Consider the Wildflowers
Consider the Wildflowers
099. Rachael Leigh: Detangling your Personal Identity from your Brand's Identity.
Have you ever had a moment in life or business when something just felt… off? It wasn’t too long into Rachael’s photography business that she realized the work she was doing wasn’t quite serving her or her clients in the way she imagined. In the midst of a global pandemic is as good a time as any to start asking the hard (or should I say the right) questions… and today’s guest did just that.
What began as a “becoming Rach” board on Pinterest turned into a business pivot, offer change, and new trajectory …
Is a life and business you love possible? Here’s how this entrepreneur designed both and how she’s working to help others do the same.
Today is a sweet treat as I have one of my past Blueprint Model students, Rachael Leigh, on the show!
WILDFLOWER SHOWNOTES :
https://shannaskidmore.com/rachael-leigh/
📌 RESOURCES MENTIONED:
Rachael’s Storylines & Starters Mini Course
Rachael’s Brand Mining Pocket Guide
CONNECT WITH RACHAEL:
Website | Instagram
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This show is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co.
It's really interesting when you build a business alongside also figuring out who you are as a human being. And I didn't realize how much of my personality and myself as a person had become wrapped up in the brand that I had built. And so I ended up it's the funniest thing. But I created a Pinterest board that was called Becoming Rach, and I just started pinning stuff that I that I liked outside of my business, I started just being like, Okay, do I actually like that thing? Or do I like that thing because it's part of my brand? And so it was just this interesting journey of like, finding myself that ended up breeding a business pivot, because I finally looked up and was like, Rachel, you've been helping your friends design their websites for the last, like, whole time you've been in business, maybe there's space for brand stuff to happen alongside business stuff, like photography. And I had been doing headshots and content photos and that kind of stuff throughout my business. And then I finally was just like, wait, you actually really, really like this. You
Shanna Skidmore:were listening to consider the wildflowers a podcast episode 99 Have you ever had a moment in life or business when something just fell off? It wasn't too long into Rachel's photography business that she realized the work she was doing wasn't quite serving her or her clients in the way she imagined. In the midst of a global pandemic, is as good a time as any to start asking the hard, or, should I say, the right questions. And today's guest did just that. What began as a becoming Rach board on Pinterest turned into a business pivot offered change and new trajectory is a life and business you love possible. Here's how this entrepreneur designed both and how she's working to help others do the same. Today is a sweet treat, as I have one of my past blueprint model students, Rachel Lee, on the show. If you dig professional bios, here goes. Rachel Lee is a brand photographer and strategist, self proclaimed brand theory, nerd and wannabe barista, who is the most passionate about coming alongside creatives and creators to catch their vision and help make it clear. Okay, formal introductions over. Let's dive in. Hey, it's Shanna, and this is consider the wildflowers the podcast. For the past 15 plus years, I've had the honor to hear 1000s of stories from entrepreneurs around the world. As a former fortune 100 financial advisor turned business consultant, I have a unique opportunity to see the reel behind the highlight reel. I'm talking profit and loss, statements, unpaid taxes, moments of burnout and those of utter victory, or, as my husband says, the content everyone is wondering, but not many are talking about. And now I'm bringing these private conversations to you hear the untold stories of how industry leaders, founders and up and coming entrepreneurs got their start, the experiences that shaped them and the journey to building the brands they have today, stories that will inspire and reignite, encourage to redefine success and build a life and business on your own terms. Welcome, Wildflower. I'm so glad you're here. Hey, Rachel, welcome to the show.
Rachel Leigh:Thanks for having me, Shanna.
Shanna Skidmore:We're gonna have so much fun today. Oh yeah, it's
Rachel Leigh:gonna be a lot of fun.
Shanna Skidmore:Okay? For everybody listening, I was telling Rachel Right before we hit record, it feels good back to be back in the saddle. This is the first interview I have done since having our second little baby, and so it's been a few months, and I'm glad it's with you, Rachel. We're gonna have a good time. So excited. So you're consider the wildflowers listener. Thanks for listening, and blueprint model graduate and community past community member. So we're friends.
Unknown:Oh yeah, totally friends,
Shanna Skidmore:all right, so for everybody who doesn't yet know You just say hello, um, tell everybody who you are, what you do, and then we're gonna kind of kick it back to life before you start your business. John's
Rachel Leigh:good. All right, Hi, friends. I'm Rachel Lee. I'm a brand photographer and strategist slash coach based in Cincinnati, Ohio, I help creatives and creators gain clarity and confidence to put their vision out there in the world, so that their people can catch their vision just as clearly as they do.
