The Bookworm Club : Fine Art Weddings by Jose Villa

In the wedding world, Jose Villa is the Brad Pitt of wedding photographers. Good looking, talented, and amazingly popular. There's a reason for all the hype. He takes ordinary and turns it into extraordinary, creating pieces of art and all around eye candy. When he announced he was coming out with a book, Fine Art Weddings, I knew I had to get my hands on a copy. It wasn't until this past Christmas, when I received one as a present that I finally got to know what everyone was talking about! Fine Art Weddings is an easy and quick read, nothing mind shattering here. Villa writes in such a way to make each photographic concept manageable and easy to understand, with most ideas things that professional photographers already know. But what is great, is that you see how Villa has evolved, how he has learned from his mistakes and how that influences him as a photographer today. For me, that's the good stuff right there!

With every beautiful image he shares, he also provides the meta data and the scenario in which the image was taken. A bride looking out the window, a groom laughing during a ceremony, a couple kissing under a tree. You read what Villa was thinking, why he photographed the image in that particular way and why he chose the settings he did. Because I'm the type of person that loves to look at images and try to figure HOW they were photographed or where the light was coming from, I found this part of the book to be so informative and interesting! It made me want to find a window, a bride, and to just start shooting!

Every part of the wedding experience from the engagement session to the wedding day to client service is covered by Villa. Step by step he writes through exactly how he approaches each area of the wedding experience, with of course, beautiful corresponding images. I appreciate hearing in his own voice, how he tries to capture a wedding day, and what his goals are for the images he captures. Reading about how his business has evolved into what it is today, gives me hope and a passion for great things in my own photography and business.

Ultimately this is not a book with ground breaking material. But what I think makes this book successful, is how Villa helps us to understand principals we as photographer already know but in new ways. And then how to apply those to our wedding photography. His images alone challenge me to be a better photographer and inspire me to push myself on the wedding day. Just having the opportunity to ready how Villa runs his business, photographs his subjects and handles his customer service is fuel to my fire. If you're a wedding photographer, this should be mandatory reading!

Next month I'll be reviewing Good To Great by Jim Collins so make sure to grab a copy and read along!

**Did you read along this month? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the book! If you haven't make sure to leave a comment below why you'd like to win  your very own copy of Fine Art Weddings! I'll announce the winner this week!**

The Bookworm Club: Pour Your Heart Into It by Howard Schultz

 

"I'd encourage everyone to dream big, lay your foundations well, absorb information like a sponge, and not be afraid to defy conventional wisdom. Just because it hasn't been done before doesn't mean you shouldn't try." -- Howard Schultz, Pour Your Heart Into It

I've reviewed several business books here on the blog. They have all been great and I've gleaned much information from within the pages of these reads. Recently, I read a book that has completely changed the way that I see my business and how I relate to customers: Pour Your Heart Into It by Howard Schultz. That guy that "created" Starbucks.

I opened the first page of this book more as a Starbucks fan than anything. I thought it would be fun to learn about how Starbucks came to be and how Howard created this extrodinary THING called Starbucks. But after the first chapter, I found myself underlining every other line. There was SO much information that I could glean, SO much information that I could apply directly to my business.

The book is a history of Starbucks up until 1997 or so. And it does read like a memoir of sorts of Starbucks and Schultz. But beyond just history Schultz infuses this book with antedotes and thoughts about what he believes helped Starbucks grow into what it is. Schultz shares with his readers what he believes are the cornerstones of small successfull businesses and entrepeneroers. I was hooked on his every word.

If you are a small business owner, a brand creator or just starting out I highly recommend getting this book and spending a week looking at the life of Starbucks. Are there principals that you can apply to your business, your work ethic, your brand? I guarantee there are. This is one book that I cannot recommend highly enough.

Here are just some of my favorite and thought provoking quotes that I underlined through out the book!

"Success is empty if you arrive at the finish line alone. The best reward is to get there surrounded by winners. The more winners you can bring with you - whether they're employees, customers, shareholders, or readers - the more gratifying the victory." -- I think that many photographers are really good at this idea. We love sharing with each other, teaching and learning from each other. We love being on this journey together. But can we go further? Can we apply this even more broadly to our businesses and relationship with our peers? What would our businesses and relationships look like if we did?

"First every company must stand for something. Starbucks stood for not only good coffee, but specifically for dark-roasted flavor profile that the founders were passionate about. That's what differntiated it and made it authentic." -- I want an authentic and relevant business. I want a business that stands for something, that means something, that adds value. This quote jumped off the page, grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me around. My business MUST stand for something but not just anything. Something that is authentic to who I am. How can my business add to the world and just not myself?

