Productivity is a word that gets thrown around a lot. Due to the countless interpretations of productivity on the internet, it is easy to get confused about its core concept. However, it is an indispensable aspect of being successful at your craft.
With creative outlets like photography, it is sometimes easy to disregard productivity and focus more on being a perfectionist. As satisfying as it may sound, this can be catastrophic for professional photographers that have to deal with deadlines and are on a schedule.
That begs the question: how do you ensure the quality of your work while also being productive?
To answer this question, let us look at a brief definition of productivity. Simply put, it refers to finding workflows and tools that can help you do your job effectively and within a designated time frame.
Two things have the most value within the stock photography business: high-quality material and its effective promotion.
Due to the cut-throat competition within the industry, the worst habit to have as a stock photographer is procrastination. Stop lying to yourself by saying, “I’ll start tomorrow.” You can be more productive today.
Following are some tips that can help you simplify your job and become more productive as a professional photographer.
Get Rid of Distractions
Eliminating unnecessary distractions is perhaps the simplest way to boost your productivity. In this regard, a solid first step is to draw up a rough schedule of the activities involved in your average day.
That will help you visualize how much time you spend on futile activities like scrolling different social media platforms. Once you have identified various distraction outlets in your daily routine, it is easier to eliminate them.
Having said this, you must ensure that you prioritize different areas of your business in order of importance. If you are an active stock photographer, you likely spend the better half of your day on professional commitments like shooting, editing, marketing, accounting, in-meetings or cold calling, etc.
The productivity lesson here is for you to manage your time between different areas. You can not spend most of your day editing images while completely neglecting the marketing aspect of the business. That will only hurt your business in the long term instead of helping it prosper.
Remember that all aspects of the photography business are equally important. Therefore, you must be aware of how much time you allocate to each of these aspects. If you are having difficulty juggling your professional responsibilities, it might be a good idea to utilize a management tool for photographers online.
This way, you can keep track of all your ongoing commitments and how much time you need to spend on each of them.
Share Additional Responsibilities
As you keep on climbing the ladder in your professional photography career, you will face an increasing workload. Your packed schedule might not allow you to carry out all the tasks on your own. After all, you are only one person with a finite number of hours in a day.
That is where outsourcing can come in handy. For example, if you want to free up more time in your schedule to shoot and create new content, you can source out your editing work.
If you are at a point in your career where you are looking to expand your operations, the next logical step is to hire a personal assistant. A full-time associate can help you manage your workspace, create a photo book, make a working schedule, look after small tasks like travel bookings, etc.
Adopt a Goal-Oriented Approach
A tried and tested method of improving productivity is to set small goals for yourself. Similarly, you should define short-term goals for your business and work towards achieving them. The idea behind setting goals is to inculcate a sense of motivation and accountability.
Furthermore, the mere act of achieving one of these goals gives you a sense of achievement and drives you to do more.
Always Have a Backup Plan
You must have heard of the saying, “Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.” That is the mindset you need to have while running your own business. Whenever you set out to start a new project, try to consider all the possible outcomes.
It will help you deal with failures more effectively without getting bogged down. The trick is to have both a Plan-A and a Plan-B so that you can resort to the alternative plan in case things go south.
So there you have it! It is essential to realize that being a successful photographer requires a lot more than capturing the perfect shot. These few tips and tricks can help you keep focused, motivated and productive.
