Why You Should Celebrate Your Success as a Photographer

Let's just cut to the chase as to why you should celebrate your success. It changes perceptions. Yours. Your teammates on your crew. The people who follow you. The people who may hire you.

Celebrating your success does a number of things for you and the people around you, and all of the results are positive.

Of course, these celebrations don't have to be big blowouts. Not all successes are equal, but they are worthy of some kind of celebration.

My view of photography comes down to three easy steps.

Create. Share. Celebrate.

OK, maybe it isn't always easy to do, but the concept is pretty simple. Sometimes the effort to create is harder than others. If you do something tough, you should celebrate when you succeed. On the other hand, sometimes you've planned and organized so well that the creation process is a breeze. You should celebrate your genius as a photographer, too!

7 Reasons to Celebrate Your Success

Lee and I discuss these in depth on the podcast, so please give a listen. Here are some of the highlights.

1: It Forces You To Concentrate on Positive Results Instead of Negative

If you want to celebrate your success, then you need to plan to succeed. Simple thought, no? Instead of worrying about what can go wrong, start approaching your photography with a plan to succeed. That means you know in advance what it takes to achieve success. When you know your objective, it's easier to plan to succeed.

Never underestimate the benefits of a positive attitude.

2: It Unifies the Team

In many cases, photography is a collaborative work. It could be just you and a model. Maybe you have an assistant. What about someone to help with hair, makeup or wardrobe? Is someone helping you with production to get a location or provide resources?

All of these people are on your team. When you know your objective, they can help you meet it. Everyone does better work when they know what's expected of them. It's up to you as the photographer to also be the director of your work. Even if you're doing this as a hobby, it's still a project that needs to succeed.

Let your team know what you want to achieve, and celebrate with them when you succeed. That simple approach defines you as a leader and someone who makes a positive impression. It makes the team want to work together, particularly when you give them a release to celebrate at the end.

3: Celebration Makes You Feel Better

I'm not scientist, but even I know that studies show that people who celebrate success feel better about themselves. It release endorphins and allows you to feel even better about your accomplishments. Who wouldn't want to feel better? So go ahead and have a celebration, because SCIENCE!

4: Celebrating Success Develops a Success Mindset

When you celebrate your success and it feels good, you want to do it again. This is where you get the payoff from celebrating your success. It's an attitude game-changer.

When you succeed and feel good about it, it's a bit intoxicating. Now instead of bouncing from one photoshoot to the next, you're planning on how you're going to succeed at each event. They may be completely different, but that doesn't matter. You're planning ahead to ensure success, because you want to earn that celebration at the end.

5: Celebrating Success Positions You as a Winner and Leads to More Success

When you celebrate, let people know about it. Instead of bragging about your great photo (which can make you seem like a jerk), people will just see you as a happy person with a lot of success.

It actually helps you position yourself in the market or among peers. They perceive you as a positive person with great results who knows how to have a good time.

6: Sharing the Celebration Encourages Others to Support Your Success