Andrew Niesen

I have been grappling with this issue lately. Can you be a successful entrepreneur and a dedicated artist at the same time?
Can you equally emphasize the quality of your art and the growth of your business?

One of our best friends is a highly successful entrepreneur in the Washington D.C. area. He also happens to be an art history buff who loves businesses that successfully balance a commitment to art & design with a commitment to profitability & growth. Since we were in D.C. this weekend for a wedding, we had a chance to visit him and share some fun conversations.

We talked about Abraham Louis Breguet the famed Parisian watchmaker whose exquisite sense of style created modern watch design. He revolutionized an entire industry through his commitment to uncompromising aesthetic standards and smart business growth. Marie-Antoinette and Louis XVI wore Breguet's watches and he was recently memorialized at Versailles by Swatch Chairman Nicolas G. Hayek.

Here's what Hayek said about Breguet:

I consider a real entrepreneur an artist, a creator. An entrepreneur for me is Picasso, Henry Ford, Beethoven, Breguet. A good entrepreneur is an artist who is always creating something new. They keep innovating with absolutely high standards and high quality — and don't forget beauty, beauty, beauty! An entrepreneur must continually create new products, create jobs and find new markets. He must be continually on the move and prepared to take responsibility for his actions. An entrepreneur has always been and always will be an artist, a creator, and an innovator, who motivates all people around him and creates new wealth and workplaces."

The legacy of Breguet the artist and Breguet the entrepreneur reminds me that art and business are not mutually exclusive. It is indeed possible to excel at both. In fact, the best entrepreneurs are often artists. They view business itself as an art!

Asheville is fantastic! We're here for the ShootQ Set-Up Party, hosted by our friend Corey McNabb.
Corey's studio is filled with vibrant imagery that reflects his vision and his clients' style! We also had a chance to enjoy a great Indian meal at Parker and Missy's favorite spot! It was fun to hang out with Corey, Jill, Parker and Missy for dinner and drinks. Thanks guys for being such wonderful hosts for ShootQ! Photos from our visit in Asheville, courtesy of Corey's blog.

When we arrived at the stunning lodge tonight, we were graciously greeted with champagne, dark chocolates (my favorite!) and a personalized welcome note. We love our clients and the incredible venues they select for their weddings. Subtle details create a remarkable experience. Superlative service = a superlative experience. We can't wait for the wedding tomorrow! Now, I'm off to enjoy the whirlpool tub in our room!

We've heard from many of you this month about ShootQ. Thanks so much for your support! We look forward to seeing you at the ShootQ Set-Up Parties. If you haven't had a chance to sign up, put your name on the list. It's free, but seating is limited.

ShootQ FAQs:

ShootQ is the result of a need LaCour had in our studio. We were struggling to organize our inquiries, keep records of client contact, organize our production/projects, and close sales. So, we designed a database-driven management tool for LaCour. We discovered that our photographer friends really needed this tool, so we began to develop it for multiple users.

ShootQ is designed to make photographers' lives simpler and their studios more profitable by allowing creative people to focus on what they enjoy doing while also allowing them to have more free time. In short, ShootQ is designed to improve your overall quality of life. It does this in three ways:

1) Organization and Efficiency. ShootQ is a tool that is designed to do the tedious work for you -- from filling out contracts and invoices to keeping track of sales leads.
2) Community. You can share leads with other photographers who use ShootQ. If you're booked already, share the wealth with a friend! ShootQ will foster true collaborative community -- we'll train photographers at ShootQ Setup Parties to use the software. We always want an experienced ShootQ user to be just one phone call away.
3) Understanding your studio inside-and-out. You amass a lot of data by using ShootQ, why not analyze it so you understand your business more fully? We designed ShootQ so that you will be able to analyze product and package profitability, referral sources, and to record vendors you've worked with for future marketing efforts. This functionality will be available in the near future.

Click here to watch a video demo.

1) ShootQ is cross-platform. It currently works with Safari and IE/Windows, but we're working on FireFox compatibility now.
2) Training. ShootQ is currently available to photographers who are trained during ShootQ Setup Parties that we're hosting in select US cities. We will be adding a few dates to the calendar, including many West Coast dates. To be notified of new dates, please sign up for our mailing list by clicking here.
3) Price. Normal pricing for ShootQ is $40 per month with an initial setup fee of $200.

We are offering a limited number of ShootQ Founding Memberships, which are lifetime, for $595. Currently, we're limiting all ShootQ memberships to those who have attended a Set-Up Party. We wish we could release to everyone immediately, but we want to carefully forge a strong community, which takes time to build and nurture. Also, we want to be sure everyone receives the support they need.

To be notified about future ShootQ developments & announcements via email, sign up on the ShootQ homepage. Also, watch the LaCour blog for the announcement.

We're excited about the future of ShootQ. Nearly everything in life is done online today -- we are literally a global community. We want to access our information from anywhere, anytime. ShootQ allows us to do this.

That Moment

When you are sitting right on the edge of something daring and scary and creative and powerful and perhaps wonderful... and you blink and take a step back.

That's the moment. The moment between you and remarkable. Most people blink. Most people get stuck.

All the hard work and preparation and daring and luck is nothing compared with the ability to not blink.

-- Seth Godin