It’s Not Supposed to Be Easy

And the last call to win $500 with Moment

Here we are, the last post of the year. I’ve thought for some time about what I wanted to share with you this week, knowing that this post probably won’t be read as much as others. You know, being New Year’s Eve and all. So with that in mind, I thought I’d share something simple but arguably the most important lesson for those of you that took the time to check in today:

It’s not supposed to be easy.

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Some Context

For those of you that wanna move beyond photography as a hobby, the journey will feel overwhelming more often than not. From finding your first client, to delivering on your promises to the client, to getting your clients to actually pay you, there is no end to the obstacles you’ll face. And just when you think you have a command of things, guess what? It gets harder.

You’ll have equipment fail on you, you’ll have your work criticized, and you’ll probably hit some serious financial issues. But somewhere through it all, something might shine through. Maybe it’s follow back from your favourite photographer. Maybe it’s a repost from your favourite brand. Maybe it’s an award from a reputable institution. Whatever it may be, there might just be this one thing that happens that makes you believe, “Okay, maybe I can figure this sh*t out.” And so you move ahead.

You continue to make the climb and start to hit these inflection points in your journey that propel you further than before. You start surprising yourself. Wait, did you just solve photography?

Hardly.

It’s at that very point, where you think you’re at the top and have it all figured out, that the toll comes due. A thunderous moment of divine reckoning that plummets you back down to Earth, slamming you into a reality that you never saw coming, blasting up a metaphorical mushroom cloud obscuring the path ahead.

This is part of the journey.

Let the dust settle, recompose yourself, and start preparing for the climb ahead. Except this time, you’re armed with the wisdom of everything you’ve been through so far. You see, if this journey of detaching ourselves from that standard 9-to-5 and making it as a full-time creative was easy, everyone would be doing it. But it’s not easy. It’s not easy because the it’s not supposed to be easy. It’s supposed to difficult so that the best of us gets comes out.

Look forward to bringing the best out of you.

The path to making a lifestyle of doing what you love is paved by trading one set of obstacles for another. A life worth living is unpredictable, uncomfortable, and unrelenting. So as we move into a new year, look forward to challenges ahead. This journey isn’t supposed to be easy. And thank goodness it isn’t.

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The MASSIVE December Contest

Each month, I run a contest for the Church & Street community and try to feature something that I think people will appreciate. To celebrate our first 1,000 readers, we’re doing our biggest giveaway to date!

For December, we’re giving away $21,500 worth of credit on the Moment store.

• $500 shop credit for 3 lucky winners

• $20 shop credit for the first 1,000 to enter

All you have to do is be a member of this community and create an account for the Moment Store (so you can receive the credit).

That's it!

If you already have a Moment account with the same email as the one you have here, you’re already entered. For the rest of you, make sure your subscribed to Church & Street and sign up to the Moment Store here. At the end of the month, I’ll be selecting 3 winners that will receive an additional $500 each to the Moment Store.

Once again, this contest is void where prohibited by law. Good luck!

My thanks to the team at Moment! Not only for this contest but for being the longest supporter of my work online. They’re a lean team of passionate individuals that truly believe in supporting creators on their journey. Whether it’s a new camera, lens, workshop, or just some great articles, visit ShopMoment.com today.

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Reader Question: Do you set resolutions for the New Year? If so, what’s on your list for 2024?

I don’t do resolutions. I do goals.

I’ll spend the better part of December mapping out what I’d like to achieve each quarter of the upcoming year. Then I work backwards to chart out what I need to do to make those goals attainable. Every other month, I’m tracking them to make sure they’re being prioritized; that I’m keeping the distractions at bay. This is how I look to get the most out of each year.

Goals themselves are not finish lines or trophies to me. They’re distance markers. They’re put in place to help guide me on this journey and remind me how far I’ve come. So I’m not really celebrating them as much as I’m using them to light the path ahead.

Maybe I’ll dedicate a post to effective goal setting in the future. Let me know if that’s something you’d be interested in reading about.

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What’s Next?

Can I share one more gem? I finished watching Blue Eye Samurai on Netflix a couple weeks ago and there’s this moment in the final episode that I can’t stop thinking about. When our hero is about to face these overwhelming odds and mentions how the situation might be fatal, their unassuming apprentice says, “Don’t be silly, Master. You can’t die… You don’t know how.”

I thought that was some of the coolest dialog ever. That’s the energy we gotta carry into the New Year. A blind confidence in our ability to overcome whatever is in front of us.

If you haven’t yet, make some time to watch Blue Eye Samurai. Anyway, that’s enough for this week. See ya next year.

GB

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