“What sets me apart from other photographers? What makes my work different? What makes me different? Can I infuse meaning into every part of my business? Do I need a mission statement? Would a mission statement change the way that I shoot, or edit, or find clients? Does it matter if I know who I am, or can I just start walking and see where the path takes me?”
Okay. I’m sure that some of you, by now, are tired of hearing chatter about The Intentional Photographer Workshop. Maybe you’re not a photographer or business owner and just follow this blog for the incredible pictures (if so, I’m so glad you’re here!!!). Maybe you’re a personal friend of mine, and just want to stay updated on my life (and I’m glad you’re here, too!). Or maybe you’re like me— a photographer with a few years of experience under his/her belt, and can’t help but think, “Aren’t there already enough photography workshops in the world? It seems as if everyone and their brother is teaching these days. Do we really need another workshop?”
Let me tell you, I thought the same thing. There is nothing new under the sun— no new information, just repackaging and retelling. “Someone’s already teaching it,” I thought. “Why should I try to teach if someone else is already doing it? But the longer I watched, the harder I listened, the more I paid attention to this industry, the more clearly I saw a need for one particular kind of workshop, one that no one else seemed to be teaching.
It’s a common pattern— a person learns a new hobby (in my case, photography), quickly falls in love with it, gains appreciation for their work through friends and family, and begins to entertain the thought of making it more than a hobby. Sometime later (maybe months, maybe years), a business is born. Lots of hours spent on forums, at networking events, reading books and blogs, listening to podcasts and watching YouTube, trying to figure out how to make this viable. And the hard work pays off— the business grows, new opportunities present themselves, new goals set, new levels of success reached.
And then one day, that person stops to take a breath and look around, and realizes that all that hard work and achievement serves to move them… but is it in the right direction? “How did I end up as a newborn photographer when I wanted to do women’s glamor? Do I still want to try to get back to women’s glamor, or should I just keep doing what I’m doing, since I seem to be doing it well??” or “I’ve become known for the DIY weddings that I shoot— Anthropologie-inspired, handmade, all-natural. But the thing is, that’s not me. I love glitter and pink and Kate Spade. But I don’t know how to change things up. Is it as simple as a rebrand?”
I see so many photographers get 3-5 years into their business and suddenly have an “identity crisis,” and freeze. Sometimes it’s because their business grows, and they need to make changes in how they operate to accommodate that growth, but they don’t know how to do it. Sometimes it’s because their life circumstance changes, or their shooting style changes, or they learn a new technique they want to implement… and sometimes they just wake up one day and realize their work looks like Seattle when they want it to look like Miami.
So how do you, as a business owner, handle such a crisis of identity? How do you figure out where you, where you want to go, and how to get there? Even better, how do you start out with that kind of laser-focused purpose, so you never have to deal with such a crisis of purpose?
That, my friends, is what The Intentional Photographer Workshop is all about. It’s about defining your WHY, identifying your WHO, and putting that well-formed HOW into practice.
Okay, but why is this even important? Isn’t it enough to just work hard, shoot well, and keep my clients happy?
It might be good enough for today. But what about tomorrow? What about those hard days when the sacrifice to keep working hard seems like it’s not worth the return you get from it? What is going to keep pushing you forward when life seems to want to pull you back?
Goals are helpful. Forbes posted a great blog last year about goal-setting, citing a study conducted on the 1979 Harvard MBA program. Students were asked “have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?” The result, only 3% had written goals and plans, 13% had goals but they weren’t in writing and 84% had no goals at all. Ten years later, the same group was interviewed again and the result was absolutely mind-blowing— The 13% of the class who had goals, but did not write them down was earning twice the amount of the 84% who had no goals. The 3% who had written goals were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97% of the class combined!
So yes, goals are important. Well all know that! But it’s even more important to have a defined why behind those goals, to give them shape, to keep your heart going when your brain is tired, to keep hope in view. If all our goals are step-by-step to-dos without any passion, heart, or overarching “WHY” behind them— those goals may be achieved, but where is the life?
The heart behind The Intentional Photographer Workshop is to help photographers set a solid foundation for business, clearly define a vision and personal mission statement, learn healthy goal-setting habits, and implement these lessons in every part of their business.
In other words, to intentionally craft a business that supports a life.
I firmly believe this is the best way to live a life, grow a business, nourish a relationship, etc— live with intention. Do things on purpose. Have heart and focus and love in all that you do. Know your reason why, and don’t do something unless you can answer that question. Evaluate every decision to make sure it’s worth doing.
If you want to learn more about this topic, or are looking to take that next step in business growth, The Intentional Photographer is a workshop written just for you! Now through Monday, we’re offering a special $50 off registration with the code “LOVEMORE”. Click the link below to register!
Love your heart behind this!!! … And you of course!!!
Ended up here as your friend wanting to check out this new venture of yours! So glad I did. The why in my business is equally important. Setting goals and making plans to accomplish them is the path to success. I love your passion and ability to articulate your visions. Blessings on this workshop and much love to you!
I love that you went out on a limb with this workshop. I’ve been thinking SO much about what I want to invest in, what I am investing in, and more because of all of these new workshops coming out. While I appreciate the idea of connecting with other photographers, I also appreciate the idea of getting paid so that I can live my life with my husband and invest in the lives of the students at ODU where I serve when I’m not photographing. While there are a million things out there right now – I chose the Intentional Photographer because that’s exactly it – I want to be intentional, and I want to learn from people who are as well. I can’t wait for March, and am excited for all of the things that we’re going to learn.
[…] you liked this post, you might also love My Core Beliefs, The Intentional Photographer: The WHY, and 10 Steps to Find Your Core […]
[…] If you’re already familiar with this workshop and don’t want to read any more, feel free to scroll down to the details section. If you want to know more about the heart behind this workshop, feel free to read this post. […]
[…] If you’re interested in learning more about building a business that supports a life, consider attending The Intentional Photographer. And if you are on the fence about whether or […]
[…] The Why […]
[…] The Why […]
[…] The Why […]
[…] wedding inspiration shoot was part of The Intentional Photographer Workshop. After we wrapped up the teaching portion on Saturday, we spent some time photographing […]