Listen in Below

I have been doing a lot of work recently on a mindset shift. To be completely honest, this year has been really hard for me. I have talked about it a little bit on the podcast before, but I have come out of a period of not really knowing where I fit in. I’m also relaunching my photography business. I was a photographer for 10 years, but I took about a three-year break and now I’ve started a brand new business with my sister-in-law. It’s called Stephanie and Christi photography, and we’re starting from square one. I’m getting into a market that is brand new to me. I’ve been away for three years and the market has changed a lot in those three years.

So there are a lot of challenges that we have to overcome. And quite honestly, my mindset has been, oh my goodness. I don’t think we can do this. The market is oversaturated. I don’t think we’re going to be able to make it. I don’t know how we’re going to get our foot in the door. How are we going to get our name out there when there are so many amazing, incredible photographers in our area? And that really has hindered our growth because I’ve believed that we are going to fail.

Instead of “What if I Fail?” Think: “What if I succeed?”

If you believe you’re going to fail, that’s already in the works. It’s so easy to fall into that trap of thinking I’m not good enough. I don’t think I can do this. It’s so overwhelming. I don’t know if I can do it. It’s very hard and very challenging to be in business for yourself, but you know what? The rewards are so great that it’s worth it. So I need you to listen to this instead of thinking, “what if I fail?” I want you to think “what if I succeed?” I’ve been listening to a lot of Amy Porterfield’s podcast recently. She is so amazing. Definitely check it out. The Online Marketing Made Easy Podcast is where she hangs out.

She talked about this recently on her podcast. The mindset is way more important than the strategies. And I believe that wholeheartedly 100%. My grandpa used to say, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re absolutely right.” I think he got that quote from Henry Ford. And it’s true. The one mindset shift that you need in business is instead of saying, “what if I fail”, say, “what if I succeed?” Instead of saying, “I can’t do this”, say “I can do this.”

If You Believe In Yourself You Show Up Differently

If you believe that you can do it, you’re going to show up differently. If you have a mission of being the world’s greatest graphic designer, you’re going to show up for your audience as the world’s greatest graphic designer. Then if you feel like, “Ugh, I don’t know I’m good enough, if my work is good enough, or if I’m cut out for this” that’s what your clients are going to get. If you don’t believe in yourself, then you’re going to show up as if you don’t. Tour clients are going to recognize that. And I believe that you are not going to have that success.

So instead of thinking, “What if I can’t”, I want you to have a mindset shift to, “What if I can? What if I can be the best photographer in the world?” How would you show up? If you were the world’s greatest photographer – if that was your reality – how would you show up for your clients? How would you talk about your work? It would truly change everything.

Act as if you’ve already succeeded

If you believed you had already succeeded, you would be a hundred percent more confident. So I want you to act as if it’s already true. The goals that you’re setting today, believe that you are going to achieve them as if you already had. The person that you want to be three years from now, five years from now, 10 years from now, she needs you to show up so that you can get there.

How to Shift Your Mindset When You’re in a Funk

Now you might be thinking, okay, that’s good. I get it. But some days I, I just can’t do that. Like some days I just am in a funk and my mindset is off. So what should I do to achieve that mindset? I would say reach out to a trusted friend that you know. Reach out to them and tell them. Asking for help is a sign if strength.

If you’re not a verbal processor like me, do some journaling and instead. Write down those negative thoughts and then throw them away, shred them, cut them up, and then write down those positive thoughts. Think to yourself, “I can do this. I am going to do this. This is going to work. These strategies will work and I will achieve success.”

I used to think affirmations were a bunch of baloney in that they were so dumb. But they actually do work. If you show up and you say, I am going to be X, Y, Z, I’m going to achieve this goal. I have all the success already coming to me and it’s going to happen. It is sure to happen. It works. You’re going to show up differently.

I know that it’s so easy to get stuck in the trenches. I have been there. I have recently been there, but it’s an everyday moment-by-moment decision to say, “I’m showing up for myself and I’m going to achieve my goals.” So I want you to get after it. You can do it.

If you’re ready to dive in, I want you to check out the Crush Your Goals with Christi mini course. It’s only $30 and it’s going to give you some big wins, my friend!