How is your mental health? Did you know regenerative farming takes carbon out the sky?

My guest today is Jim A. Barker. He moved to Sydney a decade ago to start a career in public relations, but after several years of successfully working on some of the biggest names in tech and gaming found himself quite bummed at the idea of pushing words around for someone else. 

Thankfully, he'd picked up a camera a few years beforehand and was learning more about himself behind the lens than he'd ever learned behind a keyboard. So, after a couple of years languishing in agency land, wondering how to make it work, he just...made the jump, starting a photography business: Twelve Points Photography. But it's not just portraits Jim enjoys, he's also a passionate gardener and is taking steps to learn how he can reverse climate change [big call!] through farming. Nowadays Jim keeps himself busy with a variety of jobs, constantly pushing to learn new things to make himself, and the world around him, better. 

Today we chatted openly about his mental health, his Doortraits projects and how he is creating a full work life evolution:

• [04.50] How he splits his time between photography, publicity and farming. 
• [07.10] When Jim picked up a camera few years ago, it gave him the impetus to explore his creative side. 
• [09.08] The trigger to leave? Simple: mental health.
• [11.00] Twilight years in PR: stressed, shuffling his feet, moving and talking slowly, walk home and cry behind his sunglasses. 
• [12.33] The financials – Lived off his final pay check and got as many eyeballs on his photography business Twelve Points Photography. 
• [15.09] Back to university for the third time. “My HECS debt is screaming at me.” 
• [16.43] The system we have of education is great at choking creativity out of us. Learn better by doing and making mistakes. 
• [18.39] Twelve Points Photography and Jim’s Doortraits project. During the pandemic, photographing Sydneysiders outside their homes.
• [22.55] Jim pitched his photos to news organisations: The Guardian Australia ran a massive gallery, Channel 7 News ,Australian Photographer Magazine and ABC all covered it. See his Doortraits here:
• [24.28] Lifeline saw the initial push from media and they came onboard and knowing lockdown was a challenge for mental health, Lifeline and Jim cobranded the initiative and Jim photographed Lifeline staff.  You can still donate here:  
• [27.14] Jim’s work evolution is really a life evolution – it’s all about nature. How Jim is curating his life. 
• [29.29] Jim’s in love with the idea of regenerate farming: a method of farming where you make the soil better. Documentary 2040 speaks to how you can pull carbon out of the sky and put it in the soil. 
• [33.30]  My mental health is the best it’s ever been.
• [34.55] It’s cliché but “kicking myself for not doing it sooner.” Just do it.

 Follow Jim and his chicken’s adventures on instagram 

Thinking about leaving your career and want to Build Your Freedom Fund  - find out more here.