In early 2013, my wife and I moved from Chicago to Milwaukee. In doing so, we moved away from an underwater condo, lots of friends, and 2 steady well-paying jobs not really knowing what was going to happen. She was going to find a job aligned with her passions and I was going to try my hand at freelancing animation / motion graphics while also trying to make life as a photographer a reality.
There was a lot of fear – we (or probably more likely I) had no clue what was going to happen. 2 1/2 years later, I’m still freelancing 3D/2D and doing pretty good. I’m an apprentice AND a Master (!!) in the Arcanum – Magical Academy of Artistic Mastery, teaching a photography class at a local community art center this month, while shooting and selling my work online and in various local stores. My wife is a stay-at-home mom to our now 18-month old son. Wow.
The reason I’m writing this is I came across the following entry in my journal from June of that year. It’s my musings on facing fear and getting out of a life rut. I wrote that plan of action – and promptly took a left turn and went off script. BUT (and that’s a mighty big but), I got to where I am now because of it. The point is, no one will do it for you. You have to make the first step toward what you want to be.
June 19, 2013I haven’t fully given in to the concept of being a photographer – or for that matter – a freelancer. There is definitely fear. It’s like I’m waiting for something to happen or for someone else to say it is ok, “You have permission.” And I won’t ever get that. Only I can do that – to give permission to move forward. What am I afraid of? Failure. Not being accepted. Not being good enough. But as Adam Savage of Mythbusters says, “Failure is ALWAYS an option.” How else will I learn? How else will I truly be happy? If there is no risk, how can there be a reward? You’ve got to just get out there and do it. Write a plan of action and then follow that or at least use it as a jumping off point. Think about what you will gain…
