2009 Recap | For the Win in 2010!

This week’s trend in the photographer-blog world is recapping the year in photos. Except my first “year” in business started in May, 2009. But I feel like I made incredible progress in the last several months! I’ve developed my brand, honed in on my personal style, and my business is becoming increasingly refined. 2010 will only prove how much more carlybish photography has to grow and move forward.

For being the type of person who is constantly working on the next thing, I haven’t thought much about setting resolutions or goals for this year. If I had to write a list on the spot, these would be the first things that come to mind:

1. Make God the number one priority in my life.
2. Take a lot more pictures than last year.
3. Move to Seattle.
4. Develop a sustainable price list that will actually pay our bills.
5. Purchase a Mac Pro.
6. Go to lots and lots of workshops!
7. Reach my goal weight of 145 pounds.

I have to be honest. That first goal wasn’t at the top when I first typed out this list. In fact, it wasn’t even on the list. I’ve been so focused on my business and my branding and my networking—me, me, me!—that I’ve definitely put my relationship with God in the backseat. Which is not only extremely difficult for me to acknowledge but also makes me incredibly sad since it was God who put the passion of photography in my heart from the beginning. I really hope to remedy this in a genuine way.

My apologies for the somber tone this post has suddenly taken! I really am thrilled at how 2009 turned out! I learned so much about myself and regained so much of the self worth that was lost between 2004-2006. Graduating from college and running my own business has been the best thing for my confidence in many, many years.

So I hope you’ll stick with me through 2010! Your comments and emails and @replies on Twitter are always so encouraging! My #1 love language is “words of affirmation” and I am constantly in need of them (unfortunately…) to feel good about myself. I have never felt like the “cool kid” and I compare myself to even my closest friends on a regular basis. That should be another resolution: Stop comparing myself to others. But this is me being as open with you as possible!

This year, I’d like to be completely myself. Not what I hope people think I am or expect me to be. Not the status updates on Twitter or Facebook. Just 100% who I am without worrying if people will think I’m a nerd or stop “following” me or “unfriend” me, which I am constantly fretting about, believe it or not!

I want to love who I am and be proud of what I’m doing… And I hope 2009 was a glimpse to where I’m going…

Thanks for being there from the beginning.