Shanna Skidmore:I mean, that was so well spoken. Rachel and their website's amazing. I did a little stalking before we pressed
Rachel Leigh:record. We can give all the praise hands to tonic for that one tonic,
Shanna Skidmore:that template. Shout it out. Love them. So good. It's beautiful. Rachel, what were you doing before starting your photography business? We will talk about the revision like, kind of how your photography business has looked over the years. But tell me about life before even starting your business, what were you into? Did you always know you wanted to be a
Rachel Leigh:photographer? No, actually, so funny thing, I started basically senior year of high school. So straight out of high school, signed up for an LLC, jumped into business, but before that, I had my heart set on being an elementary school teacher. I thought I was going to walk that path and then get married, you know, young 20s, and then jump right into homeschooling my kids. Fast forward to now totally look back and like that was my mom's vision for her. Like that was literally the journey my mom walked on. And I didn't really realize that that's kind of what I was trying to carbon copy. I'm really good at taking something that I can see and then using that as a template to live into. And then the year, I think I was turning 17, that year, the Lord was kind of, like, stopped me in my tracks at a youth convention. Was like, Hey, give me your future. Like, you think you have it all figured out, but, like, actually it's this. And I had a bit of a calling to ministry at that point in time. And so I jumped from just that ministry calling. I realized, like, my dad was a pastor growing up, and I knew I didn't want to live my life on a ministry salary or like at a position at church, and so the Lord opened a door for me to be able to step in of photography. I had been in 4h and was the reporter taking all the photos for our 4h club for a lot of years, and my mom was always the photographer for our family, like literally every sports function had the longest lens sitting in the stand, uploaded all the photos to Facebook. So it was just kind of like a natural just a natural transition. I can't say that I was always a photographer, never had the about page that said, you know, I picked it up when I was five years old and took pictures my entire life. So for me, picking up a camera was kind of my way into a business, which was really cool. And when I started out in weddings and portraits, did my first full season, literally, the year after I graduated from high school. It was a wild ride. Tell
Shanna Skidmore:me what year? This was Rachel. So 2017
Rachel Leigh:I yeah, I photographed 18 weddings that year, I think between second shooting and then main shooting, and then I had my first full season as a main shooter in 2018 so two years after I graduated from high school, I was photographing like 2020, weddings a year.
Shanna Skidmore:Okay, so did you were like, I'm gonna have a business. This is how I'm doing it. Tell me about those early days. How did you figure out what type of photography you were going to offer? How did you figure out your pricing? And just all of those early days, yeah, in business, yeah.
Rachel Leigh:So the biggest thing the Lord blessed me with in that season was an internship with my sister's wedding photographer. So unironically, the same year that I decided to become photographer, she was looking for a wedding photographer, and found out that they had interns, and so I applied, ended up showing up to like, all of her shoots, carrying the reflectors, the water bottles, everything that you think of an intern. That's what I did. And then I transitioned in her business to being her lead. Second photographer ended up editing for her. So I learned a lot of the ins and outs of owning a business from her. And then I'm also, like, on StrengthsFinder learner is, like, probably my one or two. And so I dove right into, like, Yes, I dove right into learning from Caitlin James, so all of the like courses early days, I took a lot of like, posing courses, lighting courses, I don't know if she had a business course at that point. So it was kind of just like scrounging and figuring out, like, what do I price? What do I what? But I will tell you, I did not charge enough for a very, very long
Shanna Skidmore:time. How did you figure that out? Um,
Rachel Leigh:I started out charging, like, $1,000 for an eight hour wedding with a second photographer in engagement session. And then I don't. I think it took me maybe two years to get over the $2,000 mark, not because my work wasn't worth it, but because I didn't. I let my insecurity lead and didn't sit there and charge what I was worth. Yeah, and then I actually went to a workshop Caitlin, like, the last one Caitlin James ever hosted. I went to the workshop in her house, and I paid, like, I think it was basically two full weddings, income worth to go sit in a living room. And I was like, Okay, if I booked two weddings from this, then this pays this off. Like, that's, you know, your education budget when you're first starting and and so I did, and then I still remember this was, like, a big turning point for my confidence in my business. We were sitting in the living room. The workshop was almost over. Caitlin was doing website audits, and she's just having this, like, full on conversation with me. She's telling me, you know, Rachel, by like, right now your prices are at, I think they were at like 1800 or 2000 at that point. And I was two years into owning, into photographing weddings. And she was like, Okay, I want you at like 3500 by the by the spring. And we were, it was September, I think, and she's like, here's how you're gonna do it, and all this different stuff. And at the same time, her husband, Michael, was sitting and, like, scrolling through my website and my blog, which is total like, like, pinch me moment, but also like, kind of want to hide in a hole, because one of your, like, biggest heroes, is scrolling through all your work at that moment in time. And he stops on one photo, and he goes, they. Paid like, 1500 for that. And I was like, Oh, actually, they paid 1000 because that's what I was charging at that point in time in this blog post. And he goes, that one photo is worth $1,000 and so that one in of itself, like the confidence that other people had in me, that I didn't have in myself is probably the only reason why I'm like, not still in business, but low key, still in business. Yeah, no, I
Shanna Skidmore:think that makes so much sense, and I love that you talked about pricing. Is so much about confidence and knowing. I think so often when we can do something, when we have a skill, we think everyone can do that skill, or we diminish the value, or downplay the value of that skill, because I think, Oh, this is, you know, something that's come somewhat easily to me. And so I love to hear, you know, you just needed someone else to give you that confidence boost. So tell me. So that was kind of 2020, time frame it sounds like, if you really started 2017, 2018, 2019, you know, 19, you know, yeah. How, how did the year of 2020, affect your wedding photography business? Because you're still fresh in at this point.
