Why Creatives Should Be Selective With Projects

I started Essajees Atelier in a highly competitive industry, and it nearly broke me mentally because I was: > Hungry for work > Desperate for clients > Didn’t want to say "no" to work So, I took on clients who neither valued my work nor me. Now, with nearly 2 decades of experience, I wish I could tell anyone in my shoes these 6 things: 1. Think like the buyer: Don't chase every client desperately. Instead, look for the right clients. This mindset shift changes everything. You're offering valuable expertise. 2. Your 1 best work is worth 10 bad projects: Quality >>> Quantity, always. So I would tell myself to focus on excellence, not numbers. A single great client can lead to a beautiful portfolio piece and future referrals. 3. Trust your gut feeling: Energy and vibes matter more than you think. Bad matches lead to stress, heartbreak, and subpar work. If something feels off during initial meetings, it probably is. 4. Take your time to interview clients: Ask tough questions and do background checks. Make sure the client's vision aligns with yours. A proper vibe check isn't just nice – it's essential for project success. 5. Being selective isn't a privilege, it's smart: You don't need hundreds of inquiries to be choosy. Even with few options, prioritize clients who resonate with your values. The right fit brings out your best work, regardless of your experience level. 6. Low conversion rates are okay: We now convert very few inquiries into actual clients at Essajees Atelier. This ensures we work only with our ideal clients, leading to better outcomes for everyone. Remember, we're not just selling a service but actually curating experiences and relationships to last years. What's one thing you wish you knew when starting your business? Share below! #Entrepreneur #Interiordesign #Business #Lessons

I've seen professionals who: - Chase every opportunity that comes their way. - Spread themselves too thin across multiple projects. - Burn out trying to do it all. I've been there too. For years, I said yes to: - Every speaking engagement offered. - Any collaboration proposed. - Every "good" opportunity that crossed my path. The common advice I heard: ~Never turn down an opportunity. ~You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. ~Success comes from saying yes. But I've learned a crucial lesson: Saying yes to everything means saying no to focus. Why did I start saying no to good opportunities? - To create space for great ones. - To deepen my expertise in specific areas. - To maintain my energy and passion. It's counterintuitive, but saying no has led to: ✓More meaningful work. ✓Stronger professional relationships. ✓Accelerated growth in my chosen niche. The hardest part? Overcoming the fear of missing out. But remember: Every yes is a no to something else. Your time and energy are finite. Invest them wisely. Saying no to good opportunities isn't about limitation. It's about intention. It's about making room for the extraordinary. What's your experience with selective opportunity-taking? #linkedingrowth #linkedinforcreators

In 2025, I turned down 50+ projects and took on only a total of 7 projects. Most projects aren't just a fit for what we do. The industry rewards volume with more clients, faster timelines, constant output. But I've learned that saying yes to everything is the fastest way to dilute the work you're actually capable of. When you're stretched across too many projects, you can't give any of them your full attention. And the clients who deserve your best thinking end up getting a fraction of it. Most designers I know struggle with saying no. We're taught that turning down work means turning down opportunity and losing margins. But the opposite is true. Saying no to misaligned projects creates space for the ones that energize you the industries that pull you in, the visions that challenge you, the partnerships where you genuinely care about the outcome. That's when the work stops feeling transactional and starts feeling like something you're proud to put your name on. Quality, passion, and genuine care for the client's goals will always matter more than volume. It's not about being selective for the sake of exclusivity. It's about protecting your ability to do work that actually matters to you, and to the people you're building it for.

Everyone says: “Know your worth.” “Say no to what doesn’t align.” “Only work with dream clients.” But when the invoices are small, the bills are real, and you're just trying to get things off the ground - saying yes to everything feels like survival, not a compromise. And that makes things murky. You start convincing yourself: "This one gig won’t hurt." "I’ll just manage the red flags." "I need the experience." "I can’t afford to say no." But here’s what I’ve learned - the hard way: 🚩 The client who doesn’t respect boundaries on Day 1 won’t magically evolve. 🚩 The project that feels off before it starts usually ends up costing more than it pays. 🚩 The early ‘yes’ that feels like a win often leads to long-term drain, not growth. Being selective doesn’t mean you’re arrogant. It means you’re protecting your time, your energy, and your standards even when they’re still under construction. It’s not easy. It feels counterintuitive when you’re building. But the truth is: not every project is worth the price your peace will pay. And if it costs your integrity or identity, it’s already too expensive. #HardTruths #FoundersLife

