It’s been a long time since I have just written from my heart, and I’m not really sure why. When I first started this photography journey, this blog was a safe space to share what I was learning and what we were going through as foster parents. I think I just wanted to share today, because I feel so excited for things to come, and just wanted to share that.
I spent the week at an incredible retreat for the Katelyn James mastermind. And while I was there, a few things really hit me about success.
The first, is how important community is. When I look at the highest achievers in our industry, none of them got there alone. And each person there needed the feedback from others, whether for encouragement to rest, for strategy, or just for someone to say, hey, you are making a difference. I have thought a lot about the analogy of the horse pulling weight– and that horse can pull 4x the amount of weight when working alongside another.
This is exactly how being an entrepreneur works, but it can be so hard to find your people who will champion you. I have known this for years, and I have known that one of my gifts is bringing people together. I didn’t have anyone to talk to for my first two years as a photographer, and I don’t want anyone else to experience that. It is exactly why I started Create Retreat, and exactly why we started our Connection Community, to make that level of community accessible for people all over.
Second, so much of running a business has to do with your mindset. And as important as it is to have the right mindset, it is something that every single person struggles with.
I realized a lot of mindset blocks I was having as an educator.
You see, I didn’t build a six-figure photography business in my first year. In fact, I didn’t for years. But that wasn’t my goal. All I wanted to do was match my 30k teacher salary. And I realized that for a lot of people, that might be your goal. And I can help others do exactly what we did.
I sometimes feel resentful because so many leaders in our industry had their hustle years before they had kids, and I started growing my business while teaching and fostering a very challenging five-year-old.
But I did it. Slowly but surely, we built a business that fit into our life, instead of building a life around a job we don’t love.
So whatever you are struggling with believing, whether you have doubts about running your business, or doubts about failure, take every thought captive, as my sweet friend Becca reminded me this week. Do what you are called to do, despite the fears that arise.
Third, it truly takes a village. When you look at successful people, none of them are doing it alone. So if you feel like you have hit a wall with how far you can grow, it might be time to grow that village.
I am still growing and learning and finding our community every day, but I am excited to continue to lean into what I am being called to do.
I don’t want to just teach photography because that is an easy next step. It’s actually dang hard. But we live our life so differently, and we are truly grateful every day to be able to have freedom to homeschool and spend our days together as a family, working hard for something we love, and I just want other families to have that same experience.
If you are a photographer who needs a little help getting there, let’s hop on a coaching call and get you closer to your goals!
xo,
Katelyn Workman
