As I mentioned in an earlier post, ambition will be your greatest asset in developing a successful commercial career. I’d go so far as to say that without being ambitious and even aggressive, you won’t even be able to get your business off the ground. A modest personality can be very pleasant, and it’s always nice to be nice, but if that’s all that you are then you’re simply going to get flattened. There are just too many other photographers out there trying to do the same thing. So how do you manage these volatile traits without going to the dark side?
When I was desperately looking for my first studio in the mid 90’s I saw this need for aggressive action up close. I heard from my former assistant that a space was opening up on the top floor of a great building in TriBeCa. I hustled down there but when I tried get in on the fourth floor to have a look, the door was locked. A voice in my head said, “If you want this, you’re going to have to grab it.” That was a moment when I could have gone home to wait for something to appear in the real estate listings or… I decided to take the elevator back down to the third floor, clamber out onto the fire escape, climb up to the fourth floor and get in through a window. What I found was a dilapidated space with great potential. When I got in touch with the landlord (who was on the second floor of that same building, glad he didn’t catch me on that fire escape!) he asked, “How did you know about this?”. I made something up and soon enough I had my first studio.
What I’m suggesting is cultivating something like “chutzpah”, a word whose broad definition includes ‘obnoxious’. It can be a fine line. Chutzpah will serve you well if carefully managed, especially when it comes from a place of enthusiasm and not of greed. You’ll need to watch yourself - don’t undermine the very success you’re looking for by being insufferable. With all the photographers out there these days, clients don’t need to bother with difficult people. It takes some practice, but if you pay attention you’ll recognize when you’ve crossed the line.
“You never know what is enough unless you know what is more than enough.” - William Blake
Alas, one of the most painful lessons I’ve ever learned is that sometimes it’s possible to be a world class asshole and still have tremendous success. This is a rarity but it does happen. Some photographers are so talented and ambitious that they can get away with things most of us can’t. Apparently, as long as they delivered the goods and only treated the ‘little people’ with contempt, there were loopholes in all those morality tales from childhood. This was so disheartening and disillusioning for me to discover as an assistant it almost sent me packing. Fortunately, I stuck around long enough to learn an even greater lesson; It’s so much better to find success as a photographer without spewing karmic sludge. I promised myself that if I ever made it, I would treat my assistants fairly. In my experience - if you treat people well, they’ll do their job with alacrity. However, if you don’t treat people well you’ll end up burning through assistants, clients… and bridges.
“You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.” - Goethe
Look, making a go of it as a commercial photographer is HARD WORK; long days, tight schedules, lots of competition etc. and it follows that assisting can really suck at times. And photographers, just like everybody else, feel the stress and get cranky. However, there’s a difference between a demanding workplace and a hostile workplace. Hostile is unnecessary while demanding is typical… even with still life studios.
I once actually had an assistant walk out on me during a shoot because they just couldn’t take it. I was booked solid and one particularly tough night - it was around 1 a.m. - my assistant said, in front of the art director, “I feel like I’m wasting my life.” This art director looked at me as if to say, ‘WTF?’ Oddly, I didn't feel any hostility at the time (too tired I suppose?) and sent them home. Based on the paths our careers took, this assistant probably was wasting her life but that wasn’t the time to tell me. Speaking of timing: At some point you’ll likely have to reproach an assistant for screwing up, I’ve found the best way to handle this is to take them aside and be direct. Don’t yell at them in front of everyone - that’s being an asshole.
Your personality and ambition will determine how aggressive you’re willing to be. Keep in mind that aggression is a double edged sword - It can get you what you want or turn sour and push people away. Also, the elbows get sharper the higher you climb - be prepared. For my money, it’s better to begin by cultivating some chutzpah, practice treating people fairly and then you can let your ambition do its thing.
I always enjoy reading these lessons Stephen! And can relate and agree with everything you're writing.
Excellent lesson, and I agree wholeheartedly!