Pay Attention

Boat shows, street fairs, festivals, and other events teach you a lot about human nature. You run into all types. You meet petty thieves who are out to steal a spoon off the table. And thieves who are interested in stealing intellectual property. The latter secretly try to take photos of your work to show someone who “wants to buy a lot of carved items”. I send them away, politely if possible.

You meet the aspirational, )” Oh, I wish I could do this!” You offer this encouragement.), the cocky ( “I could do this, I just don’t have the time.”) and the bargainers ( “How about a discount, and I’ll buy two?”). Then, there are the couples who wash their dirty laundry in public. They have dragged their private argument into public view and walk through the show, displaying their anger for all to see. And, of course, the lovers.

But mostly, you meet friendly people who say nice things, buy something, or politely walk away. For someone like me, with a background as an anthropologist, it’s a day-long opportunity to practice participant observation. When I go home, I have to slap myself. I no longer do that for a living, and I don’t have to write up my field notes. Old habits take on an agency of their own if you don’t beat them back.

Those old habits do come in handy, though. I observe people’s reactions to my products, their comments, and their body language. I hope to utilize this data programmatically to improve what I sell. 

Once in a while, this results in a new product. In 1995, I was doing a show in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, and a woman wanted a carved portrait of her husband’s boat as an anniversary gift. I was uncertain about it but accepted the commission. They were pleased with the finished portrait, and so was I. That one carving redirected the entire course of my career as a carver.

I don’t respond to all requests to create new things. I find myself unmoved by drunken requests by males who ask for busty figureheads featuring their wives.

But occasionally, the adage that your customers will tell you what business you are in comes true. 

Pay attention.