Reminder: not every project that pays is worth taking… Last month we turned down a £20k project. Good money. Interesting challenge. Timeline worked. But something felt off. In the discovery call, they kept talking about features. More features. Complex features. Features their users would probably never touch. When I asked about their marketing team's current pain points, they didn't have clear answers. When I asked what success looked like, they talked about visual impact, not business outcomes. Red flags everywhere. After closing Grizzly Bear and then building Shrink Studio | Webflow Certified Partner London over the last three years, I've learned that wrong-fit clients don't become right-fit clients. Revenue from bad projects costs more than it pays. We could have built what they wanted. Would have been bloated, over-complicated, ultimately not that useful. And in six months they'd have been unhappy, we'd have been frustrated. Nobody wins. Three years ago, when I had £4,500 in my account, I would have taken that project. Needed to. Now we're selective. We work with clients who value the same things we do - speed, autonomy, impact, results over features. Honestly, that’s a really lovely place to be in! Every “no” makes space for the right “yes”...

The Magic Word: NO! 🛑Saying "no" to certain projects or clients in the production industry, or any freelance field, can indeed have several advantages, especially if there are red flags indicating potential issues. Here are some of the key benefits of being selective about the jobs you take: 🛑Maintaining Professional Integrity: Turning down jobs that don't align with your values, ethics, or standards helps maintain your professional integrity. It ensures that you're not compromising on the quality of your work or your personal principles for the sake of a paycheck. 🛑Avoiding Stress and Burnout: Projects with red flags often lead to stressful situations, unrealistic demands, or problematic client relationships. By saying no, you can avoid these negative outcomes, helping prevent burnout and maintaining your mental health and well-being. 🛑Focusing on Quality and Passion Projects: When you're not bogged down by unsuitable projects, you have more time and energy to devote to work that truly excites you and allows you to produce your best work. This can lead to higher satisfaction and potentially more impactful or rewarding projects. 🛑Building the Right Portfolio: By choosing projects aligned with your career goals and expertise, you can build a more coherent and impressive portfolio. This helps attract the type of work you want to be doing and the clients you want to work with. 🛑Improving Professional Relationships: Saying no to a project can sometimes be in the best interest of both you and the client if the fit isn't right. It leaves room for opportunities where you can fully meet or exceed expectations, fostering positive relationships and referrals. 🛑Enhancing Negotiation Power: Demonstrating that you are selective about the projects you take on can actually increase your perceived value in the market. It shows that your skills are in demand and that you prioritize projects that are a good fit, which can lead to better rates and terms in the future. 🛑Personal Growth: Turning down projects that don't align with your current skills or career direction can give you the time to upskill or diversify your capabilities, making you more competitive and versatile in the long run. 🛑Financial Stability: While it might seem counterintuitive, saying no to problematic projects can lead to greater financial stability. Projects full of red flags 🚩 often result in scope creep, delayed payments, or additional uncompensated work, which can ultimately harm your financial health. Saying "no" to certain projects allows you to better manage your workload, focus on high-quality work, maintain healthy professional relationships, and ultimately guide your freelance career in a direction that aligns with your goals and values. 🙌🏻

The Power of NO To grow my career as a commercial photographer, I’ve embraced the power of saying “NO.” It has been transformative. When I was starting out, I feared turning down opportunities, believing that success meant taking every job that came my way. I rearranged my personal plans and made sacrifices to stay busy and profitable. But over time, I realized this approach led to burnout and compromised the quality of my work. Now, my photography business strategy is more selective and proactive. To engage in projects that truly inspire me, I create space in my schedule by declining opportunities that don’t align with my expertise in authentic commercial photography, brand storytelling, and visual content creation. Common Reasons a Project Isn’t a Good Fit: 📌 Budget Misalignment The project's rates and budget must reflect the scope of work and my cost of doing business. Too often, clients underestimate the resources required for high-quality branding photo libraries and visual storytelling photography. While I pride myself on being resourceful, I won’t undercut my value, my crew, or my client’s potential for success. 📌 Scheduling Conflicts With projects booked months in advance, I have limited flexibility for last-minute shoots—especially those requiring extensive production, casting, location scouting, and creative direction. Rushing a project can compromise its success, so I prefer to either plan properly or adjust the timeline. 📌 Lack of Alignment This is the most powerful (and scariest) reason to say no, but it’s a game-changer for being the best in my niche of authentic storytelling photography. Not every project aligns with my creative focus or expertise in human-centered commercial photography. If a job doesn’t fit my skills or interests, I happily refer a colleague who would be a better match. Integrity matters. The Result? Fewer, but bigger and more meaningful projects. Saying no allows me to bring fresh energy, expertise, and creativity to every shoot—benefiting my clients and ensuring that the final images are emotionally engaging, purpose-driven, and visually impactful. #commercialphotography #purposedriven #storytellingphotography What’s your approach to saying no? How has it evolved throughout your career? +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 📸 Hi, I’m Rebecca! 👋 I help commercial brands and purpose-driven organizations capture real moments that humanize their message, build trust, and inspire engagement. Brands that value storytelling know its power to convert. Let’s bring your story to life and uplift the power of REAL. LET'S TALK- DM me to schedule your free consultation.

