Haven’t got it all figured out yet?
Me neither.
In fact half of the time I’m probably making it up as I go along, despite knowing I’ve got photography experience and marketing experience and copywriting and sales strategies coming out of me so fast I wonder how on earth I keep up with my own brain sometimes.
But that’s the point isn’t it? You’re not meant to have it all together yet! Because if you were then it would BE all together and you wouldn’t be here reading the words on this page, and the reason you are here reading this is because – let’s face it – just like the rest of us, you haven’t got this figured out yet!
And that’s ok!
In fact it’s better than ok because once you realise that you haven’t got this nailed just yet but more than that there just might be a REASON WHY you haven’t – when you realise THAT- that it’s not because you’re a crap photographer or you’re miles behind everyone else or you procrastinate or anything like that, when everything seems to be continuously up in the air and a struggle and not working or broken or lopsided somehow –
That there is a REASON you haven’t got this all together and swimming perfectly yet!
And there might be a million and one reasons as to why this isn’t working for you in the way that it’s ‘supposed to’;
despite how, just like I have, you’ve invested in training and courses and mentoring and books and somehow STILL this thing feels like a billion-piece-jigsaw-puzzle of a plate of beans, and you feel very bloody far away from having much of a clue whatsoever about figuring out how it all goes together!
Except.
You can see the finished puzzle. You can see it all together, complete, whole. You can see exactly what your business will look like ONE DAY- now will someone just give you a bloody MAP or blueprint or just some type of SUCCESSFUL photography business PLAN so you know EXACTLY what to do?? In what order, you need to do everything in, and how to do it and how exactly you make all of these pieces fit together, because then when you have the map, you’ll have it all figured out, right? You’ll be where you want to be!!
So here it is. I’ll give it to you. Your success blueprint, map, whatever you want to call it. Sure, I’ll help you figure it out.
So this is where it starts, and ends, and how you make it all come together.
Ready?
If you want to make this happen for you – this is what you need to do, say, be, think, follow. DO.
Stop caring about what everyone else is doing. What you are supposed to do. Forget the SEOs and the branding and even the personal blogging and the social media and the bloody periscope – arghhhh!!! And forget even what you can do to GIVE to your clients because without doing THIS FIRST and in fact maybe only this?
Maybe THIS would build your dream business and that beautiful dream life that you visualise and yet sits untouched in your Pinterest boards, forgotten- if you were to do this and ONLY this and certainly if you can’t manage that then it should almost without doubt be the biggest part of your day, EVERY DAY
And that thing is simply
Being who you’re meant to be.
So if you’re a photographer? And that’s what you want to be / do / live / breathe / be known for / effect the world?
Then it’s not difficult to figure out your blueprint.
Show up and shoot every single day!!!!
Every single day day in day out day in day out you show up and do the thing you believe that you’re born to do!
And screw the marketing and the processes, because surely somewhere in that dream-vision-board-life you pinned some quote along the lines of happiness and something to do with photography?!?!
So if this is it.
If photography is truly the thing that makes you happy every single day
Then why do you find it difficult to shoot every single day? To take your camera everywhere?
To be the true artist you are born to be – and you know iPhone snaps and IG don’t cut it REALLY as an artistic form- unless you’re planning on cultivating this as your voice and medium forever and for it to be what you become known for-
and if you use this as your excuse – that you carry your PHONE camera around with you every day- sorry but that makes you a lazy half assed photographer, unless you’re the exception to the rule and you’re one of the minuscule fragments out there who has a billion IG followers and your whole entire brand and business is built here –
and if you’re not, then- back to what you know you NEED to do every day if, you know what you say really IS your truth and you love it just like you say you do.
And I’m talking to myself here just as much as you because I opened my fridge today and a roll of black and white film fell out that has been sat there since LAST YEAR!!!!
And it’s not like I’ve done much else with the colour rolls or my digi either and I know the exact same thing will most likely happen with the contax t2 I’m currently eyeing up on eBay because perhaps it’s time I admitted as much as I love it and I’m bloody good at it and I’ve invested a ton into it and it hurts so much to say this because GOD I love it!!!! I’m a better writer and THIS is what I’m supposed to do.
Because otherwise why do I find it so bloody hard to do what I’m SUPPOSED to LOVE and adore and want to become known for and be brilliant at?
