Everybody has those Days

Personal

January 12, 2016

Family
Engagements
Weddings
follow @jessicalaurenphoto
 I'm a wedding photographer living outskirts of St. Louis with my sweet husband! When I'm not hanging with my amazing couples, you can catch me whipping up some delicious food or perusing the local thrift store for some finds. 
I'm Jessica Lauren

St. Louis Wedding Photography_4004

This morning I woke up, walked to the kitchen, and as I poured my hazelnut creamer into my fresh cup of coffee, I turned to my Mom and said, “I don’t think I’m ever going to book another wedding.”

I know, I know – cue the dramatics. But I was serious! Sometimes it can get so discouraging when you feel as though you should be doing so much better than you are. The root of that issue would be comparison because so and so is booking weddings right now and I’m not – or because so and so is going to shoot this many weddings this year and I only have this many. But what I really need to have is some perspective. I can’t compare myself to people who have been in business significantly longer or even someone who is in the exact same place as me! I can compare myself to ME. Am I growing? Am I hustling? How about I take comfort in the fact that I have 3 times more weddings booked this year than I did this time last year. That God is 100% PROVIDING! There’s always this incessant voice that says, “you still aren’t good enough,” “do you really think you are going to be successful?” “who is ever going to trust you to shoot their wedding?”. But the reality is that it’s a LIE. That voice will always be there regardless of where I am – because my success isn’t defined by numbers, or by likes, or by a following. My success lies within what the Lord says about what I am doing. Am I bringing him glory? Am I using this for selfish gain as opposed to declare his name? It’s not about me. It’s not about how many people I book, how many weddings I shoot, or how many followers I have on Instagram. It’s about whether or not I choose to glorify God in and through this because it’s all His. The reality is that there are people I look up to that have these days too. The discouraging, this is never going to go anywhere, I’m a complete and total failure days. And there are people that look at my business and go “man, I wish I was where she was.”

We have to change that perspective.

Every time I look to myself to do enough – I fail. I can’t work hard enough to make this dream a reality because it’s not mine. It’s His. And every time I say, “alright Lord, I trust you. You’re going to provide like you always do!” He just sends a little hug my way in the form of a wedding inquiry. (Funny how that happens…) It doesn’t matter if I book that wedding or not – my heart is what matters. Surrendering this “stuff” to Him and continuing to grow and push myself – not for my glory, but for His – that’s what matters. Hustle hard, friends! But don’t grow weary. Have some perspective, take heart, work hard & love your people well. It’s going to be okay.

Much love,
Jessica Lauren

Comments +

  1. Lindsey says:

    Love this Jessica! You are blessed with an eloquent way with words! Such great reminders.

  2. emily says:

    boom. spot on sis! thanks for this and for always pointing back to Jesus!

  3. Dianna Hansen says:

    Nice!
    Thanks for this…such a familiar feeling. Cling to the TRUE perspective!

    The beautiful part of being His: when we stay STILL in Him, is when we get somewhere.

    Grateful for the gifts you offer us!

  4. Chris says:

    I have similar thoughts of incessant failure all the time. But God has shown me the truth in Jesus’ statement: “Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.” You’re right, it isn’t about us. And that takes all the worry and anxiety away because we can trust God to take care of us at all times. In that is joy.

  5. Bianca says:

    Well girl, at least if photography ever grinds to a halt you have writing to fall back on as a career! ;P Kidding though, I love your writing style and your photography is amazing. I’m several months older than you but still only dreaming of a photography business half as good as yours! lol. Keep it up ;) :D

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

planning tips + tricks

Download My Wedding Planning Guide

As a past bride myself & someone immersed in the wedding world for years, this guide is here to help make your planning process as simple as possible!

.

CREATING MOMENTS that ARE FULL OF JOY & feel LIKE YOU

If you want to feel confident that your wedding will be documented beautifully + you won't need to worry about a thing - I've got you, friend! 

let's work together