Owning Your Story: What My Mission Really Means (And Why It Matters to You)

I had struggled a long time with understanding my “why,” my purpose in business. I knew I wanted to create imagery that people loved of themselves, that they would treasure and hand down. 

But I also knew there was more to that.

Then over the summer, it hit me. I had finally figured it out.

My mission? To help my clients own their story, take their place in history, and document their journey with incredible imagery.

It was a huge “Aha!” moment for me, and I started putting it out there, on everything.

But I also started getting asked a key question: “What does that actually mean?”

So let’s break it down.

How many of us do not fully own our story?

Instead of fully owning our story, we compartmentalize ourselves instead.

For example, I am a documentary filmmaker. I am a photographer. I am a wife. I am a mother. I 

am an adult fan of Lego. I am a traveler. I’m a reader. I’m a writer.

And when I was in corporate, it was so easy to think of myself as two halves, one for work, and one for not-work.

But this is much harder in the entrepreneurial space; or at least, it seems to be. My work self and my not-work self are very muddled. And I’m realizing that if I allow my full personality to shine in my marketing and my business, I’m much better off than I used to be.

I’ve started to own all those various parts of myself that different people enjoy and more people get to experience.

And that’s part of what I’m talking about with “Own Your Story.”

I want you to stop compartmentalizing who you are in different spaces.

I want you to own who you are in every space, and at all times.

Because when you do? You draw the people best suited to working with you, or being in relationship with you, to you.

And those who aren’t? They self-select themselves out.

So many of us think that of the billions of people on this planet, we don’t really matter. That we’re insignificant.

But I’m here to tell you that this is B.S.

You matter. A lot.

You matter for yourself.

You matter for your loved ones.

You matter for the community around you because you are impacting them every day.

When you’re your authentic self, when you’re owning your story, when you’re going out in the world and interacting with people, you’re creating love and light and laughter, and you are helping them be better versions of themselves by being a better version of yourself.

Which also means that showing up in imagery matters. And it’s a part of how you impact the people around you.

You’re in a constant state of evolution, so you’re always becoming someone better than you were the day before.

Does your imagery reflect that? Are you able to trace that evolutionary path through your imagery?

It may sound silly, but the next time you look back through your photographs, see if you can find the threads of your story through those images. They’re like a tapestry, telling your story in nuanced ways through paper and ink. They’re your visual legacy.

And they document your place in history.

Because you matter. You are important. You are here for a reason.

And you should be celebrating the milestones and achievements with imagery all along the way.

Let me give you an example of what I mean by this.

Think of a historical figure. A monarch, perhaps. (I know, I’ve used this example in other ways before.)

This monarch will have various paintings or portraits of themselves from different times of their lives. Childhood. Adolescence. Adulthood. As the ruling monarch.

And when historians teach the history, the legacy, of this person, they reference those portraits. 

These images are the backbone of the story that’s being told.

That series of imagery is how we remember them and how we tell their story.

And if you don’t have that, you’re missing out on a big component of what your legacy will look like.

And I want you to be proud of what you leave behind.

I know for myself, when I look at an image, I see not just the person in it, but also the day it was taken. The time and place and the people and things that surrounded us in the moment.

And for the images where I wasn’t there when it was taken? I’ll still think of the way the person smiled, or something they said, or some other happy memory I have of that person. Like with my grandparents, or my mom. They’re no longer here, but they had an impact on me and I’m more easily able to remember them because of the pictures I have of them.

So when you’re not in the photos, your loved ones have a much harder time reconnecting with you, remembering you.

As someone who has lost their mom and their grandparents, I can tell you that voices fade over time. And that is not an easy thing to think of. I can hear some aspects of my mom’s voice, but others I have to go back and listen to recordings of her to get.

But those images, when I see those images of her, I can hear that voice. I can see that smile. I can feel that hug.

And I want you to have that for yourself, to give to others. Having imagery that you love of yourself is such a powerful way of expressing what your story is to those around you. 

The third part of my mission is documenting your journey with incredible imagery.

And I think this is the part that has tripped people up the most. What, exactly, do I mean by “incredible imagery”?

It means creating imagery that connects with you, that you love, and that you want to share with others.

So many of us have all of these pictures that other people have taken us at an awkward angle or in a weird light, or, you know, is very ‘meh.”

OR you have great pictures, but you can’t look beyond the things you like least about yourself. 

The way one eye closes down when you smile, but the other doesn’t, or how your hair wasn’t perfect, or how big some attribute looks.

We are often our own worst critics.

But when you’re able to work with a photographer who takes the time to get to know you, who wants to celebrate you, who wants you to bring sentimental pieces in with you to add that next level of storytelling to your images, you’re able to walk away with art that you love and that you want to share.

Art that you are proud to print and hang on your wall

A recent client of mine came in for a Brand Advantage session to update his personal branding. 

He had spent many years in corporate, but was launching something new, and his headshot was way out of date.

He told me that he’s done with the traditional headshot. He wanted imagery that represents the thought leader he’s becoming. He said, “I want it to be dark and moody.”

So we made it dark and moody.

And also personal.

Because he brought in a watch that his wife had given him on their first anniversary. It’s a special piece for him that he treasures, and it made the images that much more impactful for him and the story he’s telling about himself.

And we posed him in such a way through several of the outfits to make sure that the watch was visible. It ties his personal and professional lives together and adds extra meaning to his branding images.

That’s what I mean by incredible imagery.

To create pictures of you that you’ll look back on and remember the experience with excitement, fondness, perhaps even love. Because they’re the story of who you are, where you’ve been, and where you’re headed.

My favorite branding image is printed and displayed where I can see it every day. It reminds me of how confident I was during that session, of how amazing I felt, and how much fun I had with the photographer who took that image.

And my Postpartum Project prints? They remind me of the strength and the vulnerability and all the things I was channeling to create that imagery.

It is so important to see yourself in that imagery.

And when you’re able to see yourself in imagery that you love over and over and over again, you get to be more confident. You get to feel more of yourself in that artwork and in the community around you.

So I want you to take this as an opportunity to reflect on what you have in terms of imagery, whether it’s for personal or professional, or even blending the two.

Do you exist in imagery?

Do you have imagery you love that you want to share?

Is your imagery current?

Have you hit a milestone or have you won an award?

Is there something that needs to be celebrated that you haven’t celebrated because you’re too busy helping everybody else?

Think of it like being on an airplane and watching that safety video they show before takeoff.

You have to put your oxygen mask on first before you can help other people.

Because when you take the time to celebrate yourself, you’re telling people, “I have value. I value myself.” And you’re also teaching them to do the same for themselves.

So once you’ve thought about it and you’ve taken a look at your imagery, I’d love to hear from you.

Do you exist in your imagery?

Do you have imagery you love?

And can I help you with that if you don’t?

If you’re ready to create imagery that celebrates who you are right now, imagery you’ll actually want to display, let’s talk. 

Book your curiosity call below and let’s figure it out together.