In this episode, I'm kicking off a series on pricing and workflow with a short and sweet entry point around setting your mindset for this kind of work. Pricing tends to bring up a lot of fear and questioning and imposter syndrome and I believe this one question - why not? - is the key to getting out of your own way and staying dedicated to curiosity, trial and error, and building the business you're excited to run.

// LINKS MENTIONED //

The big picture workbook: https://www.leahoconnell.com/bigpicture

The Homestyle Accelerator: https://www.leahoconnell.com/homestyle

Free resources to learn from me: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

// CONNECT WITH LEAH //

instagram: @leahoconnell.photo

Happy new year and welcome to Q1 where it’s known in the family photography world as kindof a dead zone for bookings and shoots. For wedding photographers, this it usually the start of a busy season of bookings, but in our world I’ve noticed that no matter how I slice it, things tend to slow way down.

If you’ve listened to the last few episodes, you’ve probably noticed it’s been heavy on the reflections and questions so I thought maybe it was time to give you a few answers. Today I'm sharing a behind the scenes peak into my plans and projects for this month.

You'll get the zoomed out look at the tools I use to capture ideas, prioritize them, and choose what's most important next. Then we'll get into specifics with how I'll be spending my time this month and planning on utilizing the slow season as a family photographer well. //

LINKS DISCUSSED //

Big picture workbook: https://leahoconnell.com/bigpicture

Episode 33: My 3-Part Process for EOY Goal Setting and Reflection (*free download for a personal meeting agenda)

Trello For Photographers course: https://leahoconnell.com/trello-for-photographers

How I use Trello in my business blog post: https://leahoconnell.com/how-i-use-trello-for-my-photography-business-2/

Kat Schmoyer - Trello for Beginners

https://katschmoyer.com/productivity-trello-beginners/

The Firefly Letters (my weekly newsletter)

Photographers only email list: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

Homestyle accelerator waitlist: https://leahoconnell.com/homestyle

Episode 7 with Morgan Miles: Marketing, Privacy, and Social Media

Blog post: Do i need instagram for my photography business?

All my free resources to support you: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

Wait, this is a family photography podcast - why are you talking about journaling?

Writing and photography are so intertwined - they are both practices centered around noticing. I think the best thing you can do to become more tuned-in and capable of noticing is to record and reflect, so whether that’s with a camera or a pencil, the goal is the same.

Presence, depth, understanding, processing.

The purpose of journaling it to build a habit of noticing, capturing, and valuing the small, mundane moments that can become powerful stories. And stories are fodder for the final product - the transformation we offer others, the ways we connect with people, the way we live our lives.

In this episode, I'm sharing 3 different ways to journal so you can pick a method that suits you best and gives you a new tool to better your artistic toolbox.

// Links mentioned //

The Artists Way by Julia Cameron

My favorite notebook for bullet journaling

Video introducing the original form of Bullet Journaling

1:1 Mentoring

Storyworthy book

Storyworthy video intro

As you’re taking some time over the next month to think big and set goals and get down to business on your business, I want propose a temporary pause to think past your gut reactions about what you “need” to do and how you’re going to “get back on the horse.”

Not every question is going to pull a thread for you, but the right questions just might lead you down a path of discovery that you’ve been waiting for. These 3 questions I’m going to pose to you today come straight from my Big Picture Workbook - they’re 3 of the 10 questions that I use in that resource to help instigate discovery for your personal direction. Even if you’ve already downloaded and worked through that, I think these three in particular are worth revisiting regularly.

// Links mentioned //

Episode 33: EOY meeting

Times article about thinking in the shower

The Big Picture Workbook

1:1 Mentoring

Right Track Audits

Group Coaching (The Homestyle Accelerator) Waitlist

As we're approaching the end of the year, maybe you're looking for a good book to kick back within the new year. So today I'm sharing 5 of the most influential books that have shaped my business, art, and life. Most of them are not even classified as "business books," but somehow, they top the list of books that have shaped the way I do business, how I think, and how I aspire to grow as a person. All of those things influence how I show up with and for people, + the art I create and how I bring it into the world.

