A Recommendation Led To An Inquiry But Not A Booking... & That's Okay

I met with the coordinator of our local homeschool graduation to offer my services to the graduates and their families. When you aren't used to school pictures every year, sometimes senior pictures can sneak up on you. I simply asked her if she would recommend me if any of the families asked her about getting their child's picture done. I gave her a few business cards and then waited to see what, if anything, might come of it.

A few weeks went by and she told me she gave one of my cards out. More time passed before I got a call from the mother of one of the graduates. I called her back, we chatted a bit about what she was looking for. I gave her some information and sent her an email with it all in one place.

I never heard back from her.

In some ways, I have negative people-pleaser tendencies. By that I mean, I want to help everyone all the time. At first, I was a little bit disappointed that she didn't contact me back. I had "lost" my first recommendation. But here's the thing - we weren't a fit for each other.

At the graduation ceremony, I specifically looked for his picture to see what they had done, and it's not what I do. I could have done something like it, but the style they wanted and what they were going for was not what I do. I think she looked at my work and saw that.

I am not for everyone. I have a style and a feel to my photos that might not be for some people. In fact, I know it's not. I have several photographer friends on Instagram and there is a wide variety of styles. That's so great! I'm sure there have been and will be people who search for a photographer in my area, find me, and move on because they aren't looking for my style. That's fine.

You might be thinking, "Sarah, this is so obvious" and you'd be right. But because I want to help everyone, this experience was kind of an "ah-ha" moment for me. Thankfully it was not as long and painful as some other lessons I've had to learn regarding people-pleasing!