Welcome to part two of my series on busyness & burnout. With fall photo season upon us, my goal is to share some hard-earned wisdom and help you create healthy work habits and boundaries so that you love this job for the long haul. It's 100% doable, when approached with intention!
If I were only able to share one truth with you, it would be this one. It's not only true in business and busy season, but also in all of life, and it's the key to making decisions that are truly right for you and your family for the long haul.
Honestly, this is everything. First name / Friend:
Never forget that every yes is also a no.
This is genuinely one of the most important guiding principles in my life, because it reminds me to avoid default decisions and to think deeply about the flip side of each of my choices.
A few examples…
> A yes to too many sessions feels nice financially, but is also a no to needed rest and family time.
> A yes to more of the same work that drains you feels reliable and maybe even wise, but is also a no to creating a business that truly aligns with your gifting.
> A yes to your comfort zone feels safe and smart, but is also a no to growth.
But thank goodness, the reverse is also true: every no is also a yes.
> A no to too many sessions is a yes to truly caring for yourself and your family.
> A no to work you don't enjoy is a yes to time and space to pursue something bigger and more beautiful.
> A no to your comfort zone is a huge yes to growth, freedom, and opportunity.
It's too easy to live life on autopilot, or forget to think through all of the consequences of our decisions.
Taking on a few too many sessions might not seem like a big deal - and we often consider only the immediate financial benefit. The money is good in the moment, but we have to count the cost on our health and relationships. More work is great - until it's not.
Similarly, it's easy to say yes to work simply because it pays the bills, without realizing that the very work that feels safe or easy is keeping us from something so much bigger and better. Our time and energy are limited resources, and we need to use those resources wisely with the future in mind.
And it's easy to stay in our comfort zone - it's comfortable, after all. And safe! But powerful, beautiful growth only happens outside of our comfort zone, as we learn to take risks. And of course, risk is risky! We'll fail sometimes, but that's genuinely okay.
I'm not here to tell you what specific decisions are right or wrong, or how much work is too much, or how many hours of sleep you need each night, etc. And I have personally committed to tough seasons of too much work and too little rest, because the end goal was well worth the sacrifice. No regrets! If you're in a season of sacrifice, simply make sure that you're choosing it with intention.
What I want to do is to encourage you to have your eyes wide open to the hidden consequences (both good and bad) of each decision, and never make choices by default. When the flip side is considered, our decisions can be made with more confidence, clarity, and wisdom.
I am so, so guilty of having made the safe, default decisions without realizing how much I was actually saying no to. The past few years have been a time of some brutal stretching and pushing and testing for me, both in business and in life. And what I've come out with on the other side is a mindset shift that I would never trade: I am truly learning to never live by default.
Like I said before, this truth doesn't only apply to business, but to every aspect of life. Health, confidence, relationships, parenting, lifestyle, satisfaction, and more. Whatever area you might be frustrated in, start by making decisions with eyes wide open to the flip side, and you just might realize that you have so much more power than you ever felt before - not just during busy season, but so far beyond!
And First name / friend, if you're ready to say no to your comfort zone and no to more of the same… and a big yes to growth and freedom and opportunity, you might be the perfect fit for my mastermind. Unbasic Creatives is a six month group coaching program designed for family & newborn photographers who want to build a high-end, profitable business that gets noticed, create their best work yet, and make those daydream goals become a reality - all with a supportive community of likeminded creatives!
