Six Thoughts for Better Cash Flow Being in business for yourself can make cash flow difficult. Slow paying clients or a few slow months can throw off everything if you don’t plan well. Here are six important thoughts to healthier finances. Set aside working capital. Working capital is what it takes to run your business, which includes paying yourself. Live like a starving artist until you have at least 6 months saved. Shit happens – accidents, fires,…
We all make new promises to ourselves each year and most are broken by the end of January. Promises tend to focus on being better at something (e.g physical shape, better communicator, better at marketing or to be more open to new ideas or styles). Some of the terms we use in our resolutions doom us to failure from the time we utter them. Like, “I plan on being more spontaneous!” Oops. You just blew…
Yes, we creative types are a bit bipolar in the area of confidence, so staying inspired can be constant a struggle. Here are three simple concepts to keep your inspiration fires burning: Your value is not less because someone fails to see it. It’s hard to do, but we can’t let our happiness hinge on the feedback of others. You may not get the excited feedback you want from every job. Try not to let…
Tony and Joe are two of my best friends. They get me and I get them. We’re also working together in motion to further our abilities and businesses. We’ve done many paying jobs together and spent hundreds of hours testing and creating pieces to help build our reel. First of all, we work very well together. We respect each other and work hard to compliment each other and equally contribute to the team. We practice…
Years ago, an ASMP chapter (Dallas, I think) coordinated a show of projected member images with the theme “what five images do you want to be remembered for, when all is said and done?” The show was hosted in a funeral home with a live piano player. Yes, a bit dark, but they were surprised by the image choices each member made – personal images that only that photographer knew mattered. Much of the work…
I treat Labor Day more like New Year’s Day than January 1st. Each Fall, throughout our lives, we’ve been conditioned to start new school years. At summer’s end, we would enter a new grade with new ideas and information. We’d meet new people and establish new relationships. I’ve been out of school for a long time, but I still get a surge of new energy each Fall. For me, it’s the start of the Business…
She loves you, but she doesn’t want to hurt your feelings. And, even if she does have a good eye, she’s not who you ask for an objective review. And that goes for friends and other family members. Don’t ask them to review your work either. And, don’t ask your clients for a critique of your portfolio. You don’t want them looking for ways to find fault with your work. When you show your work,…
What does that prospective client want? Why? Who is it that they need to reach? Why now? What’s most important? Is this their project/idea? Are they passionate about the outcome? Are they trying to please their boss? Is there a tight deadline? How important is this to them and their business? Etc… Its not always about price. Money matters, but there are parts of the job or process that are extremely important to the client,…
Three tips to make your interviews stronger: Know what you want your subject to say and ask the questions to get them to say it. Sounds simple, but if you’re asking general questions and letting them talk, then your editing time is going to be a nightmare. Allow for discovery, but know which key topics your subject needs to cover and make sure they say it. As they answer, imagine editing each comment. if you…
Aha moments can slap you up side the head when you least expect it. You can’t plan an aha moment, but you can put yourself in the right place or frame of mind to have one. I tend to get them when I’m challenged, either by a situation or by the people around me. The moments tend to come by listening and being open to having them. And, quite often, the more vulnerable I am,…