My mentor Thomas was a well-known photographer, and he once told me a story that still pops into my head from time to time.
A client of his wanted to do a photoshoot in an empty swimming pool. So his assistant got to work — ringing up villas in the area, asking if by any chance their pool was empty, or how much it would cost to drain it for a day. She was pulling her hair out trying to find the right spot.
Thomas? He took a different route. He just called up the local pool-cleaning company and asked if they had any clients who hadn’t used their service in a while. Turns out one had recently cancelled — because their pool was going to be shut down for a while. Problem solved.
That kind of lateral thinking is something I want to practice and master in my life.