Business is preparing me for marriage

Is business preparing me for marriage?!

(Yes, this is written as satire, but according to my married friends, it's pretty spot-on! Plus, it's Friday the 13th, so everything sounds kind of scary. :P )

My first Focus Friday blog post was about how growing a business is like raising a baby. So I thought it would be appropriate and funny to do this topic as a next step!

​I'd love to hear my married readers' thoughts on this blog post! Please feel free to write your comments below so I know if this is right or way off base!

• Like marriage, starting a business has taught me to be patient.
  I often have to wait to hear back from clients, colleagues, and even my accountant - patience!. If I want to change the perception of my brand (ex. I no longer market myself as a wedding photographer), that doesn't just happen overnight. I need to educate my audience to know what I do to hire/refer me to the proper folks. That took LOTS of patience. It also took patience (5 years!) to get to a point where I could support myself though my passion.
  
• Like being considerate of your partner, my business has taught me how to be considerate of clients' needs.
  Not every client is the same. Often, their needs are so different (just like a partner's needs can change over time). I do my best to ask lots of questions and communicate how I can best achieve both of our goals. Which means that...
  
• Communication is the most important thing.
  If I don't communicate with my clients about my needs, my understanding of their needs, timelines, and goals, then our photographer-client relationship will fail...kind of like a relationship with a spouse.
  
• I could go on and on about maturity, honesty, and respect but it should already be very clear that all of those are needed in marriage as well as business. :)

Happy Friday!
Autumn