on my way down to United, i had a lot of time to think, listen to podcasts, and brainstorm. i mean for real, i was in a car by myself for 11+ hours. i’ve been going through what i’ve so lovingly called a “business midlife crisis” because i’m just honestly not sure where i want to be and what i want to do with my business. so i’ve been pondering on that and trying to figure out what it is i want to do + need to do in order to feel fulfilled. i love shooting weddings, but i’ve been feeling major burnout. i love working with bloggers, but i don’t know if that could sustain my business. i don’t love shooting families, but it supplements my income.
at United, a question that kept being asked was, “what is your WHY behind your business?” in essence, why do you do what you do? & every time it was asked, i had to pause to think about what my why really was. in fact, at the end of the conference i still wasn't sure i knew for certain what my why was.
as i was driving down to United, the word intentional popped into my mind and honestly, i still can’t get it out of my mind. i knew that it had to be a part of my business(es) because it is such a huge part of my life right now. i realized on my drive down that the word to describe what Parker and i have been doing over the last year with downsizing, starting new businesses & cultivating the relationships with people in our lives has to do with living an intentional life. let me explain what i mean by this.
INTENTIONAL MINIMALISM
i believe SO strongly in intentional minimalism. i feel like a lot of minimalists will tell you that stuff is just stuff. which, honestly, they’re not wrong. when it comes to kitchen utensils, shirts, bedding (heck, even beds), shoes, etc. that stuff is just stuff. it can be replaced. i give that stuff to the DI (thrift store) like it’s my day job. but there are a few things that have no worth to other people that i would never ever give away. like our sets of scriptures, our journals, our Chatbooks and our wedding album. i won’t sell or give away my camera because i use it extremely regularly. i won’t sell or give away Parker’s football jerseys or hats because they mean something to him. i can’t get rid of our bed because, well, we need a bed. there are so many things that you can give away or downsize about, but it’s okay to have things that matter to you. which is why intentional minimalism is the kind of minimalism i can get behind.
INTENTIONAL STORYTELLING
i feel that intentional moments captured are the important ones & the ones that truly tell your story. honestly, as a photographer, it’s so, so easy to have a trigger finger. (Trigger finger = like the paparazzi, not really anticipating moments, but just shooting as much as possible & hoping to capture something good) & while i know that the point of a photographer is to help you remember your day, but let’s talk about intentional moments and actually telling your story. i think something terrible has happened to the wedding world — especially in LDS culture. this is the storyline of the typical LDS Bride (and don’t feel bad, this was me too). you get engaged, then you start planning your wedding that’s happening in 3 months or less. you find the cheapest, well, everything. reception venue, dress, florist, photographer, make-up artist (if you even hire one), all of it. & i get it because weddings can be so, so expensive! but when you skimp on those things to save a buck, none of it is telling your story. your love story isn’t really included into your wedding because you weren’t intentional about telling your story. the way to intentionally tell your story is to be intentional about who you hire and what you choose to incorporate into your wedding day. & trust me when i say, you don’t have to hire a $10,000 photographer in order to tell your story. but you do need to find someone who you feel will tell your story the way you want it told. if you choose me as your storyteller, cool!!!! if not, i totally understand! i just hope that you’re hiring someone who will tell your story.
INTENTIONAL FRUGALITY
this one we are definitely working on in 2018 & we are so excited!! one of our goals as a family is to be completely out of debt by 2019 (including our cars!!!) & start our emergency savings. it's going to take a lot (a lot) of hard work & dedication, but i know that it will be worth it. in order to do this, we have to start practicing intentional frugality. which means things like meal planning, planning trips & dates carefully + in advance. one thing we would really like to get back into (because it saved us a good chunk of change) is inviting friends & family over for dinner! we also want to start outsourcing things in order to save time & money in the long run & hopefully be able to make more money with the extra time we give ourselves!!
INTENTIONAL EDUCATION
in 2017, we weren't very intentional about our education. as most of you know (maybe you don't. you're about to know) i discontinued college in 2017. ("the summer after i discontinued high school" name that movie...) i was having a really hard time with having the desire to pay tuition + be there, so parker & i decided it would be best if i took some time off. i chose to further my education in 2017 with workshops + conferences. it was a blast, but i want to be even more intentional in 2018. i'd love to join a few masterminds or do some 1:1 training or apprenticeships. we're still figuring out what would be best.
INTENTIONAL HEALTH PRACTICES
if you know me, you know that a sleeve of oreos + a tall glass of milk counts as breakfast, lunch or dinner in my book. i love a good donut (or a bad one. i'm not about to hate on any type of donut). hot dogs are one of my favorite foods. & i think cooking is for the birds. buuuuut we're also trying our best to have a baby & we've been told that diet can really affect fertility. so i want to start being much more intentional with what goes into my body as well as how i treat my body. before we got mack, we went to the gym every day. i ran for 15-20 minutes each day & was feeling great. but we haven't been back since we got mack in july, so i'm hoping to start running again. AND i would absolutely love to get into yoga.
INTENTIONAL SPIRITUALITY
i haven't shared this with very many people, but in 2017, i had a really hard time with my overall spirituality. i had a hard time with having the desire to go to church, read my scriptures, and even pray. but as i've worked through those feelings, i've had a greater desire to increase my spirituality in 2018. i want to establish great spiritual practices + habits. i want to be intentional about what i'm studying & learning.
i've already started working on being more intentional & i can't wait to share the changes i'm making as well as how they have affected me & my life!throughout the year, i will be sharing posts to help you be more intentional in 2018, so stay tuned!
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