F-Word. Sunday Confessions.

Some people succeed more than others – it’s a fact of life that can inspire or discourage. Some days I float on clouds, breaking out into a booty dance after booking another wedding or hearing the trembling thank-you’s of fans and clients, other days – I bury my face in a pillow or a bowl of popcorn and season it with tears of frustration and self-doubt after reading a few blogs of wedding photography giants. 

This roller coaster is never a ‘free ride’ and is the life story of many entrepreneurs, not just in the wedding photography business. Surely, an f-word is bound to come to mind at some point, so long as it’s not failure. Because that one word can drive you into the ground. 

I’ve recently devoured a great book by Malcolm Gladwell called ‘Outliers.’ It sheds light on many remarkable stories of success and … demystifies them. It’s easy to point your finger up at something shiny and dismiss its merit because duh, it’s a star. But in reality, more often then not, there is a stupendous amount of work preceding that effortless brilliance. Because practice is not something we do once we get good. It’s what we do like hamsters in a wheel until we’re good. And then we must keep doing it. 

The devil’s advocate on my shoulder is whispering that it’s not so simple. That being good and even great at what you do is just not enough. And often the timing must be just right for you to be the Oprah, Tony Robbins, Kawasaki, Tyra Banks, or Jasmine Star. To fill a niche, a void … and become the next iPod. 

We have to find ways to become a ‘viral inspiration’ and make whatever we sell a natural extension of our identity and personality. 

I’ve recently been practicing some funky hand balances in ashtanga class. And here’s the trick – once you find your balance, even for a second, you must look ahead and not at the floor underneath you – otherwise you will fall forward and hit your forehead. Hard. Trust me.So just do look ahead. Don’t jump up to reach the stars, and certainly forget that f-word. 

I’m off to do the booty dance, to the crackling of my popcorn. 

Happy Sunday… 

Thank you to the beautiful and talented Margo of EyeLush Photography for this shot of me…