One lesson I learned the hard way you can’t get to the end of the race without running it.
I wanted to do and become so many things so fast.
I stopped doing photography for about two years to focus on building a graphic design and copywriting agency. And I wanted it to take off fast. I wanted it to be at the same level I was at with photography. What I forgot in that moment was that it took me 13 years to get there. Thirteen years of skill, recognition, and learning how to actually run a business. I had the mindset. I didn’t have the reputation or the reps.
What was hard to swallow was that I was better at copywriting than I was at design, despite having a degree in graphic design. The reason was simple. I had put more time into copywriting, writing for my own business and a few friends’ businesses. More reps, more growth. The degree didn’t matter as much as the hours did.
Somewhere along the way I had forgotten that things take time. That the slow way is usually the right way. That paying your dues is not a setback, it’s the whole point.
I’ve since come back to photography, this time adding cinematography to the mix. And I’m coming back different. I see everything now through a designer’s eye. The years I spent writing copy taught me how to use story to sell, to communicate, to connect. That changes how I shoot. It changes what I’m looking for in the frame.
I’m more clear now about what I do, who I want to serve, and where I want to go. I didn’t get there by moving fast. I got there by building slowly, paying attention, and trusting that the work was adding up even when I couldn’t see it yet.
Thirteen years is a long time. It’s also exactly how long it takes.