My wife didn’t know. My parents didn’t know. No one knew.

But I had a secret.

At first, things seemed perfectly normal. Sure, the recession was going full steam, but I had just come off my best year ever, and I was ready to make 2009 even better.

Fate, it seems, wasn’t on the same page…

It was just a trickle, but if you looked, the signs were there. The phone rang a little less. My planner friends stopped calling. Slowly, I went from inquiry town to ghost town, and the inquiries that came in were always about pricing. And forget about meetings. No matter how I asked, no one wanted to come in.

In fact, after I’d send people … Read more...

2013 was a roller coaster ride. There was more advice out there than ever and more questions, as well. The industry continued its march from vintage to Gatsby, as yellow skies from blue channel curves moved on to become VSCO overtones, and more than ever, efficiency and effectiveness ruled the business landscape, as day to day challenges grew, pressures mounted, and staying in business became a business.

As for me, I hit the ground running, I stalled out, got sick for a month, and started to build anew. My shooting season hit me full force, and it came hard, but there was more learning this year than ever before, and I can’t wait to share it.

As I saw empowerment … Read more...

THE SCENE: Walt has ripped off Hey You from Pink Floyd for his high school talent contest. After being discovered, he’s brought in to see the school therapist, Mr Waddles, who confronts him on the issue.

WALT: I felt I could’ve written it.

MR. WADDLES: Okay. But you didn’t. It was written by Roger Waters of Pink Floyd. I think you know that.

WALT: Yes, but I felt I could’ve so the fact that it was already written was kind of a technicality.

From The Squid and The Whale

 

Plagiarism makes no damned sense. Mind you, I’m not talking about absent-mindedly borrowing a quote here or mentioning an idea there. I’m talking about the wholesale … Read more...

Last time, I talked about a marketing solution to clarify your value and increase what you can charge. In the follow-up, we’re heading over to the sales side, and what you can do in-person.

For years, I let my clients walk out the door without ever learning what their real needs were. Is it a wonder I didn’t close well? Because if people aren’t buying, but they’re coming in the door, the odds are something’s not clicking when you meet with them.

As it turns out, it really is the small things. In fact, more times than not, it’s the small things, because those are the things no one shares but that can make or break a deal. You … Read more...

We’ve all been mislead. And it’s hurting us. Sometimes badly.

I blame high school economics. You know what I’m talking about, right? Supply. Demand. That point on those graphs where the two lines cross? They’re telling us that there’s supposed to be a certain price out there that people are willing to pay. Forget that. You can do better. If successful businesses show anything, it’s that what counts is how you rise above that point on a line.

It kills me, when I hear people talk like it’s all about the way the economic winds blow and what the market will support, because there’s so much more you can do. Watch the video to see more.

At 2:37, I’ll tell … Read more...