// Links mentioned //

Episode 21: 4 simple copy tips to elevate your website

Free resources - leahoconnell.com/learn

Blog posts with book recommendations:

• favorite books of 2023
• favorite books for creatives and small business owners
• my 2024 book list
• what I read in 2022 and my 2023 book list

Connect with Leah : IG: @leahoconnell.photo Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

Free Photo Fuel FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photofuel/

It’s time to start winding down your business from 2024 and whew, that’s an exciting time right? But before you can move onto goal setting and projects, this last month of the year is a beautiful time to take the pulse of your business. It's the imperative FIRST STEP to any kind of planning for the future.

Making time for this process of reflection and study of what the heck actually happened this year in your business - and it can also be really fun, too!

In this episode I’m sharing my process of holding an EOY meeting with myself. I'll take you behind the scenes of that process, the agenda, the questions i ask, and the metrics I tackle - so if you’ve never done this before you have a place to start and if you have you may find that you can pull some ideas from this to add in or tweak your current process.

// FREE pdf from the episode: GRAB THE MEETING OUTLINE HERE. //

Other links mentioned:

episode 26 with Sabrina Gebhardt

RIGHT TRACK AUDITS: https://www.leahoconnell.com/righttrack

How do you find joy photographing your own holidays when your job is as a family photographer? How can you distinguish photographing in your regular life as fun, creative fuel vs obligation or "work?" (even if you love your work!) I hear a lot of guilt from photographers around not making photos at home “enough.” So in this episode, I want to dispel that and bring back the fun, ease the guilt, and just give a friendly reminder about the big picture.

Get ready for 5 tips for photographing and honoring your holidays with intention and joy.

// Timestamps //

00:00:22: Recognizing the blur of personal photography and photography 'work'

00:01:01: Addressing guilt with not doing "enough"

00:03:12: Reevaluating what makes a photo "worthy"

00:04:00: Disrupting visual influences

00:05:47: Tip 1 - Distinguish personal photography from work

00:06:42: Tip 2 - Name what matters

00:08:09: Tip 3 - Play with different gear

00:12:15: Tip 4 - Try a timed approach

00:13:53: Tip 5 - Be a memory-keeper with other mediums

// Links mentioned //

episode 12 with Rachel Larson Weaver

epsidoe 8: Resetting inspiration in your personal life

Photography and Play - Erin C. Garcia // photographs drawn from the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, https://a.co/d/dBbD8tM

Jessica Todd Harper’s Here: https://a.co/d/eareauL

Sierra Madre Photography - website | instagram

Free resources to connect and learn with me: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

In this episode, I'm sharing a run-down of the 4 categories of investments that serve as umbrellas for all the things you *could* purchase to support your business growth.

1. Software

2. Brand

3. Gear

4. Education

Each has several subcategories, too, so we'll walk through how to determine what will serve your business well AND I'll give you some recommendations to narrow down the scope.

Of course, I also want to share a little more about The Homestyle Accelerator as well because I am so excited about the potential of this program and our conversations to support you in a direct way with the growth of your art and business. Enrollment opens TODAY (Nov. 25 2004) so you can check out all the details and enroll (or get on the waitlist for next time) at https://leahoconnelll.com/homestyle // Links mentioned // Software:

• Honeybook: https://www.honeybook.com
• Sprout Studio: https://www.sproutstudio.com
• Pic-time: https://www.pic-time.com
• Pixieset: https://www.pixieset.com
• Cloudspot: https://www.cloudspot.io
• Kartra: https://www.kartra.com
• Mailchimp: https://www.mailchimp.com
• Flodesk: https://flodesk.com/c/O75MQU

Brand:

• Tonic: https://www.tonic.site
• Davy and Krista: https://daveyandkrista.com/home
• Elizabeth McCravey: https://www.elizabethmccravey.com
• Carly Schematic Design: https://schematicdesign.co/
• Greenchair Stories: https://www.greenchairstories.com
• Moo: https://www.moo.com

Gear:

• B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com
• Adorama: https://www.adorama.com
• KEH: https://www.keh.com (secondhand)
• MBP: https://www.mbp.com (secondhand)

Education: (check out the wonderful offers from these former guests on Photo Fuel)

• Rachel Larsen Weaver: https://www.rachellarsenweaver.com
• Morgan Williams: https://morganwilliamsphoto.com/
• Sabrina Gebhardt: https://www.sabrinagebhardt.com

In person retreat/conference for 2025

• The Reset Conference: https://www.theresetconference.com

The Homestyle Accelerator!

• my 6 week small group coaching program - all the details here: https://www.leahoconnell.com/homestyle