, and not just a contractor business."
π―π―π― βAn imperfect portfolio that is pitched will be infinitely more successful than the perfect portfolio that's never shown to anyone" James Patrick
π―π―π― "I've worked in sports for years on some level or another. I've never hit a home run in my life so it's like, that's the average person. I love photography. I had no desire ever in my life to β¦
π―π―π― βI need to shout out my whole team, like our whole team; the Bucs photo team, the creative team, the behind the scenes stuff, like we've been saying, there's so many people that have helped me get here and β¦
π―π―π― "What makes great artists great isn't always unteachable genius. It's simply the habitual nature of being proactive."
π―π―π― βYouβve got to be proactive. Instagram is great, but you can't just post nice photos and expect people to just come flocking to you, that doesn't happen. I don't passively market." Tri Nguyen
π―π―π― "I feel like right now, more than ever, with this pandemic, people are having a hard time feeling like they know where they belong, especially in their role. And in sports photography, with restrictions on events being tighter, there's β¦
π―π―π― βGetting to know the clients is one of the more important things just because they feel like you're invested in them. I think anyone wants to feel special. And that's what I'm here for.β - Kelly Aoki
π―π―π― "If this is your first point of communication with a potential client, make it a good impression. Be detailed, be brief, be quick."