Tired of trying

JAB123_2

I wanted to add that I have a total passion for what i do - i'm a photographer and there is a book coming out in june here in scotland with the best of my work. I am trying to create something that will sustain a family for the next 30 years that i feel i have a passion for - i go to extreme lengths to get a picture, to the extent that i will climb a mounatin in the pitch black in the middle of winter just to get a picture that will make people stand back and get something from it.
My problem is i'm not a business man i'm a photographer, does anyone know of any organisation, person that can help me?, i do need help and desperatly, everyone posting a reply sound like really nice people and i have to admit this is the first time i've ever come onto a forum and i'm stunned by the kind words people are coming out with. Thank you all very much, i appreciate every word.

sleepless_saver

Have you thought about a business mentor - someone in business who understands the problems and who you can bounce ideas off?

curls

Hi,
Would it be possible to scale down your own business for the time being, and get another part-time job? (so as the saying goes, all your eggs aren't in one basket). Build up your own business gradually and go full-time with it once it is established.
All the best, curls

hollydays

Coming from the perspective of someone who is not a financial expert,but has run a smaller business,two positive ideas strike me reading your post.You are passionate,but identify you need more skills in business.Get yourself on a marketing course.You could focus on thinking up a brilliant bit of Pr to publicise your forthcoming book,to raise your profile (think Max Clifford and"Freddy Starr ate my Hamster".A former colleague who frequently had competitors complaining, how come he always got mentioned in the Press,Told me it was something he worked hard on.HE always kept on eye on the news for anything topical,and then sent press releases to the magazines and papers,this is very easy work for them,but you need an angle.Also,if ever you are featured,write a very nice thank you to the person concerned.I have been told,they love this,as people very rarely thank them-and they will remember you.Hope this gives you something positive to focus on.

JAB123_2

curls wrote:

Hi,
Would it be possible to scale down your own business for the time being, and get another part-time job? (so as the saying goes, all your eggs aren't in one basket). Build up your own business gradually and go full-time with it once it is established.
All the best, curls

I'm giving it serious consideration, my wife wants me to do this, but i have an issue in that if i go part time then i can't focus my energies on growing the business as effectively as i would like, i have registered with a couple of temping agenices but alas nothing has come of it.

JAB123_2

hollydays wrote:

Coming from the perspective of someone who is not a financial expert,but has run a smaller business,two positive ideas strike me reading your post.You are passionate,but identify you need more skills in business.Get yourself on a marketing course.You could focus on thinking up a brilliant bit of Pr to publicise your forthcoming book,to raise your profile (think Max Clifford and"Freddy Starr ate my Hamster".A former colleague who frequently had competitors complaining, how come he always got mentioned in the Press,Told me it was something he worked hard on.HE always kept on eye on the news for anything topical,and then sent press releases to the magazines and papers,this is very easy work for them,but you need an angle.Also,if ever you are featured,write a very nice thank you to the person concerned.I have been told,they love this,as people very rarely thank them-and they will remember you.Hope this gives you something positive to focus on.

Someone else in passing mentioned the same, but i need to bounce ideas of people, i did want to do an exhibition near the britannia due to the toursit numbers but i was put of by two things - the cost and that i couldn't find a sponsor willing to carry the expense of it.
The publisher has managed to get an intial agreement with a couple of local papers to put in a feature and a couple of the top notch pics from the book. I'm seeing the publisher later on today and i'll see if they have any ideas which could help, they might be able to get me into the edinburgh book festival. I'll put my thinking cap on, thank you, i'll dig out that heavy marketing textbook and see if i can get any ideas.

calleyw

You do know there is a Small Biz & Charity Organisers MoneySaving board on this forum. See here

They will be more help on the business front of things.

I can see both sides of the coin.

You want to grow and she wants security. No matter what she is going to inhert in the future. There is the possible pain and heartache of losing your home if you secure more finance against it and the business fails.

This is very rude of me to ask. But you do have a plan of how to pay back the finance of 20K already secured against the house if the business fails. If the answer is to sell the house. Then I totally with your wife on this. I would go mad and would not want to loose my home.

You are walking a very fine line and as I said before need to balance business and home life.

I wish you all the best and hope everything works out for you. As you seem to have passion and drive and the skills.

Yours


Calley

JAB123_2

calleyw wrote:

You do know there is a Small Biz & Charity Organisers MoneySaving board on this forum. See here

They will be more help on the business front of things.

I can see both sides of the coin.

You want to grow and she wants security. No matter what she is going to inhert in the future. There is the possible pain and heartache of losing your home if you secure more finance against it and the business fails.

This is very rude of me to ask. But you do have a plan of how to pay back the finance of 20K already secured against the house if the business fails. If the answer is to sell the house. Then I totally with your wife on this. I would go mad and would not want to loose my home.

You are walking a very fine line and as I said before need to balance business and home life.

I wish you all the best and hope everything works out for you. As you seem to have passion and drive and the skills.

Yours


Calley

In terms of the house it's got an additional £50k in equity over an above the £20k security, we would look to either re-mortgage or move to a smaller house. Either way it's not good and i am getting depressed a little every time i think about it.

You are right in that i need to balance my life a bit, it is very hard sometimes to just switch of, as it does affect my wife and she worries. If we have to move as a result of my failure then i really don't know how i could live with that -it could potentially destroy our marriage and then where would we be,me bankrupt and diovorced before i'm 35.

I've taken the advice of here and am about to get involved with a local business mentoring scheme, i'm also going to look into the possibilty of getting a business partner in to fill the skills gap i have, does this sound like a good way to go?.

JAB123_2

I've put a thread on the new board - thanks for directing me.

sleepless_saver

JAB123 wrote:

You are right in that i need to balance my life a bit, it is very hard sometimes to just switch of, as it does affect my wife and she worries. If we have to move as a result of my failure then i really don't know how i could live with that -it could potentially destroy our marriage and then where would we be,me bankrupt and diovorced before i'm 35.

Best of luck, jab123. FWIW I reckon you have a head start in making this work out as you recognise what the risks are and so are well on the way to making the balance work. I really admire your commitment and honesty.