“Play is the core of creativity and innovation.”

Since becoming a personal brand photographer I've learned a lot about myself. I always wanted to pursue photography but never found it as an option. I knew I loved composition and that I had an eye for it, but it didn’t go much further than that. It wasn’t until I was 35 before I started taking photography seriously. Before that I was very sporadic with my creativity.

You see, I've always been creative but never really had set goals. So I just did random creative things that didn't serve a greater purpose. I see that now. I'm able to analyze what specific things intrigue me. Then I can create a plan on how to do more of those things. And follow through with that! Having a direction to head has given my day to day tasks more purpose and meaning. I have an aim, a holistic accomplishment that I can strive for. 

I also didn’t exactly feel “creative”. At that moment all I could see was that I’m not good at drawing, so in my head I’m like, “I wish I was creative.” At a certain point I realized that to be a creative person doesn’t mean that you're creative at everything. A seasoned potter might not be great with their words and therefore does not want to write poems. This does not diminish their creativity when it comes to their clay art. 

Through studying personal branding and photography I’ve also learned not only WHAT I like but WHY I like it. It was a much-needed introspection to find my passion. It also helps me decide how to go about doing the thing I want to do. For example, I hate social media. But it’s important to ask what I don’t like about it and how using it can be helpful. 

It's been 2 years since I started this photography journey and here are some big takeaways I've learned from it:

• Small Businesses are regular people

• The photography market is not oversaturated (or any market for that matter)

• I love capturing portraits, textures, and colors

• I love discovering all creative entrepreneurs out there

• I work in very methodical ways

I didn't know these things before! I would highly advise if you’re looking to follow a passion of yours there’s a few things you can do to determine what exactly you should do and how you should go about it. One, I highly recommend reading the book Pink Goldfish. It opens your mind to be unique, and it honestly extinguished all of the imposter syndrome I had. Two, check out my Guide To Personal Branding Checklist. It’s free and for literally anyone who is trying to hone in on their passion and learn a few things about themselves. It’s actually just good practice to reevaluate every once in a while! 

(If you’re interested, check out my Guide To Personal Branding Checklist)

It feels like every day I learn more about myself and the vision of who I truly am becomes more and more clear. Instead of living in a fear of “What if it doesn’t work?”, I move forward with an attitude like, “I wonder what it’d look like if I did this!” I'm embracing the fact that things usually turn out pretty well, despite the negative Nancy inside my head pointing out what’s wrong with the idea. Play is the core of creativity and innovation.

Here’s a few quotes that have been my everything lately:

“If you enjoy what you're doing, it doesn't matter if it goes well.”

“Make authenticity your priority. Not acceptance and approval.”

“If you start from the position that there is no right or wrong, no good or bad, and creativity is just free play with no rules, it's easier to submerge yourself joyfully in the process of making things.”

“Your pessimism is keeping you from experiencing joys that you've never felt before.”

“Trust in your ability to figure it out.”

“Don't let fear control you. If you can't beat the fear just do it scared. You absolutely can. How you feel does not need to dictate what you do and how you do it.”

Keep capturing with emotion!

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