You have to jump first

In 2019, I encountered two old college classmates selling art in Los Angeles. 

I remember one of them used to sell t-shirts on the walk on Fridays at school. The shirts were cool. They were kind of expensive. They were a little esoteric. He didn’t make a lot of money doing it. 

The other one used to create simple sketches for her Instagram. They were cute and interesting. She sold a few prints. She didn’t make a lot of money doing it. 

I hadn’t seen them for more than three years when I ran into them separately in 2019. They were both doing quite well. They were both selling their paintings for thousands and thousands of dollars. They both had commissions from wealthy buyers, and were working hard to keep up with demand. Every artist’s dream.

So what changed?

After talking with them, I realized they both had a similar approach. They both rented studios. They both were working with large canvasses, over five feet tall. They both used expensive, rare materials (one of them incorporated 24 karat gold flakes in her paintings). They both curated their public image tastefully. 

This forced them to sell in an entirely different category than before. 

I’m all about slow incremental growth, especially for the important things in life. Things like health, fitness, finances, friendships, or faith? These all take commitment over the long haul, and slow growth. 

But sometimes, you have to take the leap. 

That’s what my artist friends did. 

They realized that slow growth wasn’t going to get them where they wanted to go. They realized that selling prints and shirts for under $100 wasn’t going to find them the clientele they hoped for. They realized that the work they truly wanted to make…wasn’t cheap. 

Is this a lesson you can learn? Is there an area in your business that would benefit from a big leap? Is there an opportunity that needs a risky investment on your part? Could that be worth it? 

It’s tough to get a cheap client to slowly pay more and more. It’s tough to catch the eye of big budget clients with cheap work. 

Sometimes, you have to be the one to jump first.