Let’s get into it….

Posted on June 18, 2020 By Blogging with Brianna

I haven’t blogged in quite a while.

First, COVID-19 had me feeling like I was losing this business I’ve worked so hard to build. Having to cut out my assistant and lose a lot of help I had because I couldn’t pay anyone caused a couple of minor break downs. I have been juggling trying to keep my head above water in business, keeping the bills paid without any money coming in (thank goodness I have been smart enough to save for business catastrophes), and being a full-time Mom to Brynlee because we also didn’t have our babysitter for several weeks. This meant I was doing anything and everything I could do during Brynlee’s naps. And if you know me well enough, you know the epic short napper that my daughter is. I have been TRULY blessed that my Mom works for me as does my long time friend and colleague Elaine. They both do sales for our team, and without question, have continued to work our leads and help us book business for post covid times and have not asked me for a dime because they understand the predicament my business has been in. People like them and loyalty like theirs, is beyond priceless. Without the two of them, this whole operation would have truly fallen apart. They kept my business going and I am forever grateful to them for their understanding of my needs without having to be asked and their willingness to see past the RIGHT NOW dollars, to help me without question or pay, and to understand that their help now means we all benefit later. A LOT of things have fallen by the wayside in this time, but so many things kept going because of them. They kept going because they believe in me and what we have built. Financially, I will eventually be able to repay them – but emotionally… holy cow.

In addition to covid, the world has just been all over the place and I haven’t been able to find the words. I have not posted anything for work in several weeks because it just hasn’t felt right. There is a huge movement going on, and talking about anything other than that movement has honestly felt like it would be a betrayal to the cause. At the same time, I realize that I have to get back to work… my Instagram account is more about growing and maintaining my business than it is about my personal life and I can’t let my business continue to fall apart. I say continue because for the last few months it’s felt like it was falling apart in the chaos of COVID-19. So I’ve been left with this question daily… How do I get back to posting for my business without taking away from the cause? How do I use my voice to help my community without abandoning my business? The truth is, I still don’t have an answer. It feels like the two can’t be merged because I’m trying to help educate friends and family on racism and inequality, but also trying to book some family sessions and weddings.

I even thought for a minute that I shouldn’t bring this up in a blog, but truth be told – I just can’t separate the two. It doesn’t feel right. And if people are bothered by my topics of conversation they don’t need to follow me anymore and they don’t need to book me as their Photographer. I am not here to maintain the “status quo” – I am here to help in the movement toward change, and those that may be bothered by this, are not the right clients for me. I want to see more equality in this country and in this world. I want to be a part of bringing people together, not apart of deepening the divide.

I hate how political this movement has become too. I don’t know why I am even remotely surprised about it… nothing big in this country can happen without “taking sides”. I wish that people would turn off the news, and listen to their fellow humans instead of one-sided news networks who are trying to convince them that the other side is evil and horrible and making things up. I wish we could all just come to the table and agree that we all need to be better. We need to demand better, and we need to stand for nothing less than fairness and equality among everyone. Our country is literally called the UNITED States of America. Does anyone feel like we are United right now?

So back to the question of how we can move forward in continuing to push for equality but also keep our businesses going and talking. If anyone has an answer, I’d love to hear it. For now, I just am not going to shy away from any of it. I’m going to keep sharing helpful resources, and start sharing my work again in all of its facets.

I’m going to kick it off with one of my favorite couples… Michelle & Christian. Michelle’s details were so elegant, so fierce, and so beautifully HER!!! They both have smiles that are incredibly infectious and families who’s love just oozed from every angle.