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| "Moody Blues" 18 x 14 oil on canvas |
My son, Sidney, had a curious and active mind. Most of his teachers appreciated
this, but some of them didn’t. He was a wiggly and energetic child who could
get into mischief unless his exuberance was channeled.
As a mother,
I answered his endless questions, provided him with library books and special activities
that gave him plenty of exercise. He also needed enough freedom to explore, but
definite parameters so he didn’t endanger himself or others.
One day I
heard sirens blasting through our quiet neighborhood. Not seeing a fire truck,
I whispered a "Thank you, Lord" that it wasn’t on my street. It was some time later
before I discovered just how close that emergency vehicle had come.
No sooner had
I wiped the relief sweat from my forehead than the telephone rang. It was the
mother of Sid’s friend saying my son had used their laundry chute as a slide and gotten his leg bent under him. He was stuck solid in the middle where they
couldn’t reach him so she'd called 911 and a fire engine had come to the rescue
Not only did the
firemen disassemble the laundry chute, but they hung around long enough to calm
the panicked boys and give them a lesson on safety.
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| "Beach Buddies" 16 x 20 mixed media on canvas |
We’re all
guilty of putting ourselves in a tight spot when we’re in a time crunch.
Sometimes, like my son, we take too many risks or we’re simply in the wrong place at the
wrong time. There’s only one way out of messes like that. Change the terms or
the conditions. If that’s not possible, make the best of working with what we have.
If you’re
stuck with an impossible deadline, explain to your buyer why it is impossible
to meet it. If you wait until the deadline passes and then break the news,
you’re likely to come across as someone who can’t keep their word, or worse
undependable. If you break it to them early on, you may save face and regain
their confidence.
Know your
client. If this is a person you’ve never worked with before, do your homework.
Ask as many questions as possible to determine their preferences and what they
expect. If you’re commissioned to do a watercolor portrait, explain to them
that there is very little room for alterations. Oil is malleable and,
therefore, much easier to change or manipulate. Giving the customer periodic
“sneak-previews” is also a way to nip dissatisfaction in the bud.
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| "Day Dreams" 11 x 14 oil on canvas |
If you’re
afraid to give the client too much say (or control), especially in the
beginning; you may have to pay later. Remember how difficult it is to put on
your clothes after taking a hot shower, especially in the summer when you’re as
wet after your bath as you were before?
If you’re a
woman, it’s almost impossible to squeeze your damp body into a girdle or that
pair of skinny jeans. How many times have you flopped back on the bed to
flatten your tummy and zip up the flap? That’s how a client may feel if pushed into a corner (or up a tree) and they have no say over what happens to their money
which is essentially how they view “your baby.”
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| "Hey, Coconut, Mon!" mixed media on canvas |
You see the
project as your livelihood, your inspiration, your creation. But unless you
bring your buyer along with you and help them see your vision, you may end up
in a tight place trying to get a frustrated customer to pay for your work.
No doubt,
there are unreasonable people who make too many demands. There are times when
you have to sacrifice quality to please someone else’s vanity or ego. Just make
sure you don’t sacrifice a future client because of yours.