I’ve reached a point in my career where I’m far more worried about saying yes to the wrong thing than missing a good opportunity. I get a lot of inbound now, new companies, advisory roles, fractional CMO gigs, technical consulting work. Most of it sounds reasonable, but now I’ve stopped trusting gut feel alone, and started using this framework to filter + decide if something is worth my time: 1. Does the opportunity make sense economically? What does the business actually do? Who are the customers? How does money get made? What has already happened with fundraising, dilution, and incentives? It’s surprising how many people join companies without understanding any of this at a basic level. 2. Is this a problem I’m actually prepared to help with? Not whether I could contribute in theory, but if my specific experience changes the outcome. If the role turns into herding sheep or sitting in meetings without real leverage, that’s usually a no. After that, I focus on the people. I care a lot about working with good people, but strong personalities don’t fix a broken economic setup or a mismatched problem. If the first two don’t work, the rest doesn’t matter. When I do get to the people questions, I’m looking for signals. How they think about time. What they learned from past companies. What they want to repeat and what they want to avoid. Whether they’re driven by outcomes or validation. Whether they’re building a company they would actually want to work at. Most of these questions exist because I didn’t ask them earlier in my career and paid for it later. Being selective is about protecting your time, your energy, and your ability to do your best work with purpose. PS - I wrote an in-depth guide about this a few weeks ago in Growth Stack Mafia here 👉 https://lnkd.in/efhWsvCd

The best influencers say “no” a lot 🚫 When they DO say yes, brands love them for it 😍 — It's counterintuitive at first. From CreatorIQ’s 2024 report on influencer marketing: → 84% of creators said they would not work with a brand with bad products, EVEN IF the compensation was high [but honestly who would admit to being willing to work with bad products in a survey?!?!?] → Full-time creators are more likely to only work with brands they genuinely love compared to part-time creators We’ve been running influencer campaigns for 17+ years. We’ve had the good fortune to work with some of the worlds biggest brands AND the world’s biggest creators. You name ‘em & I’m pretty sure we’ve worked with ‘em. We’ve seen the exact same thing born out day-to-day for decades, but it’s more true now than ever as creators start to become their own miniature media companies. Here’s what I mean. // FROM THE CREATOR SIDE: I see it every week: Top-performing creators share a common trait – they're highly selective about partnerships. Each partnership either builds or erodes audience trust. When they recommend something, their audience knows it's genuine. These creators consistently: • Spend time researching brands before signing • Ask detailed questions about product quality & check things out for themselves • Build long-term relationships with fewer brands • Maintain genuine enthusiasm in their content // FROM THE BRAND SIDE: Here's what surprised me most: According to our proprietary data & now publicly available studies, creators that are more selective generate higher value for brand partners than those who accept most partnerships. Their endorsements simply carry more weight. Their audiences know they only promote things they truly recommend. They have real trust. Campaign performance reflects this: • More engaged audience responses • Higher conversion rates • Stronger brand advocacy • Sustained performance over time This creates something powerful. — To keep this practical & tactical: Selective creators maintain trust → trust drives performance → performance attracts quality brands → quality long-term partnerships enable more selectivity → repeat ♻️ For creators: Being selective isn't just about integrity. It's practical business. For brands: Don't chase low CPM creators. Look for genuine advocates & pay on VALUE not cost. The most effective partnerships start with authentic alignment. #marketing #creators #business #partnerships #influencermarketing

Scarcity vs Selectivity Working with you should be a privilege, not pressure. Business psychology often encourages using scarcity to bring in clients or accelerate decisions. But real growth is built on selectivity. Selectivity brings clarity. Clarity strengthens value. Be selective about the clients you serve. Impact is higher when alignment is strong. Be selective about collaborations. Partnerships work best when values match. Be selective about what you create. Meaningful work comes from intention and focus. Growth comes from choosing right, not choosing impulsively.