"It's one thing to dream, but when the moment is right you've got to be willing to leave what's familiar and go out to find your own sound." -- This is exactly what happened when I left my newspaper job and something I recently shared.

"Whatever your culture, your values, your guiding principles, you have to take steps to inoculate them in the organization early in its life so that they can guide every decision, every hire, every strategic objective you set. Whever you are the CEO or a lower level employee, the single most important thing you can do at work each day is coummunicate your values to others." -- I could, no NEED to do this better. My convictions and guiding principles need to play a bigger role in all aspects of my business. Do you?

"We had a mission, to  educate customers everywhere about fine coffee. We had a vision, to create an atmosphere in our stores that drew people in and gave them a sense of wonder and romance in the midst of their harried lives. We had an idealisitc dream, that our company could be far more than the paradigm definded by corporate America in the past." -- What is your mission? What is your vision? What is your dream? Answer these questions specifically. You'll draw a clear picture of why you are in business, of what you want your business to look like and WHO your business is for.

There are SO many other quotes that I could pull from this book but I'll stop there and encourage you to go out and purchase a copy for yourself. Find yourself lost in the dream and the story of Starbucks. Find the points that you can take away and begin to implement them in to your business now. Who knew that a story about coffee beans could so radically change the way that I and many others think about their business. Mhmm coffee...

One lucky reader will win a copy of Pour Your Heart Into It. Just leave a comment below with your favorite Starbucks drink! The winner will be announced tomorrow! Good luck and happy reading!

The Bookworm Club: Lovemarks, The Future Beyond Brands

A few weeks ago someone said to me that I should start a Book Club. I chuckled a little and kind of brushed the statement away. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I already am doing a book club. Sort of. You see, this Bookworm series has been my version of a book club. A place where I can share with you the latest books that I am reading, get feedback and  receive recommendations on books I should read. This series has been one of my favorite things to write about this past year. So I thought a change in name would be appropriate to better represent what I hope this series can become. Welcome, The Bookworm Club. To kick things off, I thought I'd share my reaction to reading Lovemarks, The Future Beyond Brands by Kevin Roberts. Last night I finished the book and was so proud of myself that I posted a picture on Facebook late last night. Immediately I started getting questions if the book was good and worth the read. Let me just say this. If you are a business owner: YOU MUST OWN THIS BOOK. I'm sure many of you have heard other people raving about this book too. This first time I heard about it was at Justin and Mary's WPPI talk in 2010. But like most of you I held off on purchasing the book, and it wasn't until this summer that I found the time to dive in.

The book managed to live up to it's hype, filling every page with information, graphics and images to the point of brain overload. Kevin tackles SO many different areas of business that having a notebook and a pen handy while you read is necessary. Kevin also dives into the mind of the consumer and gives your practical tips at the end of each chapter of how to apply all that you just read. A great tool for me, as at the end of each chapter I found myself completely inspired but also completely overwhelmed.

The are several things that were huge take aways for me. First, thinking and responding like a customer can better help me understand and serve those customers. Giving them a great experience is not just about presentation, but also in the way that you interact and work through problems together with a client. And while presentation is important, the relationship that you've built with that customer or client is going to be what keeps them coming back later.

“Look through the eyes of the shopper. The closer you get to her experience, the richer and smarter your responses.” Lovemarks, Kevin Roberts.

Become a shopper to your own business. What areas work, what areas need tweaking? Are you excelling in giving your customer and clients the best possible experience, from presentation to communication to your responses? If not, pick one area and start small. Make the adjusts that need to be made to give your clients the best.

Ahh, but that brings us to my second take away. Taking risks. Giving clients an exceptional experience takes an element of risk. Maybe it means changing the way you've done things for years. Maybe it means implementing something you've never done before. Same is safe, same is known. Change is risky. Change is unknown. If I were being completely honest, I hate change and so the thought of taking risks, risks with outcomes unknown, is petrifying. But this quote below I think sums up WHY we must push ourselves, to risk for the benefit of our businesses, our clients and for ourselves!

“Go to the edge. Everyone at the center thinks the same way. That’s why they ended up there in the first place. The edge is unsettled and risky. Perfect to shake up conventions and formulas and come up with new ideas.” Lovemarks, Kevin Robert

Lovemarks, offers a huge amount of inspiration and thought provoking information about how to develop your business into the kind of businesses that are loved. Respected. Impactful. I think we all want our businesses to look like that. Let's make it happen.

**One lucky commenter will receive a copy of Lovemarks all for their own. To enter to win, just leave a comment below. The winner will be announced on Friday. Happy reading everyone!**