Everyday feels like a roller-coaster ride. The twist and turns of life, mixed with the constant speed of business can be difficult to handle. It’s a thrilling adventure that can turn you into a successful business person if you follow a few simple steps. I spoke with Newborn Photographer Aimee Fuller, who offered a few words of advice for handling this balancing act between family and business.
1. What’s a normal day for you? I hit the ground running every morning. I start my day with a glass of Diet Dr. Pepper! My kids are top priority in my life so I wake up and get them all dressed and ready for their days. After I get my oldest two off to school I come back to the office and I look over my schedule and plan out my day/week in my head. I check my emails, monitor my Facebook Fan page and reply back in the morning to all messages. I return phone calls and inquiries that need to be returned. I edit, I do sessions, I am business woman. Most of my day is spent working and juggling my family. I do have help with the kids during sessions (Thanks Dad!!), which is great! My husband is also very supportive and has a degree in Finance so he’s my “business manager” and does a lot of work for me behind the scenes keeping the business/business aspect of things going strong. Some days I’m not sure how I did everything I do in one day being one person, but somehow I get it done!
2. Any advice for someone starting out? Decide early on what you want to specialize in. I started off taking any photography client that came my way. I knew in my mind that I always wanted to be a “baby photographer”, but I also knew I had to build my business up first so I would take anyone that called me. I wasn’t being true to myself or my passion. I have molded my business into being known in my area as a baby photographer over time, but I should have stayed more true to myself in the beginning and kept my work primarily maternity, newborns and babies. That isn’t an issue for me now because my clients now that I don’t take babies over the age of 2. I do still get calls for weddings (cringe!), seniors and older children and I just refer them to other local area photographers that I support and follow. My advice? Stay true to you and be firm in your passion because you won’t regret it further down the road!
3. What have you learned most about operating your own business? I’m still learning something new every day about my business, but the #1 thing I learned last year was to take two days off for myself and my family. I was working 7 days a week in 2011 (crazy, right?) and I was really getting burned out. I found myself grocery shopping at midnight during the week and staying up until 3 and 4 in the morning editing. I quickly decided that 2012 would be different and I changed my office hours. It’s been great!
