The #1 Mindset Shift That Every Photographer Needs as They Build Their Business This Year
In honor of the New Year, we have a theme on the podcast this month! I'm sharing the questions I personally ask myself each and every January as I plan the year I'm going to have in my business.
These are questions and exercises I have done for years, and I really do think they help me to continue to be successful and feel inspired. Here's a recap of the questions I've asked so far on the podcast.
The first question I asked is what—what do you want for yourself and your photography business this year? This is really important information to know, because you cannot reach your goals or destination if you don't know where you're going!
Next, I asked you why—why do you want what you want? Why do you love photography and why did you want to start a photography business? Your why is your passion. It’s what gets you through the challenges when they come. Reconnecting with my why is something I try to do at least once a year, and I think that is why I am 24 years into my career and haven't burnt out.
Today we’re going to switch gears a little, now that we know what you want and why you want it, it’s time to look at the who.
HIGHLIGHTS
Who?
This is a mindset thing, and it is essential to know if you are going to build, grow and maintain a successful career in the photography industry. Here's why. Sometimes there is a belief that success is something that happens to us in the future, like it’s a destination we arrive at and a final resting spot.
What I know after 20+ years in this industry, is that success is not something you just wake up having one day. Success is a series of choices. It’s what happens over time when we decide to continually show up and work at moving ourselves closer to our goals.
To show up like that, consistently, with passion, it’s also really important that we’re in the right mindset. How we choose to think will absolutely affect the results we do or don't get from our efforts.
The Struggling vs. Empowered Photographer
There are two kinds of personas or mindsets that we can embody as photographers at any given time. We can show up as what I call the struggling photographer or the empowered photographer.
The “struggling”photographer is a mindset based in fear and scarcity. Being in that mindset feels stressful! The struggling photographer has a victim's outlook on things—meaning they look for reasons outside of themselves to explain why they're not getting the clients they need or why their businesses aren't profitable.
This looks like blaming the saturated market, underpriced competition or the economy for the struggles. While all of those things may be real problems, the struggling photographer mindset is to use those problems to justify inaction.
For example, they’ll say there are too many underpriced photographers bringing us all down, and that is why I can’t raise my rates. Getting caught up in that kind of thinking will negatively impact your marketing efforts, because it makes you feel like you’ve failed before you even get started.
I am just as guilty as anybody when it comes to falling into this mindset—we’ve all done it.
The trick is to name it, so you are able to identify it and catch yourself when you’re falling into it. Then make the decision to change your thoughts. Name it to tame it! The struggling photographer mindset does not lead to growth.
On the other hand, the empowered photographers, when faced with the exact same challenges in their business, will look for solutions instead of excuses. These are the people who choose not to worry about or even look at what other people are charging, for example.
Empowered photographers are able to take emotion and fear out of their business decisions and instead, they look at the data. I'm always talking to the photographers I coach about the importance of data over drama!
If the empowered photographer is not making the money they need, they don’t blame others. Instead, they sit down and figure out what they need to charge in their business to fix the problem! Instead of looking at the competition or chasing the trends, they get clear on what they want and what support they need to make getting what they want a reality.
When in the empowered photographer mindset, if something is not working or you are not getting the results you want, you look for where you need to improve or what you need to change, and then you get the help you need. Empowered photographers know that business is a marathon, not a sprint. So they do the work, even in the hard times, to set themselves up for future success.
This has a huge impact on marketing efforts, because when faced with a challenge, you are less likely to give up when you are in the empowered photographer mindset. It makes it easier to remember your why and then get the help you need to solve the problem and move on.
Building your dream business is absolutely possible. I’ve done it, and I’ve seen the photographers I coach inside of The Six-Figure Studio do it. It just requires making a choice about how you’re going to show up to the challenges you face.
Will it be as the struggling photographer and stay stuck, or will you choose to be the empowered photographer and get help and grow?
If you are inspired and ready to be the empowered photographer but just need a little help planning out your marketing strategy for the year, then check out my free training called The Modern Marketing Method!