Rachel Leigh:Mm, hmm, yeah, so at that
Unknown:point, think
Rachel Leigh:by the time I made it to end of 2019 2020, I had hit a stride, and booking weddings was like really easy, and I was hitting the numbers I wanted to in that year. I had finally gotten the courage to raise my prices over $3,000 and then I remember covid happening, and obviously everything got canceled, and it was really hard to watch bookings, just like fall off the calendar. And I think that the biggest thing in that season, I remember not even thinking about, like, my business. I just remember how much I was grieving with my couples because of them having to move that big day from like, you know, like, further and further down the calendar without knowing when it was going to actually happen. And I had a lot of couples end up just like, fully canceling, which meant revenue was, like, completely going out the door, because I ended up issuing refunds and and whatnot. And thankfully, at that point, I was still living with my parents, and so I didn't have to worry as much about putting money back in their pockets to give them peace of mind, because I knew that I had a little bit of a safety net. But the most interesting thing about the fact that 2020 happened was right before I was starting to get a little bit discontent in my wedding photography business, I think I had come into my own, and I was kind of realizing it wasn't necessarily wanted what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I was already getting tired of weekends spent away from my friends, because at that point I was 20, let's see math, 2223 and all of my friends were free on the weekends, and they were all going on trips and all that kind of stuff without me, and I was just kind of sitting and thinking, like, is this what I want my life to look like in five years? Yeah, like, what does this look like one day when the Lord blesses me, like, Lord willing, blesses me with like, a husband and a family? And do you want to, want to have to say, like, and no, I can't go because I'm editing or No, I can't go because I have a portrait session. And so I had already, like, started to feel that at the end of 2019 and had actually flown to Phoenix, Arizona to play around with the idea of brand photography. And I went to like, a one on one workshop. And so what was really funny was the fact that that happened in late 2019 so I was already testing out brand photography, and then 2020 ended up being the year that, because business owners, like especially in the event industry, couldn't, they couldn't go and do their events, they worked on their businesses. And so between that and taking senior portraits, I think 2020 ended up being one of the more profitable years of my business, which was really funny because of the fact that my main money maker was totally hit on pause.
Shanna Skidmore:Isn't that so interesting? Yes, like, I've heard so many stories about 2020 and how different things aligned in different ways for people's businesses, and I love what you said, because business owners couldn't go out and do their job. They were working on their businesses, so it was kind of a prime time for brand photography. Would you say that when you're looking back, you see what you know? What would you say as turning points in your business? It definitely sounds like this. Caitlyn James workshop was number one with understanding pricing and really owning your value and getting confident in what you do, and then it sounds like 2020, what? What would you say are some other like, turning points, or when you saw things in your business really start to, like, catch or big pivots, like, kind of walk me through year, three, four and moving forward?
Rachel Leigh:Yeah, yeah. So I would say for sure, like. The ones that you just reiterated. And then, yeah, 2020 for me was such an interesting thing, because I feel like I finally let go of that template that I had stepped into in the business. So I went from like templing my life after my mom, to then being like Caleb and James, I'm just gonna do exactly what she says and step into that, to then getting brave enough to figure out, okay, what do I want my business to look like? Yeah, and I feel like that's what 20 what 2020 turned into, because I literally couldn't do the thing that everybody told me I was really good at.
Shanna Skidmore:Did something prompt you to start asking those questions. Like, hey, what do I want out of my life? What I want on my work? Or does was it just, you know, Saturday afternoon.
