Two Reasons to Love the Jewelry You Create
You hear quite often that you need to love what you do before going into business. From personal experience I have two philosophies in the business world pertaining to love that I would like to share with you.1. Love what you do, but not the product.It is extremely difficult to take negative criticism from others against a product or service that you love and provide to the general public. As the customer considers their possible purchase they will express their opinion, good or bad, because they are considering purchasing the product. Occasionally, you may hear harsh or unkind words from their lips and it cuts deeply into your emotions when you love the product.I have a friend who is in the business of making customized gold jewelry. The drawings were approved by the customer and the completed finger ring met all requirements as requested by the customer.The customer, feeling creative, wanted additional changes. My friend explained that making the additional changes would require more gold and a complete meltdown of the original ring and start anew. The customer refused to pay for the additional costs of additional gold and the necessary changes. He wanted the new requests to be included at the original pricing. Negotiations were at a standstill.In front of the customer, my friend, melted his gold ring and refunded the customer his money. This is an example of loving the type of work that you do, but not the product. My friend felt that the customer was being overly demanding.2. Love what you do and love the product or the service because you will receive financial and personal satisfaction in sharing your love.An example would be selling a creation that you dearly love but when it is sold the customer will love and cherish your creation. Two things happen in this situation… you created, loved, and enjoyed your creation. When you put it up for sale you gave it up freely. The customer who admired and purchased it; loved it, and will continue to enjoy it.It is the talent and the skills of the artisan that sell the finished creation. And it should be if you are the manufacturer of the product. Jewelry is a personal item that reflects the personality of the wearer. If the jewelry piece is appropriate for that person, it will be purchased.
