In this episode of the Pursue Purpose Podcast, I’m sharing an update on my first six months since leaving my corporate job to run my business full-time. From navigating a slower-than-expected inquiry season to finding fulfillment in new areas like portrait work and mentorship, I’m opening up about the highs, the challenges, and what’s keeping me grounded. Plus, I share personal wins, including how fitness and community have been game-changers in my routine. If you’re considering taking your business full-time, this episode is for you!

Hey guys, welcome back to the Pursue Purpose podcast. Today, I am updating you all on six months since I quit my corporate job. So in general, I am still very, very happy. I have no regrets. Things are going well. On the personal side, I had a really nice off season in December and January to be able to spend time with my family and just kind of hunker down a little bit.

I had some inquiries come in, needing something done the day after Christmas essentially, and I just said no to those kinds of things because I really did want to take time off. That being said, I was thinking there was going to be a nice wave of inquiries coming in January and February, and while there has been a slow wave, it's not the tidal wave that I was hoping for. That’s been definitely harder to navigate. As wedding professionals, you understand this cyclical nature of wedding seasons.

It was supposed to be the normal wedding inquiry season, January and February. However, it's been slow for sure. It's okay though. We're still keeping our hopes up that a lot of people are just taking longer to make decisions. There's a lot of uncertainty. This is the beginning of 2025.

We have a lot of things going on and a lot of noise on the internet. I think that contributes to people's fear and uncertainty in some of their financial life moments. We're thinking that we'll be getting later inquiries this year, kind of like last year, so it's okay.

On a personal note too, I started going to the gym in November, and it's been so much fun. I joined F45, which is a 45-minute high-intensity interval training group fitness workout. It's the perfect thing for what I was looking for. I used to have these kinds of things back when I was living in San Diego.

This was over six years ago. I really missed it when we moved to the Seattle area. I have my two kids, and I did not do anything gym-wise. I just did Peloton, which was also really fun. There's a group fitness component to it as well. But this is a lot different because it's in person versus the virtual group thing.

You have people around you who can help support you and push you. I just really love that kind of community support. So that's been awesome too. I feel much better about myself. When I wake up in the morning, it's super early. I'm not an early riser, but I made the commitment that I wanted to be able to do this for myself.

Even with waking up early, I still have way more energy the rest of the day after having worked out. It is hard to wake up for sure. I have to make sure I'm going to bed earlier than I used to, but again, it's that commitment to say this is worth it for me and this will be a net positive in the long run.

It's so far going super well. I've done close to 50 classes now since November and I'm trying to go four to five times a week. People kind of notice now if I'm not there. So it's definitely that accountability that's helped a lot. And that's been really fun too.

On the business side, like I said, inquiries were slower. Cash flow in January was very minimal. Understanding that I had built a savings safety net was super helpful. So if anyone who's listening is thinking they might want to do what I'm doing and maybe take their business full-time, it is really helpful to have that big safety net so that way you don't feel so scared or worried.

I had one inquiry that was planning to move forward and they did. It just took them multiple weeks to finish signing their contract. The anxiety I had during that time was a lot different than before I quit my job. I didn't want to come across desperate or anything because I'm not desperate, but I felt like I had to keep checking in and wondering why they weren't signing. You get in your head about it when things are slow, so trying to have that faith and grounding that I built this safety net, I have six months essentially to not book anything, which, again, isn't going to happen and is not happening, so I'm fine. That helps keep the spirits up and keeps you feeling good about where things are going.

It is still hard when you're not getting as much as you expected. But we are also booking into 2026. We just booked our first wedding for 2026 as well, which is super exciting. I feel like we're on the right track to things getting back to more of a normal wedding cycle.

It feels really fulfilling to be able to do my portrait work. Boudoir, maternity, motherhood. I've had some really amazing clients that I've been working with this last month. I had one client who just went through breast cancer. She found out she had breast cancer in December and then she's going to have a mastectomy in the end of February.

She really wanted to document herself before she had this mastectomy. So it was a really meaningful portrait session for her and for me. I also had a client who is getting married soon. She bought so much artwork—albums, matted prints. She just wanted it all. She was so happy and excited for these images.

She is going to be deployed soon and she really felt like having these tangible art pieces of herself to give to her soon-to-be husband was just so meaningful for her. She was so thrilled. These kinds of things are why I do what I do. I feel so fulfilled being able to give back to these amazing women.

It's not just sitting around waiting for weddings to come in. It's building out a business that is truly meaningful for me in many different ways. It has been so life-giving.

On the coaching side, I would love to take on a few coaching clients. So if anyone is interested in learning more, please definitely reach out to me. I would love to help mentor other photographers through these types of transitions. Thank you guys for listening and I hope you have a great rest of your day.

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