Adjusting Your Priorities as a Photographer and Business Owner

Sometimes just photographing something as mundane as a hibiscus in bloom gives me the break I need for a quick recharge. Captured with a LUMIX FZ-300, I'm amazed at the sharpness, and this is "right out of the can."

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Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air…
work, family, health, friends and spirit.
You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball,
But the other four balls – family, health, friends, and spirit - are made of glass.
Brian Dyson, former vice chairman and COO of Coca-Cola

It's a typical Sunday morning, Sheila's asleep, Molly's sleeping at my feet, it's still dark outside, and I'm typing away after finding the quote above earlier in the week. It got me thinking about how often I think the work "ball" is made of glass. I get so wrapped up in being pulled in different directions by the business; I forget the other balls I'm juggling in the air. And, I know I'm not alone.

Years ago I met Ed Foreman, an outstanding motivational speaker who presented a program at a Polaroid meeting I was attending. He gave a scenario that went like this - it was over thirty years ago, so my apologies for paraphrasing a little.

One spouse turns to the other and says, "Honey, just wait until the kids are older and then we're really going to have some fun and take that vacation we've always wanted!"

A few years go by, and they have the same conversation, "Honey, just wait until we move into a bigger house after my promotion and then we're really going to have some fun and take that vacation we've always wanted!"

Ten years later, "Honey, just wait until the kids are out of college and then we're really going to have some fun and take that vacation we've always wanted!"

Ten more years go by, "Honey, just wait until I retire and have more time and then we're really going to have some fun and take that vacation we've always wanted."

Then, a few years later, that same spouse, is in a coffin on the way to the cemetery and realizes, "Oh my God, I forgot to have fun!"

So, here's my point this morning. Your health, family, friends, and spirit all deserve to be at the very top of your priority list - starting with taking care of yourself and your spirit.  Pay attention to the signs of burnout. There's no excuse for missing them because down deep you know when you're about to hit the wall. Having a great life is all about relationships, starting with your own heart. Learn to listen to it.

Stop making work the "glass ball" and focus on everything that's more important. You know how to focus on your subjects when there's a camera in your hand - well, the essential components in your life are no different - just that there's no auto-focus - it's all manual, and you have to be the one to keep everything in the image sharp!

Life is for laughing, loving and living!
Ed Foreman

Wishing everybody a terrific Sunday and one filled with time for yourself, family, friends and especially your spirit. Go for those eleven-second therapeutic hugs with everybody that's important to you and don't worry about work - it's truly a rubber ball you're chasing, and it's not going to break because you took time off!

​Happy Sunday everybody!