Rachel Leigh:I think I'm a naturally, really deep thinker. I always happen, but I think I started, there's a lot of things happening in my personal life at that moment in time, different friendships and things that changed again. I was early 20s, and it's really interesting when you build a business alongside also figuring out who you are as a human being, and I didn't realize how much of my personality and myself as a person had become wrapped up in the brand that I had built. Yes, yeah. And so I ended up it's the funniest thing, but I created a Pinterest board that was called Becoming Rach. Love it, and I just started pinning stuff that I that I liked outside of my business, and I started just being like, Okay, do I actually like that thing? Or do I like that thing because it's part of my brand? Or do I actually like that thing? Or do I like that thing because this person also likes that thing, and I want to be liked by that person. And so it was just this interesting journey of like finding myself that ended up breeding a business pivot, because I finally looked up and was like, Rachel, you've been helping your friends design their websites for the last, like whole time you've been in business. Maybe, maybe there's space for brand stuff to happen alongside business stuff, like photography. And I had been doing headshots and content photos and that kind of stuff throughout my business. And then I finally was just like, wait, you actually really, really like this. And there's parts of wedding days that you don't like, but the parts that you do are also the parts that make sense of brand photography. But at that point, brand photography wasn't really a niche yet, and there wasn't people giving courses, and there wasn't people, and so it wasn't this, like, easy, sure step into it. And so I feel like that whole year was just a season to just play around and figure out, what do you actually want, what? And so then by the end of 2020, I had decided to make a full pivot into brand photography, and I redid my website, and I launched that identity, I still offered weddings, because I knew you can't completely cut off your main money maker and step into something else, even though everything in me wanted to.
Shanna Skidmore:I mean, you could, but
Rachel Leigh:it would not have been the wise decision. Yeah. And so at the end of 2020 I launched a whole new brand. Launched the title of brand photographer had put together my whole my own shoot, and had, like, a little promo video that I put out, and I booked, I think, the first six months of 2021 I could go back and check the numbers, but I remember, like launching into it and book, basically the first six months of 2021 from that one launch obsessed. And so it was just kind of this affirmation of, like, yeah, no, no, we see this in you. You're really good at this, yeah. Like, just continue to step into it. And I remember, like, 2021 just felt like riding a high of just literally all I was doing was shooting and then posting behind the scenes on Instagram, and I was booking just from that and I was still doing weddings like at that point, you've got all the carryover from 2020 to 2021 and so I was running both businesses at the same time. But I remember the level of confidence I had in the business I was building was higher than it ever had been before. And I think it was because I was actually stepping into something, yeah, that I wanted to do. And I remember creating a reel where I talked about that pivot, and I talked about the fact that, like, I was stepping out of something that everyone had deemed successful for nothing other than a dream. And it was something that, like, caught on with a lot of people. But then the funny thing is, is that, like, I wrote the high of 2021 and then come 2022 my business kind of tanked, again, not in like, a terrible way, per se, yeah, but I realized, like, I don't know, I heard something say one time that it essentially takes three years to get a business off the ground and to get to the point where you're kind of hitting a stride. People know you for what you're doing, and you don't have to, like you're not second guessing everything anymore. And essentially, when I pivoted, I started a brand new business, because I x myself out of one market, put myself in a brand new 120, 21 exhausted my entire like current audio. Minutes of the leads I was going to get there. And so then I hit a roadblock in 2022 Yeah. And it was interesting, because beginning of 2022 was also when I took blueprint model, yeah. And I remember, and there were two things that I remember distinctly from blueprint model. At that point in time, I remember going through and being like, Rachel, your packages are actually profitable. You don't have to do as much as you think in order to get your need like your want number. I love it. That was the biggest thing. And then I think the other was the realization, and I think it wasn't a coaching call. I think I came on and or the mastermind call, and I was trying to figure out what my motivator Okay, what
Shanna Skidmore:do you call those? Yeah, core motivators. Core motivators. I
Rachel Leigh:was trying to figure out what mine was. And I think I had gotten so lost in the pivot and all that kind of stuff that I couldn't really see the forest for the trees. And I were just trying to figure out, like, am I impact motivated, or am I time motivated? And through that conversation, you said the thing of, like, I think you need a time motivated business, like a time freedom motivated business, to be able to lead, to lead an impact driven life.
Shanna Skidmore:And I very smart, yes, I'm writing that down.
Rachel Leigh:And it was just, it was one of those things that, like, I still think about it.
Shanna Skidmore:I'm in about that right now.
Unknown:Wow. Yeah,
Shanna Skidmore:that's Rachel. That makes so much sense. Okay, pause you and say a few things. First of all, I think everyone needs a becoming Rach board. I mean, Shannon. I call mine. This will mine. I have a Pinterest board very similar to this. And, you know, I teach this because you've been through the blueprint. Through the blueprint model, the very best thing we can do to launch a business that we continue to love is figure out what we want. And it's a question. I don't think we stop and ask ourselves enough. And I love that you started this becoming rage board like I think it's so true. I had a friend of mine years and years ago say that she had to sit down and say, kind of identify the difference between like, I like that thing. Like, that's beautiful. That's really, you know, I like that thing, but it's not me. Is that me? And I think with such like, a visually stimulating, just a more connected world that we're in. It can be really hard to say, like, wow, that's a really beautiful paint color. But I don't want my house painted that color, you know, kind of figuring out truly, just like who you are. So I just have to pause and say, becoming rage board is one of my favorite, favorite things that you have done. I also want to You said something so amazing regarding marketing, especially in post covid years, you get out of that warm market, I think, a lot faster, and the industry and the market just became more saturated. So really, increasing brand awareness is more important, which is, why? Why you do what you do for others? You know, that's so such a big deal in this marketing era, post covid. I think for small business owners, we have to build brand awareness to get the same amount of revenue and jobs and and then, so, yeah, the core motivators, I love that you identified time freedom in your business so that you can have an impact driven life. I think that's amazing.
