Nine years ago I walked into the office of the non-profit I worked for looking forward to a day full of clients and productivity. What I found was, due to Government cutbacks my position had been eliminated…I was fired, I no longer had the job that I had dedicated 3.5 years to. I mean I went into this job wholehearted,helping my clients with housing issues, educating them in credit and money management, working to create a budget that was realistic for their lives, these were all things that filled my soul. I was good at it. When I was asked to helped open a regional branch location I was so excited! This was work that I believed in and I enjoyed my clients.
The personal aspects of getting fired also hit me hard…I had just purchased a new car, my husband and I we were 1 year into our new home and I had just given birth to our second child. I had so many crazy thoughts running through my head as I drove home to tell my husband of the days events.
When I walked into the house we talked and he said 2 very important things to me 1) get changed and go to the gym you need to release some stress and 2) Now you can go back to school and open your business. So that’s exactly what I did. I Googled how to start a photography business, started my website and now here we are 9 years later.
I am of the school that all things happen for a reason. I was fired because the Universe said it was time to move on. Time to be home and be with my kids and be a stay at home mom during the early years. These are things I hadn’t thought would be so important to me till I was actually doing them.
From there I joined a few networking groups, talked with a few other women who were business owners, and spent a lot of time learning…learning about business, learning about websites, learning about everything I could to grow a successful photography business. But in all transparency these last 9 years have proved to be the best 9 years of my life. While it was not an easy road to travel, it was nonetheless purposeful. I have had the opportunity to photography some amazing individuals, work for some very notable publications and even have my work both nationally and internationally published. I learned what type of photography I enjoyed producing and what work I will never shoot again.
I’ve grown as a result of all of the clients and experiences I’ve had over these years. See I started this business because I believe that photography proves you exist. The investment you make to document your family’s memories, the investment in your business and brand the financial investment in YOU is priceless. So here we are 9 years later, I opened AND closed (due to Covid19) my very own studio, I learned everything in it’s own time and always put your best into everything you do. Things may not always be sunshine and roses but shit has a purpose too.
And on that note I want to send a huge virtual hug to all of the clients and other businesses that have helped me get here.
XOXO,
