It is a pleasure doing business with you: Changing your photography mindset from scared to successful
Image by:@kylejglenn
It's my pleasure to share this post with you, spreading a message of positivity and success.
What if I opened this post with something else?
I’m always worried about how a new blog post will be received by my audience. I hope you guys like this.
These 2 sentences carry VERY different energy. Which energy do you think is best for nurturing and protecting a good mindset?
The impostor, and negative or toxic thoughts of not being good enough plague many photographers. Too many. There is something terrifying about being vulnerable and putting yourself out there. Feelings of anxiety and fear are normal as they are signals that whatever you are anxious and fearful about is something that means a lot to you. Or, you wouldn’t feel that way. And that means that you must watch the line of when these feelings start interfering with your dreams. At that point, they need to be addressed. How can we do this? One way is with our words.
Read this post about a one-word swap that can help revolutionize how you approach your photography business.
The money factor especially seems to trigger our feelings of fear, doubt and anxiety. But, the money is what allows you to give the gift of your great work to clients.
If you weren't paid for your photography sufficiently to live, you would be forced to find work elsewhere, which would interfere in a small way or in a total way of you being a photographer. Is that a better alternative?
When we’re dealing with the photography piece, we’re usually excited and enthusiastic with our clients. On our website we talk about being their photography bff, we tell them our sessions are friendly and fun. In consult, we might talk about amazing locations, learn about their family, discuss wardrobe, hair & makeup. The energy is usually upbeat. And then when the conversation turns into booking and money exchange, it’s like someone just tossed a wet blanket over top of your head. The energy level might deflate as your anxiety turns up, with talk about money and invoicing.
The 3-step mindset shift
The Price Inquiry
When you communicate your price (usually in an email), incorporate how pleased you are to have the opportunity to quote the business. This would include a thank you, and positive language around the release of price or price guide: “Thank you for the opportunity to provide a quotation for photography services. Please find….(quote attached, link to pricing)”
What this does is frame the experience in a positive way directly from the start and gives you a confidence boost. There are so many negative messages that are probably pushing into your brain as you read a new inquiry from a potential client. Will they think my prices are too high? Will they think I’m greedy? Am I good enough? Who the hell do I think I am? Will I get the work - I’m desperate for money! Writing a positive and uplifting response counteracts all of that negative thought, and we need a solid counter-strategy in order for us to be able to move ahead and book work.
Sending the invoice
Once a client confirms booking, instead of breaking into a sweat, panicking or allowing your impostor to criticize, include this sentence into your invoice email :
"It is my pleasure to send over this invoice to book your session."
Because it is, right?
You can add whatever else feels natural and makes sense in terms of booking. This opener not only assures a client that they are working with someone who is grateful and welcoming of their business (which imparts positive energy), it boosts your confidence that an invoice is nothing to panic about and actually something to celebrate.
It's called pride of purchase. When you are able to purchase something you wanted, you walked away with pleasure of spending that money in order to receive that product, and the company from whom you bought has the pleasure of using those dollars to continue being able to produce the product(s) you loved buying.
Celebrating the Win
Once you have sent off this invoice and the client (happily) paid it with pride of purchase, then write them a Money Love Note to continue the good energy around the transaction.
Our business — our life’s work — is too important to allow runaway feelings from preventing success. We must use the tools at our disposal to keep faithfully to our goals, and that means some self-work. You may feel that doing the process above feels empty and disingenuous at first, and that’s because your impostor is whispering in your ear that it’s all just words and means nothing, and what right do you have to be successful?
But don’t give up when push comes to shove. Give a feisty little push back! We must start to challenge the negative mindset and when we do with an exercise such as the one I’m recommending here, it pokes back until the impostor starts to back off. You don’t have to believe the words at first but the magic is in consistency - keep doing it with every client and it may surprise you how one day you will read what you’ve written to a client and realize that you wholeheartedly BELIEVE it. That it was a pleasure serving them - and a pleasure to receive compensation for it. Because it absolutely was.
Linking the other pillars
We feel impostor in our body though tension. When doing the 3-step mindset shift, breathe deeply to calm your nervous system to align with the positive message of what you’re sending to the client.
Create this process and others like it and make it an official part of your business. For example, create a client checklist and include things like “send them an uplifting and beautiful reminder of their session 2 days before the schedule. Stay in a place of shine, sparkle and love at all times!
The energy of your brand buzzes in your marketing, on social media, in your website. Call to mind your brand promises when crafting these emails to your client to stay “in character” and not allow negative feelings to break brand energy - your clients CAN feel it.
Listen to your intuition when it correct you from negative thoughts, because it does! Intuition is messages from our source, our overarching life energy and this energy wants you to succeed! We often allow our impostor to supersede our intuition but here is also a feisty push back. Quiet the negative thoughts through prayer, meditation or journalling and let the good come in!
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