I’m always inspired when I hear my good friend Simon T. Bailey speak, he has such a natural ability to put things in perspective and encourage others to focus on what’s truly important to you as a person and your business. I love him! One of his favorite anecdotes is about the famed artist Pablo Picasso and it goes a little something like this:

Picasso was eating in a cafe when a woman recognized him and asked him to sketch her a quick picture. Picasso said, “Sure!” and began sketching on a napkin. When he finished he handed it to the woman and said, “That’ll be $50,000.” The woman responded, “Why?! That took you 5 minutes!” and Picasso responded, “No, it took me 50 years.”

I absolutely love this story as it serves as a reminder to know your worth. When meeting with and booking clients it’s so important that we know and are confident in what we have to offer. I hear stories all the time from wedding professionals about clients trying to negotiate prices, change packages, etc. While under certain circumstances that may be perfectly acceptable, it shouldn’t be happening on a frequent basis. If someone doesn’t appreciate our value and our work, then perhaps they’re not the best fit for us. Most of us have spent years getting to where we are – all that time and experience is worth something. If you’re a photographer the bride isn’t just paying you to shoot your special day, she’s paying you for the knowledge you obtained from every other wedding you’ve shot, past mistakes you’ve learned from, conferences you’ve attended and classes you’ve taken. If you’re a planner, floral designer or offer any other kind of service it’s the same idea. Like Picasso, we should be confident in our skills and understand how much it took us to get there. If we know our worth and seek to only work with those who understand our value then we’re free to do what we do best!

Photo by Elizabeth Messina