2020 goals / how to set yourself up for success

As we enter into 2020, this topic might be more important now than ever. I wholeheartedly believe in setting goals so that you can do things to stay focused in your pursuit of accomplishing all you want. It is by no mistake that one of the first things I have my mentor students do is list out their top 3 business goals. We need to be focused on where we’re going + be intentional with our time. Here are some of my tips for setting realistic, attainable goals + setting yourself up for success!

Don’t let your goals depend on someone else’s movement

What I mean by this is try to avoid goals that have to do with things you yourself cannot directly control. Stay away from anything that has to do with the numbers game + here’s why:

Previously, I’ve had a goal of the number of weddings I wanted to book for the year. It was a little ambitious, however I felt that I should be able to obtain that. When I didn’t quite land that number of bookings, I felt like a failure. I was more focused on that failure than the fact that I was reaching other goals I hadn’t made for myself - like getting featured by bridal shop magazines, wedding blogs + online publications, or the fact that I made 3x as much income in my business than the year before. I wasn’t allowing myself to celebrate that I booked + traveled out of state + even internationally multiple times for shoots + weddings, had developed my mentor program and was even invited to teach among some of the industry’s top name photographers at a workshop.

After that, my goals looked more like getting all my back-end things taken care of during slow season, developing online workshops + courses, hosting workshops, traveling out of state for shoots - even if I have to set them up myself, stay on top of my bookkeeping, locations I will shoot at, so on and so forth.

write them down

as soon as you’re done reading this, go write them down. put them someplace you’ll come back to them, see them + be motivated. studies have shown that if you see something enough, it helps you to stay focused and therefore are more likely to accomplish those things.

break it down

especially with huge ambitious, scary or even just time consuming goals, break them down into little chunks that are realistic to complete. this serves a few purposes:

1. it helps you feel accomplished - you are able to see the steps you are taking

2. it helps you stay motivated - when I have a long list of to-dos, I need to be able to cross things off. If I work all day and wasn’t able to check off a couple tasks, I feel defeated.

3. it gives you more focus - you don’t have to worry about the big scary thing. you just work on one little thing at a time. and then you’ll get there.

get accountability partners

once you’ve written them on paper, broken them down into manageable steps, tell some friends. there’s something about speaking it out loud that makes it real. plus having other people that will be checking in on you, encouraging you, and celebrating with you when you accomplish it will make such a huge difference! (this is a great way to use our cohort group chat too!)

grow your goals

when you go throughout the year, feel free to add new goals to the list. don’t box yourself in. some of these goals might be by the end of 2020, some might be overarching business goals that you want to reach at some point. either way, add to it, challenge yourself + let yourself dream big.

however I can help you chase those dreams, I will! that’s what I’m here for - I will always be a cheerleader for you, motivator, challenger + encourager!

senior sunday / 5 things I wish every senior knew

hey guys!

I wanted to spend some time getting you info you might need in planning for your senior session - here are a few tips I wish all my seniors knew...

1. Senior Photos are about more than just a yearbook photo

There is so much going on in your life right now + there is such an amazing story to tell. Beyond just capturing pretty images of your beautiful face, it's about capturing who you are - the way your nose crinkles up when you laugh real hard, the way you move when you feel confident or how you rest when you think no one is looking. The way your eyes light up when you talk about something you love + how you get super giggly when thinking of some inside joke you have with your friends. How proud you feel when you talk about your accomplishments or how nervous you might feel about going off to college and this time in your life. All these things come together to make this incredible human that is you - and I just want to help capture THAT. Which is about so much more than just a pretty picture that goes in a yearbook. It's about YOU.

2. Not all photographers are the same

Now this might seem like a no brainer - but hear me out. There are a lot of photographer out there that can take stunningly gorgeous images. They can make you look like a million bucks and deliver a gallery full of perfect images. But we all work different. We each have something that drives us and makes us unique. And we aren't all the right fit for every senior.

There are so many things to consider when choosing your senior photographer - what is the style you like, how they capture people, what they have to offer in collections, and of course, pricing. I will urge you to not be just a price shopper when it comes to choosing your photographer. Find one who's style speaks to you. Who you feel like will get you and that you will be comfortable with. Regardless of who you choose - these are all things to consider.

3. Yearbook deadlines are closer than you think!

For most the schools in my area - yearbook photos are due by the end of September/Mid October. This means that you only have about 6-7 months from TODAY to get your images done, selected + submitted. Even if you have a later deadline - photographer's availability starts dwindling, so you want to get in contact with the one you want sooner than later.

4. Those amazing warm sunny dreamy summer session dates fill up FAST

I am already booking for my August + September sessions, which are the most sought after, and those dates go quickly. If you are wanting that sun kissed look in your images + late summer is your fave time of the year - you might want to start talking with your photographer to snag your date now. It seems like you've got time - but it goes way faster than you think.

5. Weekday sessions are the best

Often times weekends might seem more ideal - but here are a few things to consider:

Your ideal location will be less busy during the week than on the weekend when everyone else is off. This means you'll have the place more to yourself, more freedom and less people bustling about. Even if it's during the school year - missing school or getting out a little early doesn't suck. We leave school for other appointments, and let's be honest - your senior photos will only happen once - so making adjustments on time is well worth it!

Photographers tend to book up weekends way faster, so you'll be more likely to get the time of the year you want or have more options for dates if you're willing to take a weekday. I always do a happy dance when my girls are able to shoot during the week - between my family time, doing weddings + everything else - it makes my life a million times easier + I'll be way more likely to be able to give you a date you want.

Also - if you're looking to get hair + makeup done, salons will usually be able to get you in for your date during the week way easier than a weekend. (hair + makeup is totally not necessary - but some people just want to be a little extra pampered which is a-okay!)

There's so much to come on tips for locations, choosing the right outfit, styling tips + more! So stay tuned...