"Great things in business are never done by one person. They are done by a team of people." Steve Jobs I shared the quote above earlier in the week on Twitter, but the more I've looked at it, the more significant it's become.
While photograph by itself is an individual contribution left to the vision of the artist, building a business around imaging is a team sport. You simply can't do it alone. For many of you who are solo artists, that might seem like an insurmountable challenge, but it just takes a little focus. You might be a one person operation, but you do have a team you need to focus on to get the job done.
Here's the bottom line - sure you can run a business and be a solo act, but your creativity is going to be stifled by the operational workload. Your time is going to be absorbed by tasks you could delegate. Before you know it, your dreams are going to, one by one, move to the back burner because of the pressure of being alone. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Even if you're just starting out, there are potential team members out there if you just take the time to think about your goals and the people in your network. And yes, I'm one of them - if I can help you know where to find me!
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The year the image was captured is 1936, but pay attention - the image really came to life in 1992. Look closely at the image and you'll see every face is the same!
It was my Dad's 70th birthday and we were planning a big party. We had some fun with his invitation talking about how he's always been our "one man band." I was with Hasselblad at the time and Rudy Guttosch was our "Electronic Imaging Manager," which is kind of funny, because Hasselblad didn't really have much of a product line. Today Rudy is Vice - President of Foveon. At the time, nobody in the office new much about Photoshop, except Rudy. He worked on the image for us and it became a family classic. Dad never stopped laughing when he'd look at the image. He's the trumpet player in the middle with the v-neck sweater vest. Throwback Thursday for me is a fun time to share old stories about the industry and images, but for you as a professional photographer, it's the perfect time to remind your readers of the value of old images. Use throwback images to remind your target audience the clock is ticking, and their memories need to be captured, so they can be savored later on! Happy Throwback Thursday! At a time when virtually all of us are tired of the senseless banter back and forth between our two presidential candidates, here's a voter with a sense of humor. We were out for a ride with friends in Ohio when I slammed on the brakes to back up and get this shot in a local resident's front yard.
Who saves these things? Answer: at least one person in Geneva, Ohio! One of the best benefits of the Internet is how small the world has become. The Internet gives us a level of reach that a few years back only a newspaper or magazine might have had. Every day we have an opportunity to interact with hundreds of people, build new friendships and share experiences in business, or for that matter just life!
Meet John Paul Aguiar. I "met" John Paul on Twitter. I liked a few of the links he was sharing, which led to a few retweets, phone calls and eventually this podcast. The fun of talking with John Paul was bringing his expertise on blogging and social media into our world of imaging. His life is outside photography, but he's directly involved in the challenges of running a business. I've written a lot about the potential your blog has to expand your reach and build brand awareness. In this new podcast John Paul and I talk about some of those key components. Check out more of his expertise with a visit to his Twitter page. He's giving away thirty minutes of coaching support. For many of you this might just be the spark you need to get your blog on track. Remember, your website is about what you sell, but your blog is about what's in your heart! Put the two of them together and you've got an incredible combination to build your reputation and a stronger business! It’s Sunday morning, but unlike my usual Sunday Morning Reflections, we’re out of town for a few days visiting friends in Ohio. The house is quiet as everybody is just starting to wake up. Usually, just a short time before I start typing, I’ll be thinking about something to write about, and then, like the light bulb over the head of a cartoon character, I’ll get an idea. Well, here’s what popped into my head this morning. I was thinking about the “social” in social media, but not in the way most of you use it, but in how, simply because I’m an old fart, I’ve got my personal technique. While texting, email, Facebook and Twitter are important in my life these days, the real hero is that 1876 invention called the phone! Here are two perfect examples from this past week: I shared a post earlier in the week with an incredibly powerful video about Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep by Jennifer Denton. I can’t imagine a tougher assignment than what NILMDTS volunteers do and how they give back. In fact, each one of them makes me proud to be a part of this industry, let alone my role as one of their ambassadors. So, while most of you would simply write somebody a quick email, I wanted to call Jennifer directly and just say, “Nice job – thank you!” She wasn’t there, but I got to leave a voicemail. I wasn’t expecting a response, but she called me a few hours later, and we talked about her role and helping families through the grieving process. On another day last week, I recorded a new podcast with John Paul Aguiar. I met John Paul through Twitter when I started to RT his tweets. A few months ago, I tracked him down and called him – there it is, that 1876 invention again! Before we started recording, we had a great little conversation about blogging and what we were going to talk about during the podcast. * poof * Another new friendship kicked off, and there’s no doubt in my mind we’ll stay in touch. Here’s my point this morning. Just being active in social media through your keyboard holds you back from one of the best things about it – your ability to meet and get to know new people. For me, the Internet is a just a gateway for something much bigger, our ability to share and communicate with each other directly. The toughest way in the world to “talk” is via the printed word. It doesn’t pick up your personality, and you learn nothing about the person you’re “talking” to. It’s perfect for staying in touch with people you know and even good to open the door with new acquaintances but if you want to add a few building blocks to the foundation of your friendships, then start dialing. At a time when today’s kids have lost the art of conversation to texting, IMs, and email, just give me a phone. And, for those of you who just rolled your eyes because you don’t have the time to talk to somebody in person, here’s a thought. You don’t have the time NOT to! Wishing everybody a wonderful Sunday, and a day filled with great friendships. We’re with terrific friends who I’ve written about in the past. They’ve got a sign on their living room wall that says it all, Here’s to the nights that turned into mornings with the friends that turned into family. Happy Sunday everybody! And to Jennifer and John Paul, two new friends, thanks for answering your phones. Intro by Skip Cohen
Community involvement and giving back are probably two of my most favorite topics to write about. It's so important for every business to find ways to give back to the community. Why? Because people like buying products from companies who do more than just sell and provide services. Years ago I heard Jay Conrad Levinson speak at a PPA conference. He's known as the "Father of Guerilla Marketing" and in fact is the one who coined the expression. In his top one hundred things guerilla marketers need to do was give back to the community. Well, I'm normally always writing about it from a photographer's perspective as a small business owner, but X-Rite Photo & Video just launched an October program that takes the concept one step further. I'm pretty proud to have them as an SCU partner, because of their never-ending focus on education with the variety of topics regularly addressed with their FREE webinars. They help photographers raise the bar on the quality of their images and business every day. But here's a program to share with the entire community and it kicks off this morning with Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Just click on the "Calibrate for the Cure" products above to find how you can help and pick up your own Limited Edition PINK ColorMunki Display or ColorChecker and put 20% of your purchase back into the Breast Cancer Research Foundations's funding! |
Our Partners"Why?"Check out "Why?" one of the most popular features on the SCU Blog. It's a very simple concept - one image, one artist and one short sound bite. Each artist shares what makes the image one of their most favorite. We're over 100 artists featured since the project started. Click on the link above and you can scroll through all of the episodes to date.
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