When Your Biggest Cheerleaders Disappear: The Hard Truth About Friends, Family, and Your Photography Business

I think I am about to tell you a familiar story.  At least it is a pretty common one when I speak with photographers. 

It’s the classic tale of the accidental entrepreneur:

There once was a person who received a nice camera as a gift. They were thrilled, quickly filling their social media feed with stunning pictures of their life. To their surprise, friends and family raved about their work, suggesting they should start a business and get paid for it.

In this economy, that sounded like a GREAT idea.  After all, making money while perfecting a new obsession sounds like a win / win to me. 

 The Early Days: A Symphony of Support

Everyone lined up for free (or heavily discounted) portfolio-building sessions. They liked every post, shared every photo, and became the entrepreneur's biggest cheerleaders. The new business owner felt invincible. How could they lose when all their friends and family were going to support this venture 100%?

They invested in education, started marketing, and jumped feet-first into running a professional photography business.

But then, something interesting, and often devastating, happened...

 The Great Shift: When Support Fades

 As the photographer became more proficient and started running their business like, well, a business, the support system began to crumble.

• Friends stopped hiring them for sessions and started going to other photographers.

• They stopped sharing the work.

• They sometimes acted uninterested or even resentful when the business owner talked about their success.

Gone were the days of encouragement and overwhelming support. Suddenly, the entrepreneur who was following their advice was no longer being talked about at family functions and a simple like on a shared photo seemed pretty elusive.

Sound familiar?

 What Really Happens When You Go Pro

 Why the sudden shift in attitude toward a dream they encouraged? They told you it was a good idea and gave the impression they would support you forever. Now, they won't even hire you, let alone like a post on your feed. What is up with that?

Things get complicated when you start a business. Many friends will support you 100%—UNTIL things shift in a way that no longer works in their favor:

• When you start asking for payment for something they used to get for free.

• When you implement policies (like cancellation fees or firm booking deadlines) that work in your favor but may inconvenience them.

• When they can no longer take advantage of your giving spirit.

• When you start becoming visibly successful and getting recognition, that shifts the dynamic of your relationship.

You were one of them when you were sitting around, commiserating about not being able to go on vacation or buy a new car. You were relatable. But when you take the initiative to better your circumstances and elevate your personal and business growth, many people simply cannot be happy and encouraging. So, they pull away.

The True Test of a Sustainable Business

 The fact is, relying on friends to support your business is not a long-term strategy for success.

The early encouragement you receive is wonderful. It can get you through the dark days of starting out, but it has an expiration date. When that door suddenly shuts.  And it will. The moment you realize they aren't going to hire you anymore, it can be a crushing blow to your confidence.

Here is the professional truth: The true test of a sustainable business is if strangers BUY your stuff.

You don't need them to run an awesome business. Yes, we all want the support of our family and friends, but at some point, you need to decide that it is okay to just be friends. It is okay if they don't hire you.

YOU will be fine without them. Your next level of growth is found in attracting and serving clients who respect your policies, pay your full price, and value your professional expertise. That is the only support that scales a business.