Everything will be fine
I realize what one of my weakest points is: I over-think things. Does everyone do that or do the really successful people in life just go, “Yeah, I’m gonna jump of that bridge” and not worry about what happens when they hit the bottom? Do they assume they won’t hit the bottom? Are really successful people blissfully ignorant when it comes to failure? I’d really like to know.
I suppose the key to success has everything to do with luck, circumstance, and talent. Just like meeting the person you marry, job success has similar right place, right time aspects to it. If {insert actor’s name here} had been sick on the day of their big audition, they wouldn’t have gotten the commercial job which lead to them being discovered which lead to the big movie which lead to the Academy Award. Someone else would have gotten the commercial and might not have been discovered for the big movie which lead to the Academy Award.
Success isn’t just about talent. I look around and I see a jilion other photographers who haven’t made names for themselves but are very good at what they do. I’m pretty good at what I do. No star is born over night. Even in the movie “A Star is Born” Judy Garland had been singing in night clubs for years before she hit it big. She just happened to meet and fall in love with the biggest star in the world who helped her get a camera test. Her talent took it from there. She had the opportunity.
So, without meeting and falling in love with the biggest star in the world, how do you make it big? OK, let’s forget about making it big. How do you make a living? If persistence was all it took, just about everyone I know would be photographing for National Geographic or Vanity Fair. If all it took was talent, every kid at Art Center would be selling their work like hot cakes. Therefore, the likely conclusion is that you must also have opportunity. Yes, we’ve determined that already. So where do you get it? Where do the opportunities live and how do you get your hands on them?
Truth is, you can have all the opportunities in the world, but if people don’t like you, you’re not going anywhere. Conclusion? Success is: Opportunity, talent, personality. I have two out of three. Now to find the opportunities, which seem the most illusive.
I’ve been thinking about personality and how it effects my work. Who am I to my clients and potential clients? While I realize I won’t hit it off with everyone, I also know that I must always be myself. I can do nothing more than that. I see a lot of photographers being really positive and upbeat about the current state of the industry. They also over-emphasize their skills; which I’m not good at. Aside from the insider comments on message boards, most photographers go about their day as if nothing is wrong. Truth is, there is a lot wrong and I worry about it every day. I worry that dumb kids with $50 cameras are making more money than me. I worry that I come off as strange or dorky, but not professional or comforting. I worry that I don’t really know what I’m doing and that by the time I figure it out, I’ll be ready for retirement. I’m worried I don’t have what it takes and that some days, I’m really not even that motivated. I worry that all of these character traits are fine if you’re Andy Warhol or Crispin Glover. I am neither and somehow fall into a category of in-between.
So what if I were to be genuinely honest about how things really are in my business? What if I were to send out my newsletter every month and talk about how it all sucks, that I’m not feeling positive, and that I worry I’m a failure? Would that turn people off? I’m pretty sure if would. Thus, I stay perky. Even when I feel bad, I have to remain confident and as Dry Idea as deodorant: Never let ‘em see you sweat.
Everything will be fine.
UPDATE: About 2 seconds after I posted this, an interesting opportunity came my way. I’ll post more about it when it’s more solidified.
2 Responses to “Everything will be fine”
They take the leap and never worry about the landing. Worry takes up valuable time and energy that is better used being creative.
See? Opportunity presents itself to the prepared. When you’re ready professionally and emotionally, opportunities present themselves. As you can see.
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