Rachel Leigh:Yeah, yeah. And I would agree as far as, like, where the market's at, too. And I remember hearing this talk probably a year and a half, two years ago, and she was breaking down. Like, essentially, you could have, like, a visibility problem, or all these different things. She gave us, like, four different things that could be the problem in your business. And I remember, like she walked us through the formula. And essentially she was like, your offers aren't broken, you're just invisible, yeah. And I was just like, Oh, holy cow. Okay, so it's not a me problem. It's a you have to get out there problem, which is really funny too, because it's that whole like I live on words of affirmation. And so for me, I would much rather be the guy in the chair doing the work in my business for other people than I would being like, hello, pay attention to me and hire me to do this work for you. That is my comfort level. That is my like I am at my utmost confidence when I'm just working behind the scenes to help somebody else shine, yeah, and to catch on to what they're putting out there and make it clear for them. And so it's been kind of the bane of my existence in this season of my business to step into that spotlight role and figure out what it looks like to be this, not, I guess, the CEO marketer, yeah, but yeah, to be my best marketer, because I'm really good at doing it for other people, yeah, but I'm not great at doing it for myself, and I think so many of us are that way, yeah? And it's because it's when I'm like, insecurity is staring me in the face and Like. You had mentioned earlier, of like, there's things that we do that we just don't think about it. We're just good at it, especially as, like, creatives and people who have our own zones of genius, like, we look at those things and then we discount them because they come from us. And I think that that's the hardest thing, is in the Content Marketing age we're in, because it's not just marketing. It's like it has to come from my brain and have some sort of originality to it, to get people to pay attention to it. And then comparison is right there. And I listened to you both your podcast episodes on leaving social media the other day, and I still remember like just listening to those and getting a breath of fresh air, of knowing that like essentially, as business owners in in this market that we're in, we have to run a rat race, but you get to choose the pace with which you run. And I think I want to explain that a little bit further. It's so easy to get on and to just do what other people tell you to do. I lived the first four years of my business doing that because it was the easy thing for me to do. And now I look at it and being like it was just my way into business, like I'm not ever I'm not going to look at that version of Rachel and be like, you did it the really silly way, because you just did what everybody told you to do. That's what I needed to do in order to to grow the strength to be able to run a business now. But I also think, and I look back, and I'm just like, I kind of shake my head at her a little bit, and I'm like, if you just had, if you had just looked up and paid attention to who you were and the thing that you were building. Yeah, you would have gotten so much further, so much faster.
Shanna Skidmore:We all have to learn that. I think Rachel, I think a lot, and, you know, I say this to all my students, what is the outcome you are trying to achieve? Because if we can identify the outcome, so for you in this season, over these last couple years, it's brand awareness, right? It's getting more people to see your brand. But you're like, I don't like to shout and I don't like to shout either. I literally have a bob quote, Bob Goff quote, that says, Be secretly incredible. Because that's that one. We'd love to just be secretly incredible. But also, the best kept secret is not a good business model, right? So how do we align those that getting our message out there? I really, truly, and you know this about me, I have my sunshine folder with all the kind words, and I have to read that often, because I have to be like Shannon, the work you do matters, and if we don't tell others about it, they will not know. People cannot be out there searching and searching and not find you, and I just have to, it's so much mindset work just to be your best marketer. Because I'm the same, I would rather just like put my head down and do incredible work and let other people be my marketers. And for so many years, that worked, and it still works, building fans, I still truly believe is the best marketing plan, but also we are the ones now putting a megaphone to our message and, yeah, sharing more about it. So I love that this kind of talk turned into a marketing conversation, because I think that is the season of life we're in. Rachel, let me ask you. So after pivoting over to brand photography, it sounds like you have figured out a lot about your numbers, pricing, getting profitable, understanding your need. Have taken some great resources to help with that. I would love to hear about a little bit more about money, your relationship with money, how that has affected these last few years of business, where it seems like you've just become more confident in yourself as a business owner, so let's just kind of break down your relationship with money. What would you say came naturally or easily to you when it comes to money? And then what have been your biggest struggles or lessons learned?
