If you are a creative entrepreneur, you are bound to struggle with imposter syndrome at some point. Today’s episode is the pep talk you need when you find yourself deep in that battle. I hope this serves as a reminder that you deserve to be here, you can be successful, and the only person you need to compare yourself to is who you were yesterday.
The Shoot It Straight Podcast is brought to you by Sabrina Gebhardt, photographer and educator. Join us each week as we discuss what it’s like to be a female creative entrepreneur while balancing entrepreneurship and motherhood. If you’re trying to find balance in this exciting place you’re in, yet willing to talk about the hard stuff too, Shoot It Straight Podcast is here to share practical and tangible takeaways to help you shoot it straight.
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Today’s episode is brought to you by Root to Rise, a four month mastermind and retreat for female photographers where personal development meets business growth. During the four month experience, students have weekly calls focusing on a variety of topics that both better their lives and their businesses, along with incredible guest teachers, a private Facebook community, and weekly Voxer hours! One of the best parts of the experience is definitely the three day in person retreat. The women who have gone through this program have had some absolutely incredible transformations reached massive goals and changed the trajectory of their businesses. Come join us for Root to Rise!
Review the Show Notes:
Why you need this pep talk (2:07)
Imposter syndrome is a dirty word (2:57)
Comparing apples to oranges (3:53)
Overcoming imposter syndrome (5:53)
Mentioned in this Episode:
Root to Rise Mastermind & Retreat
Review the Transcript:
Today’s episode is brought to you by route to rise a four month mastermind and retreat for female photographers. That is where personal development meets business growth. During the four month experience, students have weekly calls focusing on a variety of topics that both better their lives and their businesses. Think topics like goals, boundaries, money, and marketing and many many others. The program also includes incredible guest teachers, a private Facebook community and weekly Voxer hours, where you get individualized guidance and mentoring from me on topics that matter to you and your business. One of the best parts of the experience is definitely the three day in person retreat. Consider this the most fun girls weekend ever. We eat well do yoga, photograph three sessions, work through portfolio reviews, take headshots and build deep friendships. I can tell you that the women who have gone through this program have had some absolutely incredible transformations reached massive goals and changed the trajectory of their businesses. If you want to get on the waitlist to be notified when enrollment opens again soon, you can head over to the link in the show notes and get on that list. And now back to the episode. Welcome to the shoot it straight podcast. I’m your host Sabrina Gephardt here I will share an honest take on what it’s like to be a female creative entrepreneur. while balancing business motherhood and life. myself along with my guests will get vulnerable through honest conversations and relatable stories because we’re willing to go there. If you’re trying to find balance in this exciting place you’re in yet willing to talk about the hard stuff to to shoot it straight podcast is here to share practical and tangible takeaways to help you shoot it straight.
Welcome back to the shoot it straight Podcast. Today we’re talking about a big topic, one that all creative entrepreneurs struggle with, and one that we constantly need to push back against good ol impostor syndrome. I did a deep dive on this very topic and my route to rise mastermind a few weeks ago and I felt the tug to share about it on the podcast. Honestly, this is a huge topic to unpack because there’s just so much there. But today, I want to treat this almost like a pep talk. This episode will be short and sweet. And my hope is that if you are currently struggling with impostor syndrome, it will leave you encouraged. And if you’re not currently in the struggle, just save this episode for later and listen when you need it. Because unfortunately, imposter syndrome likes to pop up from time to time, no matter how far along in our business journey we get. I feel like impostor syndrome is a dirty word that plagues many creative entrepreneurs. And hear me when I say this, it also plagues the seasoned ones. The truth is that at one point or another, everyone has struggled with this very problem. And thought things like my work isn’t good enough to charge that my work isn’t good enough to share online. I’m not good enough to be in business. I’m not good enough to quit my full time job. I’m not a real photographer. So I can’t go to x the conference or join the group or invest in the thing or submit for the competition. I could never create the product or offer that they have. No one wants what I have to offer. I can’t show my face online. I can’t reach out to that person to collaborate because I’m not good enough.
On the surface, this appears to be a self confidence problem, right? I’m not good enough. They’re better than me. I’ll never make it in this market, etc. But many times, when you take a deeper look, you realize that this isn’t as much a self competence problem, as it is a problem of comparing apples to oranges. Imposter Syndrome often sneaks in when you’re looking around at what others are doing. And many times when you’re trying to compare yourself, you’re looking to someone who’s actually way ahead of you in the game. You might be starting out on your journey and comparing yourself to someone who has years and years of experience. Maybe you just learned photography, but you’re comparing yourself to an industry leader. Of course your work looks different. Of course, your business looks different. Of course, you position yourself on social media in a different way. You’re a beginner, and you’re comparing yourself to someone who’s much more advanced than you. Or maybe you’ve been in business for a while and you are deciding to step into education. And you’re looking around at the other educators out there and you’re thinking I could never charge what they charge or I could never sell out programs like they do or why would I even want to coach When so many people are already doing the same thing. Of course they sell out programs and charge top dollar. They’ve been teaching and coaching for years, and you’re just getting started. Comparing yourself to anyone isn’t fair to you. But comparing yourself to people who are ahead of you on the journey is especially unfair. We’ve all heard the statement, Comparison is the thief of joy. And there’s so much truth in that statement. To be honest, I don’t really want you to compare yourself to anyone, but yourself. Feel free to compare your work now to what it looked like a year ago or two years ago.
Feel free to compare what your business looks like now to what it did when you first opened your doors. But don’t you dare compare your work or your business to someone else who is more advanced than you? That’s just not fair. If you want to overcome impostor syndrome, there are several things that you can do. But the biggest one is to keep your eyes on your own line. Mark your own progress and stop paying attention to what everyone else around you is doing. If you don’t believe in your business, no one will. You need to completely own who you are. You are a photographer, you are an artist, you are a writer, you are an entrepreneur, look in the mirror and say this to yourself over and over and over again if you have to. Because if you don’t believe what you’re saying, no one else will. Sure some of the struggle with impostor syndrome will naturally ease a bit over time as you become more confident in yourself and your business. But it will never go away forever. The biggest thing you can do now is to be your own cheerleader, be your own guide, be your own motivation. Stop looking around, stop all the scrolling, stop comparing apples to oranges.
You absolutely deserve a seat at the table. Stop saying that you’re not good enough to be in business. Because you are. You have found something that you love to create that fills you with passion and that people obviously have an interest in purchasing or supporting you in you deserve to be here. This is such a hard process. And honestly, it takes an absolute ton of effort, sometimes daily or even multiple times a day. But it’s worth it. And you can do it. You deserve to be here. You can be successful, your work and your business will grow over time. Don’t rush the process. Stop measuring yourself to people that are ahead of you. You will get there just keep putting one foot in front of the other. So if this episode, if this little mini pep talk resonated with you, can I ask you a favor?
Would you screenshot it and share it to Instagram? I really would love this message to get out to as many people as possible because I know how much of a struggle impostor syndrome can be. And if you share it, make sure to tag me at Sabrina Gebhardt photography so that I can thank you and give you a virtual hug. That’s it for today, my friends. We’ll see you next time. Thanks so much for listening to the shoot it straight podcast. You can find all the full show notes and details from today’s episode at Sabrina gebhardt.com backslash podcast. Come find me and connect over on the gram at Sabrina Gephardt photography. If you’re loving the podcast, I’d be honored if you hit that subscribe button and leave me a review. Until next time, my friends shoot it straight.
