The Secret to Success? Being Intentional

Like so many of us, I fell into photography.  When my daughter was born I (very arrogantly) decided not to spend $1000 on newborn photos, and to just buy myself a camera instead.  

Turns out, it’s a lot harder than it looks, hey.

And the more I work with other women who’ve fallen into this beautiful career in a similar way, the more I see them faltering at the same hurdle.

Did you know that if a hiker gets lost in the bush, they’re supposed to sit down and wait to be rescued?

It’s because when they lose their bearings, they end up walking in circles.  But too often they plough on ahead, following their feet, putting in the steps and assuming that by just keeping on going they’ll eventually find their way out of the mess they’re in…but actually they just end up right back where they started, exhausted and still lost.

And I see the same thing happening to photographers, all the time.

A hobby becomes a side hustle, which becomes a full time job.  And they work hard – so hard – honing their craft, working weekends, posting on instagram daily, editing til midnight… but the lifestyle business they dreamed of feels as far away as ever. And eventually, they get tired and they run out of steam and they sit down and wait for someone to rescue them.  Usually in the form of a big shiny ‘proper’ job with a steady pay check and paid holidays.

What they need is a North Star.

Your North Star is your reference point.  Your marker of success.  Your destination.

If you can see it clearly, then all you need to do is put one foot in front of the other until, eventually, you reach it.

Sometimes, the sky will cloud over.  You’ll lose sight of it for a little while.  But you keep looking for it, knowing it’s there, and once the clouds part you can correct your direction again – and you’ll only have gone a little way off course.

Typically, for photographers, this North Star consists of three things: Financial Goals, Creative Goals, and Lifestyle Goals.

How much do you want (or need) to earn?  What work do you want (or need) to be doing? What hours do you want (or need) to be working (or not working)?

So many photographers I work with have never actually taken the time to work this out.  They’re on the busy treadmill, saying yes to whatever work comes their way, shouting into their instagram abyss, drafting the same email hundreds of times, ‘too busy’ to outsource or systemise.

If you can map your North Star clearly, then you can refer back to it regularly.  Stick it on the wall behind your desk.  Have it as your phone wallpaper.  Read through it on the 1st of the month, every month.

The indisputable fact is that the more often you reference your direction to your North Star, the faster you’ll get where you want to go.  

Otherwise, you’re just going around and around in circles.

Feeling lost?  You need the Business Accelerator. Small group mentoring focussing on the four fundamental lessons you need to nail in your business.  Clarity, Conversions and Community. More info: https://toghub.com.au/business-accelerator