July 13, 2015
It’s a cold, drizzly day today in England, nothing out of the ordinary, and I’m taking the morning slowly. It’s been a busy kick off to this summer’s wedding season and I am thankful for every opportunity to photograph each of my bride and grooms on their wedding day. I am reminded, however, that even though I may be going strong today, it could all fall apart tomorrow. I’m not trying to be dramatic, only realistic. A big deciding factor in this, believe it or not, is REST.
Resting means letting go of control.
Resting is trusting that today will take care of itself.
Resting means unplugging from the virtual world and connecting to the real world around us.
Resting is making time for fun and adventure that we would otherwise not have time for.
Resting is making time for things that grow, inspire and motivate us.
Resting is giving undivided attention to partners, spouses, loved ones- those who matter most to us.
Rest is a healthy boundary intended to further us.
As a photographer, my hardest working days happen over what is usually 2 days off of work- the weekend. Going into the wedding industry I especially understood Saturdays would be booked the majority of the summer. I was okay with this, and I am still okay with this except now I have an easy excuse to push out time for rest. My rule of thumb is that if I’m working a Friday, I rest on Saturday. If I’m working on Saturday, I rest on Sunday. If I’m working all weekend? I make sure to carve out resting time during a weekday. That is the beautiful flexibility of being self-employed!
This may sound harsh, but there is no excuse for not making time to rest. We are the masters of our own time. Our schedules are subject to our approval. If you are busy and your schedule is packed and you’re not making time for yourself or for your friends and family, if you are overloaded with work and feeling like you’re sinking beneath the weight of your to-do lists you need to change some things around. Choose what and who you commit your time to and be okay with sometimes saying, “No”. Like I said at the beginning, you may be going strong today, but tomorrow it could all fall apart. If you don’t start resting, your business, your marriage and your friendships will take a hit. It’s the honest truth.
Sometimes I feel reluctant to rest because I feel like people are depending on me. People are expecting to see their photos by a certain date, sometimes the day after their wedding. People are awaiting replies to their emails. People need their questions answered and their dates booked. These are all important things and need to get done so I set expectations and I also schedule posts! I am able to schedule posts on Facebook and on my blog so I can post even when I’m not at my desk. I realise that most of my followers are on social media after work hours or late in the evening so sometimes I schedule posts for that time. I also put my office hours in my email signature and on my Google business page. This is a small gesture towards managing expectations, but I think it works. If a client emails me on Saturday and doesn’t have a reply until Monday they already know it is because my office hours are Monday-Friday. This means I am respecting my working hours, setting boundaries and meeting expectations all at the same time. Win, win!
I will admit that I did not do my best at protecting a day of rest this week. So, this morning I decided to sleep in, practice yoga, read, write and I am not going to feel bad about it. Yes, I have emails to write and photos to edit, but balance and rest are also important. I am not a superwoman. I am a human like everyone else and I will run myself and my business into the ground if I do not take the time to rest.
Here’s to working and resting hard,
Hannah
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