One year ago (as of yesterday), I left my full-time job and started working for myself. So before I even start this blog post, I need to excuse myself and do a happy dance to celebrate my 1-year anniversary! Best. Thing. EVER!

{enter happy dancing, some T-swift music, tons of smiles and confetti!}

Quitting my “real job” and working for myself has been hands-down one of the best decisions I have ever made! Working full-time as a wedding photographer is a dream come true, and I could never fully thank all the wonderful people who made this first year successful. I feel like quite a few of my last personal posts have been sappy, so I’ll save it (…but seriously…thank you).

There are so many people out there who are probably stuck at a job they don’t love, and daydreaming about their dream jobs (even though they might think it’s stupid). So to celebrate my first year, I thought it’d be helpful to shell out some advice for those people.

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1) Getting your dream job does NOT “just happen”

I don’t mean to sound snobby, but a lot of people are envious about my job (now that I’m successful at it hah!). People say to me all the time, “you’re SO lucky that you get to do what you love / be your own boss / work from home / do your dream job.” And they are right! I am so lucky! But I also didn’t just get here because of luck (and neither will you, unfortunately). It would have been lovely to just make a wish on a star and have my business be this successful, but that’s not how it works. I worked my butt off for over a year before I got to the point where I could even consider quitting my job (on that note, I’m 100% convinced that wedding photographers are the hardest working people I know – seriously, I tip my hat to all of my fellow peeps. Y’all inspire me). Getting to do your dream job, in most cases, takes months and years of hard work. It takes sacrifice, commitment, hard work and passion. Regardless of what your dream job is, stop talking about it and start working towards it!

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2) You have to say no sometimes

Being successful at something sometimes means you have to say no to things. It’s a double-edged sword of good and bad. Maybe you have to say no to that party invitation because you’ve got a blog post to write, or an exam to study for. I miss out on a ton of things since I shoot weddings on the weekends, for example. Sacrifice for your dreams! If it’s really what you want, it’s worth it.

There is also a “good side” of saying no – even though it can definitely be hard sometimes. If you’re the owner of a small business, like me, you have to learn to say no to things that you don’t enjoy, things that aren’t worth your time (that sounds mean, I don’t mean it that way though!), or things you’re not good at. For me, that means not photographing many families (I don’t enjoy it), turning down design work (it takes so much time out of my photography work and the pay isn’t as good), and saying no to photography jobs outside of my portrait work (I’m just simply not that good at traditional headshots, shooting architecture, or sports photography. And that’s okay).

By saying no to those types of things, I am saying YES to the things I love most: weddings + newborns. It’s fabulous because I get to focus on what I am good at and what I enjoy, and I have a stronger niche because I’m not a jack-of-all-trades! The longer I am in this business, I hope to continue saying no in order to further the niche that I love – creative, outdoor photography.

I guess the same thing goes for whatever job you want – doctors say no to things all the time so they can get their dream jobs (dates, parties, vacations, etc.) and then they also say no to things they don’t enjoy (for example, maybe they hate neurology but love OB/GYN)! Saying no to things you don’t love, no matter how hard it can be, is really important in being successful.

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3) Don’t let fear stop you

Taking a chance on a dream is scary. Sometimes it works out, and sometimes it doesn’t. There’s also the fear of what other people might think (which I’ve harped on before…). But don’t let that fear stop you! I told my husband a few days ago that I was a bit nervous about how many out of town weddings I have this year. His answer? “Good.”

I’ll leave you with this quote:

“Are you paralyzed with fear? That’s a good sign. Fear is good. Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do. Remember one rule of thumb: the more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.”

-Steven Pressfield

(thanks to Jess Barfield for sending me this – it meant and continues to mean so much)