Live. Love. Create. Inspire.

Just a heads up....this post ended up a little long.  Read at your own risk of boredom and information over share :)

Although I have made and halfway kept resolutions in past, I have never actually sat down, thought about it, and then put them in writing.  I actually think by putting them here, on my blog, that I will be much more successful in keeping them.  One of my biggest fears as a photographer is disappointing my clients.  So maybe if I share my goals with you, I will be much more motivated to succeed at them.  

You may have noticed my title, and this is a phrase I keep jotting down in notebooks, on marketing material, and on design work.  I actually think it pretty much sums up my resolutions this year.

Live.

Seems pretty straightforward and it is.  However, I also would like to add that I really want to learn to be better at managing my time.  I spend a lot of time reading blogs, checking facebook, and aimlessly wandering the internet for all things photography.  Although I do feel like there is a time for it, it really needs to stop sucking up my mornings.  I really do my best editing in the morning and then again in the late afternoon.  So I am going to try to structure my day around this.  I am still going to allow myself some free web time-but it needs to be around midday when I need a visual boost or after 5 pm.  That being said, I really want to walk away from my computers by 7 pm-including my ipad which I am completely addicted to.  This might not happen during wedding season, but it is something I need to be mindful of.  I don't want my computer to take time away from husband, friends, and family.  This will in turn give me more time to live-see I made it work.

Love.

I really want to take time EVERY day to be a better wife, daughter, sister, friend, and dog owner.  These relationships take work, and it has become even more important to me this year as I am now living further away from so many people I love.  Also, as a new wife, I feel like I am constantly learning what being married is all about.  I am learning that the support we get from each other is the most important kind.  I am learning that doing something for your husband's happiness also makes you happy.  For example, I have been trying to master some Mexican meals for Kev because it is our favorite.  I have never really been into cooking before, but creating dishes for my husband that I know no one else has made him (outside of a restaurant) , and watching him devour them is a serious happiness booster.  It has made me love cooking.  Making Kevin's happiness a priority will only have a positive effect on my own.  I think this is true with my other relationships as well.  If I go out of my way to do something nice for a friend or family member, I will feel the love as well and my relationships will improve.

Create.

So this is obvious in the sense that I will continue to create through photography.  But, I would also like to spend more time working on design.  It is something I am passionate about but don't have any real training in, so I am going to continue to self teach.  I fell in love with designing my wedding invitations, and save the dates, and sometime would love to do this for someone else.  It also comes in hand for marketing material as well.  

On top of designing, I also want to continue to make this blog grow.  I feel like 2010 was the year in which I started consistently blogging, and I want to keep that up.  I want it to not only be a place for my photography, but for my own life as well.  I really want future clients to be able to get to know me through my blog before I they ever meet me.

Inspire.

I really hope that in some way or another I inspire others.  Seriously, starting my own business and putting myself out there is hard.  There are nights when I can't sleep because I am terrified of failing.  I have been in love with photography for as long as I can remember and therefor it is not something I am prepared to fail at.  That thought is crippling.  I will continue learning, and working until I have gotten to the point where I can call Whitney Lin Photography a successful business.  Then I will continue to work and learn because photography is an always changing industry.  It is my dream, and I hope that I can possibly inspire others to follow their dreams, whether they are photographers or not.  

Okay...that got waayyy lengthy and although it wasn't my intent- I am leaving it for the simple purpose that there will be days in the upcoming year when I need to go back and re-read this.  There will be times, that I am stressed, and uninspired, and I am hoping that my own words can get me through it.  So on that note-Happy New Year!  I hope 2011 is a year of growth, prosperity, and inspiration. 

Isn't Penny the CUTEST puppy in the world?  I was dying to try out my new drop it modern backdrop so Penny was bribed with bacon to be my model.  Isn't that backdrop lovely?  I am in the process of turning our family room into an indoor, natural light studio.  Since it is just Kev and I we don't really need a family room yet...so I have talked him into letting me put it to use.  The space is big enough for babies, boudoir, seniors, and probably groups smaller than five.   I can't wait to get it all put together. 

One other small goal of mine is to receive more feedback in the form of comments on my blog.  Don't be shy-let me hear from you!