We were lucky to catch up with Derick Cich recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Derick Cich thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
When I first started my journey as a makeup artist I was twenty years old without a clue on how to build a business or even the thought that I could be paid to do something I was so passionate about. All I knew is that I loved this craft so much and I jumped at absolutely any opportunity to practice my art, many of which I had to create for myself through networking and cold emails to photographers in hopes of collaborations for portfolio images. As my relationships with other creatives grew, along with all our skills, so did all our businesses in an organic way. We all began to refer clients to each other, supporting one another and continually collaborating to constantly improve our work and to experiment with new techniques.
After years of working and being consistently reliable so did my positive reputation and as more and more experience was gained I was able to begin charging a cost to reflect that, eventually becoming my full-time income. The best advice I can give is be authentic, hardworking, and have the best intentions because others will absolutely take notice. Experience and skills take time to sharpen, enjoy the process and you will achieve greatness.
Derick Cich, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I have been a freelance makeup artist for almost fifteen years a this point with a core background in the arts and an education in skincare, giving me a very well rounded approach to each and every client I have the privilege of working with. My method is very much in the vein of enhancing the natural features that anyone sitting in my chair has, giving them confidence and empowering them to love themselves even more. My stye is timeless, elegant, and flawless, I tend to not pay too much attention to short trends or fads, I like my work to age gracefully rather than being dated within a short period of time. When I am working with a new client it is a beautiful collaboration of my skills and experience matched to their vision and hopes, it is always an exciting and challenging part of my job, I believe the high pressure really suits me. The human to human connections really are the best part of what I get to do, however. Each and every face I work on is a gift and never forgotten, I hope to do your makeup soon!
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
There is always the pressure of growing your business bigger and bigger, constantly looking ahead to what is next, never being satisfied. While I never want to plateau in my skills and I am always learning and growing personally, I do not let my career control my life. I am at the point where I am financially stable, I have amazing clients, and am consistently booked, and that is enough for me. I think it is important that you do not fall into the mindset that you always need to be doing more if where you are now is making you happy and fulfilled. Bigger is not always better.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
The number one thing you can do to gain a positive reputation is consistency; Consistently providing quality work, consistently being enjoyable to work with, and consistently showing your authentic self. I never went into my career expecting to make a ton of money or to become popular, I simply loved and took pride in my craft and others took notice. I said yes to everything and always put in 110% effort, resulting in positive relationships with others in my career field and word of mouth.
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