Rachel Leigh:Um, I don't know that anything came naturally when it comes to money. Um, I think growing up with the background that I had, like I said, I was a ministry kid in a single income household, and so money was such an interesting topic, I guess, because obviously it's very centered in in stewardship and knowing the things that the Lord has blessed you with, and and whatnot. But I think I was afraid of money for a really long time. And I also think in there, and I was also afraid of being successful, because success brought in more money or more resources. And I think instinctively, I was afraid of not stewarding it well. And so I think that's part of why for so long, I didn't charge what I was worth alongside the confidence thing, yeah, of just you kind of don't know what you don't know, but in ignorance is not always bliss. And so I think that that's one of the things that held me back for a long time. And then I still remember I didn't. Exactly remember who I was having a conversation with, but I remember them kind of sitting me down and talking about the fact that, like, money is just a resource, and in order to run a business, you have to have money that goes in and money that goes out, right? It's not something to be afraid of. And that kind of sent me on a journey of figuring out, okay, obviously this money thing is very important, even though I would rather us not pay attention to it. And so I think that's what sent me on the journey of figuring out and stepping into the blueprint model, because I knew, and at that point, I had decided I was only going to learn from people who were leading a life that looked similar to the one I wanted to lead love, and I wanted to learn from somebody who had the same belief about money and the same faith that I did specifically in the money realm, because I knew that that was such an important thing for me, and I had taken a small course from somebody that didn't believe the same way or look at money the same way, and it just felt gross. Yeah, and so I remember stepping into the blueprint model and just being like my people, people that think the way that I want to think, but that know so much more than me. So I feel at home. Oh,
Shanna Skidmore:I love it, yes. Gosh, I love our community. So much. Total shout out to the blueprint model students. But it's interesting. We said that a while ago. I don't a friend of mine or someone in business. I don't remember, but said the same, very similar thing, like, I want to learn from someone who is displaying the life that I want to lead. Because so often, someone can be really smart at money or business or Pinterest or marketing or but their life is a mess, or their relationships are a mess, or they have no hobbies, or their money's a mess, and so and not that. Clearly, we're all perfect. I have so many flaws, but I think it's interesting, especially in a content, heavy education, heavy world, to discern who you want to learn from, because those voices can be loud, and that's yeah, that's how I why I'm so passionate about my message is because, coming from a finance background, I feel like the voice I always heard was success is more, more money, more achievement, more power, more influence, and more more more more more. And that just felt, yeah, exhausting to me. Yeah. And while I'm all about setting big goals, I also am all about like enjoying life, like ambition and contentment and finding that perfect middle ground. Okay, Rachel, what would you say is the best thing that you have learned about money?
Rachel Leigh:Um, I would say that the best thing I've learned about money, it probably ties back to that money as a resource thing. But I also think I don't know the exact words from the quote that I'm thinking of, or the principal or whatnot, I tend to, like gather a lot of things and don't always know where to attribute them same. But I think it's just this idea that money only holds the power over you, that you choose to give it. And I think for a long time, I choose, I chose to look at money through the lens of fear and through the lens of something I was going to mishandle. Yeah, and now I'm able to look at money as as a way of being like, you know, money is able to magnify the impact I can make in my life. If I have the money that I need to have in order to live the life that I would like to live, and let the life that I feel like I'm called to then I have more freedom to do the things that I'm called to do. But if I'm continually scrounging because I haven't stewarded my money well, or I haven't gone after the things that I was going to or hit the goals that I wanted to, then that limits the impact that I can make in life that I feel like I'm called to live. Yeah, and so I always said that I started my business to be able to have the time and the financial freedom to go and do as the Lord calls. And so if I don't have that financial freedom, then I don't have as much ability to just pick up and go like one of the things that I do every year is I take off three weeks and I go volunteer at a local summer camp that I've done since I was in high school. And now that looks like running a photo video team so that they can promote and increase impacts and all that kind of stuff. But it's always, I've always been there every June, and if I don't chase after the financial goals that I need to, like, there's been years where I've literally, like, sat in the back room on my laptop booking clients and working through projects because I needed to bring money in. Yeah? Instead of, like, one of these days, I'll be able to go and not think about being out of office, but you'll get there, yeah, but I think, like, if I don't think about money and financial freedom and stewarding those finances, well, then that does mean that those times. Where I'm supposed to be able to, like, go and be present where I'm at I can't be because I'm anxious.
Shanna Skidmore:Rachel, I love all of this so much, and I have shared this quote a lot, and I kind of laugh because it's Kanye West's quote. Kanye brings up a lot of feelings for a lot of people, but it's such a good quote. He said, Money isn't everything, but not having it is and I'm like, That is so true. When you're stressed financially, you make different decisions with your time, with your personal money, with your business money, it's stress. It's stressful, and that's why I'm so clearly, you know, I'm all passionate today, so passionate about what I do, because I'm like, It's not about it's not about the money. For most people, money isn't the end game. Money is a means to the life you want, the impact you want to have, the generosity you want to give of your time or your resources. And so I just think all of this is so good, I want to ask one final question before we go into a quick fire round, although I have so many follow up questions, Rachel, I've missed you. This is fun to catch up. We need to do this. Yeah, in a world that asks us to do everything really well, especially kind of cert, coming back to when you said, as a wedding photographer, you were looking around, missing life with your friends on the weekends, and how have you found harmony in your business? How have you set up your business, especially these last few years, after pivoting so that you can have that work life balance, or find that harmony between building a business and living a life.
