Do you need a jumpstart or a recharge?

7/21/2016

The greatest way to recharge your battery as an artist is to attend a conference like ShutterFest or the upcoming Project Lunacy. The interaction with great instructors and your peers is invaluable.

However, too many of you do nothing in between conferences. Just like watering and feeding a plant, as hokey as it sounds, you need to feed your soul every day. You need something to help you remember why you’re working so hard. Often it’s as simple as just reading a great quote.

I thought it would be fun to share a few of the ideas that have helped me maintain focus on everything outside my business as well as the daily challenges.

I love reading quotes, especially if they hit home. Also, some of my most favorite quotes have been inspirational in creating new content for my blog. Just wander into Google and type in “Quotes about ________.” Pick anything you want. In seconds you’ll be at the gateway to hundreds of relevant quotes. Here are few of my recent favorites:

“Don’t tell people your dreams, show them!”
Anon
“Breathe. It’s just a bad day, not a bad life.”
Anon
"Unless you try to do something beyond what you already mastered,
you will never grow."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones
at every dog that barks.”
Winston Churchill

Take a scroll through YouTube.com. YouTube is loaded with great videos, but you have to make the effort to find them. Search by photographers you admire. Search by words like “motivational”, even typing in “funny” might get you the chuckle you need for a quick jumpstart. One of my favorite channels is TED Talks – it’s loaded with some of the most powerful presentations in the world.
Looking for business inspiration in short hits – check YouTube search for Sal Cincotta’s “Outside the Softbox”. These are older videos. There are 16 in the series, but the information Sal shares is invaluable and still totally relevant.
Check out the blogs of artists you admire. Also, don’t forget the manufacturers of the products you use. They all have blogs and share regular content, often loaded with inspiration.

There are obviously days when you need more than just something to read, watch or listen to. Make it a point to keep in touch with that inner you. So often you might be approaching burnout and just refuse to see the signs.

The ideal time to give yourself a day off or just a few hours away from the business needs to happen before you crash and burn. Learning to spot the signs of your own burnout is as important a skill set as understanding exposure, lighting, composition, etc.

You’re working hard to build a brand and a business – take whatever time you need, whenever you need it and learn to step away for recess! If you think about it, it wouldn't be a bad idea to go right back to the schedule we had in kindergarten - right down to the little nap on the floor and a chocolate milk in the afternoon! LOL

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"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 coming up on 100 artists featured since the project started. Click on the link above and you can scroll through all of the episodes to date.

Authors

Skip Cohen is President of SCU, founder of Marketing Essentials International and past president of Rangefinder Publishing and WPPI. He's been an active participant in the photographic industry since joining Hasselblad USA in 1987 as president. He has co-authored six books on photography and actively supports dozens of projects each year involving photographic education.