Oh, the weather outside is frightful. Here in Chicagoland, it's cold and dreary and Springtime still feels far, far away. It's all too easy to get uninspired and unmotivated when heading out for a photo shoot means 20 extra minutes of bundling up and scraping ice off the car windows. I jokingly refer to this time of year as "The Flake Season," and I don't call it that because of the snow coming down. It's because so many models flake out on photo shoots as soon as the temperatures drop. It's not just models, most of us seem to lose some momentum because of the holidays and winter weather. And something I've learned the hard way over the years: once you drop that ball, it's infinitely harder to pick things back up to where you've left off. Better to just keep moving forward all the time.
So what can we do to stay motivated? I'm going to play the role of cheerleader and toss a few ideas your way:
GOALS: It's easy to lose momentum or give up when there's nothing to lose, and easier to stay motivated when there is an ultimate goal in mind. So set some specific numbers and dates: how many photo shoots or magazine submissions you want to do this month, or how much money you want to make, and so on. Write them down in a list to kick-start that vision into becoming reality, and hang it up on the wall as a constant reminder. Be specific as possible! If you say to yourself, "I'm going to do a photo shoot every Saturday day this month," that's so much easier to stick to the plan compared to "I'm going to shoot more."
PROJECTS. Most of us aren't motivated by yet another day at the office. The same can be said of yet another photo shoot or yet another make up gig, etc. But projects? Projects are INSPIRING. When we give a name and a purpose to our creative efforts, we create something bigger than ourselves. Heck, projects have a funny way of motivating others into action and participation as well.
DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT. When I feel I'm just going through the motions, rather than taking a break from photography I simply try shooting something completely opposite of whatever else I've been working on lately. Or I try some new technique I've never tried before. Even if it fails miserably, I always walk away having learned something. And I find that showing off the new and different work seems to keep my regular viewers interested, and maybe even attracts new people to my portfolio.
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH INSPIRING PEOPLE. Nothing exists in a vacuum Surround yourself with people who are inspired and you will be inspired too. This means networking online, at workshops or group shoots... wherever creative and inspiring people with similar interests get together. Find yourself a muse if you can, someone who you can not only bounce ideas off of, but egg each other on to keep working and building and trying new things. Muses don't just happen... we go looking for them.
This last thought... I need to give credit to our fashion contributor Wendy Evens, since I lifted it from her original BeautyLook interview. But it really is as easy as this quote suggests:
DON'T GIVE UP 5 MINUTES BEFORE THE MIRACLE HAPPENS.
Onward and upward,
Jim Jurica
Re-posted from BeautyLook Magazine: http://www.beautylookmagazine.com/2013/02/08/editors-rant-beat-the-winte...
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