Rachel Leigh:I will be 100% honest upfront and say I'm still figuring that out, but I think so. The one thing I told a friend about a year and a half ago, I learned how to do business really well in the first few years of business, yeah, I essentially lived my life for my business all the way through 2021 and I think the gift that I was given in 2022 was to learn how to do life really well. Yeah, because I think I was so head in the sand going after my goals and success that I forgot that there was a life to live. And I kind of woke up one day and realized that I didn't have the friendships and relationships and hobbies and things that I wanted to have. I didn't have as full of a life as I but yet I said that I let you know ran a business to live for your life. Yeah, exactly. And so it felt like the biggest hypocritical moment. And so I think that the last that was 2022 where I learned to live life really well. And then entered 2023 and then it was like, Okay, what does it look like to live life well and do business well at the same time? Yeah, and I've been going back and forth between the last two years of like, figuring out that stride. And I think I in this season, have started to and it started with, like, starting to build systems. Like, I hired someone helping with HoneyBook systems. I solidified my offer ladder alongside of a friend. But I feel like the biggest way that I've stepped into it is having some major accountability. Earlier this year, a friend and I looked up and we were like, looking at finances and looking at we were in business, and we were like, We cannot afford business coaches right now, even though it's where we need to go, yeah. And so we were like, what if we just have some, like, some major accountability for the next six months? And so we committed every Wednesday to getting up at 5am and getting on an accountability call and working on the stuff in our business is going to push our business forward. Because we were like, nothing changes. If nothing changes, yeah,
Shanna Skidmore:yes.
Rachel Leigh:And we hit that six months in July, and we looked at we were like, wow, we're so proud of us. But I think that the biggest thing has been surrounding myself with people who remind me that there is a life to live, yes, but the business is also really great too. Yeah, yeah. And so it's been that really fun balance, I would say, because people are my main driver. Like, if I don't have people surrounding the things that I'm doing, then I just don't do them as wholeheartedly. And so having that has been a really big, really big
Shanna Skidmore:help. Rachel, I love how you talked about identifying something in your business that you needed accountability a business coach, but the finances weren't there to pay for it. I had another podcast interview, and I'm trying to remember who it was. Goodness, I wish I remembered. But she said that she assembled like, essentially a board of directors for her business to speak into her business, and they did it for free. She just asked them, and they came and they did it for free. And I think so often we just don't ask, you know, or we don't think of creative solutions to and I love what you said, nothing changes. If nothing changes, yeah, I mean, duh, but that's so profound, because you made a shift, even though you couldn't financially afford you figured out a way to get that accountability that you need. And I think, I think, if we're all being honest, I would say most of us are finding harmony. It shifts day by day, season by season, because life keeps shift shifting. And that's what I think balance is. It's staying in alignment by constant change. It is, yeah, always asking yourself, what feels right, what feels wrong. And, you know, from the blueprint model. But I call these success qualifiers. So for anyone listening who hasn't taken the blueprint model, we dig in and identify what is your core motivator, what do you want out of your business, time, impact, challenge, creative expression, like, what do you want? What is the driver? And then what does success look like in those things that for me, it's time. And so I know if I'm working on Fridays or if I don't have a hobby, which right now, I don't have two tiny people at home, but those things are signs of health for me. So if I'm working every Friday or if I don't have time to go meet with a friend for lunch, or if I have quit all my hobbies, that's kind of a red flag, hey, Shannon, like hey, maybe we're getting out of balance. And so I love how you've identified and are still working through like how to make sure you're building a business and a life, because I think it's so easy for our businesses to become our lives. Rachel, this has been so wonderful. Let's go to into a quick fire before we wrap up. Perfect. Okay, for it. What is one thing you would be embarrassed if people knew?
Rachel Leigh:Oh, my gosh. Maybe this is the one that I wasn't ready for. Oh, honestly, how much coffee I drink? I it's part of my brand, but it's also, I own an espresso machine, and the urge to not make a second coffee every day is pretty strong. But also, I would say, like the other one is, if I can have two, can I have two? Absolutely? Is that allowed? Sure? I would say the other, really silly. One is how freaking good I am at quoting the movie Tangled.
Shanna Skidmore:I did not see that coming.
Rachel Leigh:That's awesome. I realized that the other day when we were watching it, when some friends came over, and I was like, first five minutes I could basically do, and I was like, this is this is really silly. I will work in a tangled quote into so many different conversations that makes me so happy for you.
Shanna Skidmore:Tangled queen. All right, Rachel, any regrets or wish you could do over moments?
