Recently, I started to do a “Q&A Tuesday” on Instagram stories and one of the questions prompted me to go into a little more detail with my answer to “If you could go back 5 years ago, what tips or advice would you give yourself.
I took a little time on my daily night walk and got the gears turning. As I let my mind wander a little on the subject, I came to the conclusion that there were some key points that kept coming up. I realize many of you may already know some of this but, as someone who had very little knowledge of business when I first started, I would say there are many points that I neglected or strayed from during the course of developing my business as a commercial photographer.
Reflect More Often, Not just on what you could have done better but, what you did right.
I find that many of us creatives are perfectionists and are our worst critics. This can be a critical part of growing your skills but, it can often deteriorate the mind. It can lead to us never believing we are good enough, holding us back by not putting our work out there, and in general tends to be “negative thinking”. It is important to reflect on what you did right, it is a part of a positive mindset and is also equally as important to growing your skills as you then get to learn “what works” and potentially “what you should keep doing”. So when you reflect on a project or an experience, don’t forget to talk to yourself about what you did right!
Slow it down a bit, Be More Present at the moment. There is no need to race to the end.
This is one that can be tough and has been one of my greatest challenges. We often think we are behind in life, most of our parent’s generation had a career, married, and had kids by the age of 25 and if we base our lives on that… then I would say the majority of people would feel like their timeline is skewed. But, the faster we run to the end, the harder we fall and burnout is extremely difficult to overcome. Not only is it not a fun experience but, it screws up our timeline even more. After working with many people in palliative care, I’ve learned that one of the most common regrets on one’s deathbed is wishing that they took a little more time. Life can be short and if you let the moments fly by you, you miss out on a lot of incredible experiences while you’re busy wishing for the next one.
Build a routine, there is always enough hours in the day if you plan it out
Schedule your life out to the best of your ability. BUT, don’t let the schedule control your every move as great opportunities can come out of nowhere. This point is more to make sure you do those things you really want to do, those things that create balance and happiness in your life. Ex. Reading, spending time with your family, partner, or friends, walking, etc. These daily staples that make you happy and fulfilled should not be neglected. Without them, you won’t want to do everything else you need to do and if you are anything like I once was, it is a lot harder to decide on what to eat 2hrs after you should have. So put your Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner in your calendar.
Read at least 1 hr per day
I can easily say I probably went a decade without reading a whole book. Over the course of 2020, I probably read more books in 1 year than I had in my entire life. I have always been more of a visual guy but there is something really relaxing about picking up a book and learning about a specific subject matter. I can’t say there is a specific reason I recommend this, but for me, it allowed me to shut everything off for a bit and learn about subjects of interest. I know you can find a lot of information on the internet these days but, there is a lot of knowledge out there that can be found in a book.
Never stop learning new things
This is an easy one and one that you are likely already doing naturally. But, it also helps to make a conscious effort to explore learning something new every day.
Embrace the Process, it is more valuable than the final results
As a creative, the goal is always the final result but, it can often be anti-climactic. The real joy can and should be found in the process. This goes back to the point about Slowing down and not rushing to the end. The end is boring. If you don’t love the process, then you should find something else to do with your life because it is not what you are meant to be doing.
Take a daily meditative walk
This one should really just say “meditate”. But, for myself, walking is what allows me to do that. I realize meditating is meant to clear your mind, but in reality, even when you meditate you are often processing something. When I walk, I go through many different phases, I think, reflect, process, shut off, visualize, and in general wander aimlessly with little direction. It is a great time to figure shit out. If you don’t take time daily to process and reflect, you will burn out and not know how you got there.
Acknowledge the micro wins
It’s always about the big picture… but, while you are on your way to completing that big picture, there are many other moments worth celebrating. Acknowledging them has a lot of power in pushing you further. Reminding yourself that you are always winning allows you to feel a more positive nature. When you’re always winning, the big picture will appear a lot closer than if you only focus on it.
Physical health has a lot of influence on your mental health, so find a way to enjoy keeping fit
I’m a big advocate for mental health and the majority of my personal work is focused on that subject. But, we are complex creatures and if one thing is off, everything else can be. Take care of your health, be active, and find something that makes being active attractive. It will be a lot easier to stick with it in the long run.
Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, it generally leads to good things
Get out of your head, get out of your comfort zone. No one has ever been rewarded for playing it safe or hiding away. There is a motivational speaker by the name of Les Brown you put it best. See the video below and feel the regret of waiting in his words
Listen to your gut
It’s always right! I can’t tell you how many times I had taken on a project that I knew was wrong for me. It isn’t worth the money and it often costs you way more than you actually make.
Focus on what makes you happy, not what makes you money
Money will come if you are doing something you love. Everyone wants to be a millionaire and free of financial troubles but, for many people, this never happens because they are focused on all the wrong things. If you are happy, doing what you love, you will be rewarded and more importantly, you will always feel rewarded.
Don’t try to do everything by yourself
Ask for help and outsource some of your work. There is no reason for you to do it all by yourself and working as a team is way more productive. If you are doing it all by yourself, you are neglecting the bigger things that you could be doing.
There is always a silver lining
Life and the world are twisted… Shit happens in life and many of us I am sure have said at one point or another “Why me?” Life works in strange ways and I can promise, there is always a silver lining, you just have to look for it and give it time to come to fruition.
The mind is the most powerful tool in your arsenal, take control of it, don’t let it control you
You have all the power in the world to control how you look at things. Don’t let your mind skew your point of view.
Prepare for a global pandemic
What more needs to be said? 😉
5 years ago I may have been aware of some of this, might have followed this advice from time to time. But, I can’t stress how valuable it has been for me going forward in life and business. I hope you can take something from this list to apply it to your current situation and even if only 1% of it is effective, you are 1% better than you once were.
– Brandon
