Ok so I’m going to get a little honest and to the nitty-gritty in this post.   So if you think talking about money is tacky, then I’m sorry friend!   Well maybe I’m not haha.

The financial stand point of starting a business is a constant conversation topic.   I don’t have all the answers, but I have always been very good with my money.  And by good I don’t mean that I have money LOL.   But what I don’t really have is a lot of debt.   Let me start from the beginning…..  Mark and I are pretty close to living pay check to pay check just with our day jobs.   So I didn’t have any start-up money for this business.    I promised myself that everything I made from business would go right back into the business.

Well here I am 2 years later, I’m still not keeping any profit.   Everything has gone right back in.   But what I will say is that there is this  light at the end of the tunnel… and by tunnel I mean THIS MONTH.   My my recent purchase the 85mm will be paid off and this means this amazing word “profit” is near.

So what am I getting at??    first….  Starting a business is EXPENSIVE!   I’m talking ballpark 25,000 so far.   But I stretched that out over 2 years, and worked my butt off.   (despite what people think you don’t just get a camera and make money.)  I’m going to give you some tips on making this happen with out a big chunk of debt.    I didn’t spend all that at once.    Duh, that would be crazy!

So how did I do it?    After scraping up all my donations and freebies from my first year I bought little things… it would take me 6 months to save up for a lens at that point haha, but it was a START.    Then once I started pre-booking and really having a calendar I was able to see how much money I would make the next month.    Now we can start managing things!

I will use my biggest investment as an example.    My Nikon D4 was $5,995.   At least this was the biggest thing I paid in one chunk.   YIKES right!    Well I knew I wanted to make a big purchase at the end of last year (taxes right, I wanted to spend as much as I made).   So by the end of December I looked at how many weddings I had booked.   I knew with the money coming in that I could pay off the camera in about 6 months.    Well it was my lucky day!  B&H gave me 200 in rewards from another purchase, and I could get a Chase Ink card which also gave me $200 in rewards….. AND they were interest free for 6 months.   Double win!    So I had $400 off my camera, just for being savvy, and I had 6 months to pay it off.   And I did…. it was not easy, but I did.   So long story short….   this is how I managed my investment…. one purchase at a time, looking at what my income would be….and a LOT of hard work.   I didn’t dream about investing in my business, I did it…. one little thing at a time.

So the next problem I hear…. “well I’m not really booking anything so I can’t afford to invest”….. OK… WELL…. Why aren’t you booking?  focus on that, spend some time studying marketing….   there is TONS of free info on the internet.   But there is no excuse, just answers that have not been found.    You CAN NOT make money without spending money.   At least not in this field.    So get out there, make it happen!   One purchase at a time. Before you know it two years and 25,000 dollars later, you have built a business!!!   Yup, I just did a fist pump.

Another big problem I hear is that I know some people get into this industry to help their family financially.   And right off the bat, all the income is going to bills.   Not everyone starts with a full-time job as well.    “I can’t buy my next lens because I have to help my family pay rent.”   I get this.  I really do.   And sometimes life happens and it is just the way that it is.    I respect it.   But in order for business to grow, like really grow,  you have to put the money back in.   Think about the big picture, invest now, get paid later.    It might be painful, but you have to keep your eye on the prize.   It really takes a special mentality of doing whatever it takes to succeed, to invest, and to build.

This post got long…. but most importantly I must say that all this hard work…. this little dream I get to call a business… a JOB….  I’m just so grateful, happy, and fulfilled.   My clients, my brides, my photog friends…. the whole deal, is just perfection.    There is not one free session from that first year that I would trade or do differently.   All that hustle in the beginning is just part of this labor of love….   I’m so lucky that I get the best clients in the world, and I have made some really great friends.    And I have been guided by some of the most amazing women I have ever met.    And that my friends is where success comes from…… Gratitude, Love, Passion.       

Photo found on Pinterest.