F.E.A.R.

“Everything you want is on the other side of fear.” 
                                                                       ~Jack Canfield

Letting FEAR make its own plans (for you) is an easy pitfall for all of us, especially with the turbulence in our country right now.

When I say FEAR, I prsonally think of it as “FALSE EVIDENCE ALTERING REALITY.” 

We have been in a turbulent and unsure time over the last two years. If you have been in this business for awhile and think back, turbulence has always been around at different levels of intensity. It comes...but it always goes!

It is NOT NEW!

I remember back in the late 80’s, we were nervous when scanners started to pop up in Walmart, Kmart and other low-cost stores (even grocery stores). We felt that customers would buy a few small prints, take them to these places and scan our work. 

How did we fight this? We created our Relationship Black and White portrait brand. 

The idea was if we attracted the right client who perceived our work as art, they would not scan our work, just as you wouldn’t buy a Monet painting and scan it for copies. 

Looking back, I am proud that we didn’t let FEAR get hold of us and change our course of action, but instead, we looked at the situation and found a solution. 

The next huge wave that caused turbulence was the digital revolution which brought with it an enormous group of new photographers, mostly women. WOW! 

We had a few home studios in our area before this happened, but now, there were so many that we lost count as very few opted for a brick and mortar retail space. 

Parks soon filled up with "photographers" and we started using private areas when we needed to do a location portrait.  

Again, we sat down and thought about what to do to preserve our brand and retain our clients. What made us different? What would be the attraction. At this time and even now, we are different because we are STUDIO SHOOTERS. 

We also realized that we needed to create GAPS. We needed a compelling reason (or several) to have clients continue to come to us and not the many other photographers who seemed to pop up overnight. 

I believe we made the right decision to go "against the grain" by remaining studio shooters, delivering fine art black and white photography to our clients who appreciated our skill and were willing to pay what we were worth.

We became PRINT ARTISTS. We made the decision to sell prints, not files. We wanted to set ourselves apart as "print artists" and not going along with the crowd.

The greatest threat we have is our attitude. 

Tim taught a class long ago and made this statement which I have never forgotten. 

It is this, "FEAR make its own plans." 

The result of listening to FEAR whisper in your ear and acting on it is always a mistake as you will be basing your decisions on faulty information and in panic mode.

So keep on marketing, improving your skills, learning from other experts, listening to the marketplace to stay relevant...and then...make decisions based on good information and not in panic mode! 

FEAR…False Evidence Altering Reality…do you really want FEAR to be in charge? I know we don't!