Rachel Leigh:Um, I would say that the one, the one big regret I have in business is not being more patient to let it grow naturally after my pivot, I allowed a business coach to speak, helped me speak an offer into existence that wasn't ready yet, and I think that's one of the biggest reasons why my slump in 2022 was as big as it was, because I essentially made a second pivot within a year of a first pivot, and I think it stunted My growth a little bit. So I would say that if I could do it over, I would just wait a little bit
Shanna Skidmore:longer. Yeah, that's a hard one. We are idea people. We're entrepreneurs. You know, I have learned. I mean, honestly, I think it took me nine years in business to learn to and I'm still not great at it, to sit on an idea or wait until something's ready before I say it's ready. Here I'm still learning that one, but okay, big win, or pinch me moment,
Rachel Leigh:I would say one of my biggest wins in the last couple years. After pivoting to brands, I got to fly out to California for a destination shoot at the end of this last year. And it was definitely a pinch me moment. It was one I thought was going to be a 2024 goal, and so I hadn't bought all the stuff to put all my strobes and lining equipment on a plane yet, and then I got booked for it, and it was a really big project. And I was like, Well, this is now a 2023 goal. We're getting on a plane this year. Yeah. So it was a really cool pinch me moment, because it was just one of those, you're living in the reality of a dream kind of thing.
Shanna Skidmore:So good, all right, best advice, or just really good advice that you have received.
Rachel Leigh:As I was thinking about this one, I it's actually not like that some that somebody spoke over me. It's actually a video from Morgan Harper Nichols that I saw on Instagram probably a year, year and a half ago. And it was the idea that instead of saying the thing, what do I want to do with my life, switch it to what do I want to do within my life or in my life, and that prompted me to be able to take a breath and slow down and start saying, I can have the business I want five years from now. I don't have to have it now. And it helped me to release so much tension of like I was chasing after something so hard, when I looked up and I was like, No, I'm never gonna be. At that point I was 24 and I was like, I'm never gonna be 24 again, living the life that I'm living. So like, don't just sprint past it. Like, stop and smell the roses. Yes, stop and enjoy the coffee with a friend. Stop and watch your nephew grow up. Like, I think that that was one of the biggest and it also allowed me to be like, Okay, I don't have to ace all the hobbies on my list this year. Yeah, I can do it. I can do those in 10 years too. So that was fun. Yeah, I
Shanna Skidmore:feel the need to just ace life in general. Oh, yeah. Like, I put so much pressure on myself to do life perfectly. And I feel like, just when you said that, it's a breath of fresh air, what do you want to do within your life? Like, does it have to be today? Does it have to be a year from now? Just have the dreams and but take the pressure off. That is so beautiful. Morgan Harper, Nichols for the win every time. Just so, oh yeah, yeah, okay. Last quick part question, and then we will send it off. What are you working on now? Or one resource that you would like to share? Um,
Rachel Leigh:this is a both and so something working on right now, I took a piece of my I have this program called the brand plan that's essentially like an eight week course meets coaching framework to help people actually put words to the brand that just lives in their head and then translate that to marketing. And I realized that that is such a big topic to tackle in eight weeks. And so one of the things that I've done for people who aren't ready for that yet is pulled out a piece of it, which I call storylines and starters. And it's essentially my take on content buckets, or any of those, like rotational methods to figuring out what your message is and repeating it in your marketing? Yeah, and I've essentially, like, married it with storytelling and figuring out, how do we make your brand, like binge worthy through your marketing, and make sure that you're reiterating all of your main messages in your story, so that no matter how often you've posted or how far your potential like client like scrolls down your feed, they're getting the the main idea of your business and your marketing, and that's what the it's like a mini course that should only take you about two days to figure out, and that's rolling out pretty soon, which I'm excited for. And so that's also like the resource that I would
Shanna Skidmore:I love it storylines and starters that you're these names are. So we will link those in the show notes. Rachel, thanks for coming on the show. Let's send it off with looking back to high school. Rachel, senior year, what would you tell yourself on day one of starting your photography business?
Rachel Leigh:Learn to hold things loosely without taking them for granted. I think if I could have learned to not be like this is my hard and fast plan for the next five to 10 years of my life, I probably would have moved a little bit slower and enjoyed things a little bit more and not had to learn the exact same lesson four times before I actually learned it. But yeah, that's what I would leave her with.
Shanna Skidmore:Yeah, Rachel, thanks for sharing your story. It's been fun to catch up today. And yeah, this has been so wonderful.
Rachel Leigh:Thanks so much for having me. Shanna, it's been a joy. Hey, Wildflower, you
Shanna Skidmore:just finished another episode of consider the wildflowers the podcast. Head over to consider the wildflowers podcast.com. For show notes, resource links and to learn how you can connect with Rachel. One final thought for today from Thomas Jefferson, if you want something you've never had, you must be willing to do something you've never done. As always, thank you for listening. I'll see you next time you.