But this is it- this is the blueprint, the photography business plan for success. If you want to be a successful photographer – don’t stop photographing!!! and it needs to be something you show up and do consciously every single day until it comes like breathing to you, until you would literally feel like a part of you is falling away without it!
Because otherwise? If you’ve found what you are born to do and you DONT do this? You don’t show up and you don’t do it daily and it doesn’t become that practice that becomes a part of you and probably already is anyway if this is IT-
If you don’t do this- this is what happens. You get caught in the should dos. In the endless checklists, in the marketing to dos. You seek outward inspiration, maybe even become a pale imitation of someone else. Don’t get me wrong, these things can bring success! but lasting happiness? No.
Because you purely and simply aren’t doing what you are born to do, or even what you WANT to do IF you aren’t showing up and doing what YOU are meant to be doing.
I see it in my own business all of the time!! A few very similar sounding websites to the FPA, some mentors that I myself mentor saying ‘I want to do what you do!’
And if only they knew how I sometimes I wish I could do what THEY are born to do! Whether that’s design or websites or SEO or hey- even being a PHOTOGRAPHER of whatever description or niche I just want to shake them and say – don’t you SEE???
You aren’t born for imitation! You are born for greatness and that greatness only ever comes when you show up in business every single day and be who YOU are supposed to be!!! THIS- my way- isn’t the ONLY way or the RIGHT way to be successful, it’s just my way- and there a million and one other ways out there to be even MORE successful than following MY way, and that only starts with YOUR way and doing what YOU are supposed to be doing which is
SHOWING UP EVERY DAY AS YOURSELF
So why aren’t you doing it???
Because THAT is how you avoid getting yourself caught up in all of these terrible, paralysing knots we get twisted up in! Should I blog this should I write about that. I’m stuck with SEO, which light is better, etc etc etc etc etc etc etc etc.
What matters is YOU being who you are supposed to be, showing up every day and doing that one thing that you are created for, love passionately, breathe eat live dream would very possibly die for (because you will do this even if it kills you because this is what you’re meant to do).
I mean- do you think Richard Branson says – ah, you know, I’d love to come to your party but I’m not going to bring Richard Branson along with me?
Or – today I don’t really feel like being Richard Branson. I’m going to show up in business as Donald Trump instead.
I mean – what?? wouldn’t that be slightly confusing?? And if he did it ever so often, do you think Virgin and Richard Branson would be even HALF the business that they are today, if he decided to be someone other than himself every day in business? To do something other than what he feels he was born to do?
But- isn’t this what you do every time you don’t take your camera to a party, or every day you DON’T shoot?
You’re not showing up as who you say you want to be.
Because if you want to be in business as a photographer then you know you want to grab opportunity-
yet when opportunity knocks you say what- oops sorry, forgot my camera today?!?! Or – yeah, I just wanted to enjoy myself today!
Enjoy yourself???
Is being yourself- not enjoyable???
And if it’s not then perhaps you need to take a long hard look at whether this IS really what you want and whether you CAN show up and do this every day no matter what!!!
Because if you can’t be in business even doing the one thing you say you love??? Let alone all of the stuff that comes secondary to that????
Sure, you can be in business. You can probably even create a relatively good photography business. And you can focus on the details, get caught in SEO and blogging and tweaking and networking and fb groups and social media and all of that other stuff that CAN grow your business –
But this is the reality.
It is ten times the workload and about a billion times the struggle to be in business as someone else – to try and do all of the should dos and the to dos- than if you were to just show up and OWN IT every single day as who you’re supposed to be, photographer.
Think about it – what do most successful writers do every single day without fail. Duh. They bloody WRITE and they write even if they have nothing to write about or anything to say they make themselves sit down and just WRITE!
You turn up.
You do the thing you’re meant to do.
Every single day without fail. Because you LOVE IT and because despite the pain and the hurt and the tough times this love doesn’t let go because you’re BORN FOR THIS.
Why make this harder than it needs to be?
It’s how you get much further along the road to figuring this all out,
it’s how you beat the overwhelm,
it’s how you restore your creative heart and soul
when you just show up and shoot every single day without fail and not just once but like your business and dreams depend on it,
Because they do.
So can you make that commitment to yourself? To just showing up every day and doing this???
You’ll still fail, screw up, be plagued with doubts and worry- it’s not a magic pill but if done repeatedly it will pull you OUT of your knots and most importantly out of the knots in your own head and get you SO much closer to where it is that YOU, are destined to go.
Love and Light xox
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help! in a rut 🙁