Last week, Laura shared what it looked like to build a business while fear was riding shotgun.

This week, we're talking about what happened when she finally stopped letting fear drive.

In Part 2 of our conversation, we get into the actual changes that transformed her business. Not because she found some secret marketing hack, but because she committed to showing up consistently, saying what she actually believed, and trusting the process long enough for it to work.

Laura shares how she found her voice through sticky marketing, why she stopped trying to sound like every other photographer, and how embracing what made her different helped her stand out in a crowded market.

We also dive into the launch that completely shifted her business. What started as a goal of booking just three sessions quickly turned into 17 bookings, a 387% increase in revenue, and the beginning of a business she finally felt proud of building.

The best part?

None of it happened because she became fearless.

It happened because she kept showing up anyway.

In this episode, we'll cover:

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Kickoff
00:35 Retreat First Meeting
01:25 Shoot And Learn Hangout
02:39 Trust And Psychology
03:42 Red Blue Ocean Breakthrough
04:48 Mastermind DM Invite
05:57 Money Leap And Support
10:06 Burn It Down Days
12:15 Sticky Marketing Starts
16:13 Stories Without Hello
18:22 Business Villains Angle
20:25 Mini Sessions Margarita Reel
24:38 Be Yourself In Content
25:17 Messy Progress Mindset
26:24 Consistency Over Perfection
27:45 Rewinding to First Launch
28:53 Seven to Seventeen Sessions
31:28 Measuring Growth Not Hype
33:22 Why She Stayed In Mastermind
36:09 Community Accountability Engine
37:35 Fall Launch Runway Plan
40:04 Networking Pays Off
43:28 Pricing And Profit Proof
45:22 Show Your Face Shift
47:39 Credits And Wrap Up
48:42 Final Podcast Outro

🔗 Connect with Laura:
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurastansberryphotography/

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

What if the biggest thing standing between you and the business you want... isn't your pricing, your portfolio, or your marketing?

What if it's fear?

In this first half of a two-part conversation, I sit down with one of my Mastermind clients, Laura Stansberry, to unpack what fear actually looks like in business—and spoiler alert: it rarely announces itself as fear.

Instead, it disguises itself as perfectionism. Overthinking. Waiting until you're "ready." Convincing yourself you need one more website update, one more course, or one more tweak before you put yourself out there.

Laura shares the incredible story of how she built her photography business from scratch by cold-emailing 50 preschools with no portfolio, no reputation, and nothing but the willingness to hear "no." But after experiencing success, fear showed up in a completely different way—and nearly convinced her to walk away from photography altogether.

This episode is about the subtle ways we sabotage ourselves, the lies we tell ourselves in the name of "playing it safe," and why building a successful business almost always requires acting before you feel ready.

And we're just getting started.

In this episode, we'll cover:

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Cold Open
00:40 Fear And Readiness
01:30 Meet Lara And Her Turnaround
04:43 In Studio Catch Up
07:23 Lara Origin Story
11:17 Starting With Schools
12:18 Landing Clients Fast
17:15 Covid Derails Plans
20:12 Boutique School System
25:14 From Profit To Collapse
27:49 Visibility Reality Check
28:48 McDonalds Marketing Lesson
30:27 Playing With The Pretty
32:40 Santa Launch Burnout
34:42 Cornered By Messaging
38:20 Fear Of The Ask
42:58 Silence Equals No
45:49 Retreat Investment Math
47:23 In App Purchases Warning
49:27 Kismet And Wrap Up

🔗 Connect with Laura:
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurastansberryphotography/

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

I just got home from two unforgettable weeks in Italy, and somewhere between watching my teenage boys make questionable decisions in St. Mark's Square, crying on the flight home, and trying to shake off the jet lag, I realized something…

The vacation wasn't just the reward.

It was the receipt.

In this episode, I'm sharing the unexpected business lesson that hit me thousands of miles from home: ordinary isn't safe—it has a price. And if you want an extraordinary life, you have to stop waiting until you "make it" before you start living like the person you're trying to become.

We dive into the psychology behind why experiencing your dream life—even in small, affordable ways—changes your identity more than another vision board ever could. I talk about the research on future-self thinking, why your standards shape your reality, and how forcing yourself into a bigger life often comes long before you feel ready for it.

In this episode, we'll cover:

If you've been waiting for confidence, permission, or the perfect moment before going after the life you really want, this episode is your reminder that the cost of staying ordinary may be higher than the cost of changing.

Bye for now, Posers.

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Cold Open
00:45 Back From Italy
02:48 Motherhood Travel Chaos
07:01 Vacation As Receipt
08:54 Taste The Future
10:47 Future Self Continuity
14:20 Vision Boards Reality Check
17:05 Comedown And Constriction
18:54 Force The Standard Story
22:42 Identity Sets The Bar
24:42 How To Apply It
25:44 Final Takeaway
27:24 Outro And Call To Action

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

There is one moment in my career that still makes me cringe.

Years ago, I stood outside a breakout session at a photography conference while a stranger tried to convince me to attend a class on sales. I refused. I thought sales meant being pushy, manipulative, and everything I never wanted my business to become.

Looking back, I can honestly say that decision cost me more money than almost anything else in my career.

In this episode, I'm sharing the exact 8-step sales framework I wish someone had forced me to learn years earlier. This isn't about scripts or convincing people to buy. It's about learning how to ask better questions, listen more than you talk, and help people articulate what they actually want before you ever make an offer.

Whether you're booking discovery calls, running in-person sales sessions, or simply trying to feel more confident talking about your pricing, this framework will completely change the way you think about selling.

Because the best salespeople aren't the ones who talk the most.

They're the ones who listen the best.

In this episode, we'll cover:

If sales has ever made you uncomfortable, this episode will completely reframe what it actually means to sell.

Bye for now, Posers.

Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome to Posers
00:35 Italy Vacation Vibes
01:49 The Sales Lesson I Dodged
03:14 Conference Hallway Regret
05:55 Eight Step Sales Framework
07:37 Steps One to Four
10:10 Steps Five to Eight
12:42 Why Listening Is Sales
15:40 Framework in the Sales Room
20:03 Study It and Go Sell
21:17 Outro and Call to Action

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

I keep hearing the same thing over and over right now... in my DMs, on coaching calls, inside the Mastermind. Photographers telling me they're stuck. They tried to raise their prices, bookings dried up, they panicked and dropped back down, and now they're too scared to touch their pricing again.

I'm going to tell you why that fear is pointed in the wrong direction. Staying stuck in the middle of the market isn't playing it safe, it's the fastest way to price yourself out of business completely.

In this episode, we'll cover:

"You keep pricing your work off of your own bank account instead of hers."

Pick a direction. Not for this month, for who you're building toward. If this episode hit something for you, I go even deeper on the strategy inside The Posing Method and inside the Mastermind.

Links below.

Go do something brave.

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Cold Open
00:35 Italy Trip Banter
01:57 The Mid Price Trap
05:31 Two Buyer Economy
11:40 Barbell Market Explained
14:51 Why Luxury Is Different
19:56 Status And Certainty
22:18 10K Client Mindset
25:24 Fix Positioning Not Price
27:35 Pick A Direction Wrap
30:29 Outro And Call To Action

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

This episode is a little different. It's not about marketing. It's not about pricing. And it's definitely not about presets.

It's about the stories we tell ourselves.

After a conversation with a photographer who told me she'd purchased hundreds of preset packs over the last decade and still wasn't happy with her editing, I realized we weren't actually talking about Lightroom anymore.

We were talking about confidence.

We were talking about perfectionism.

We were talking about the exhausting habit so many of us have of searching for an external solution to an internal wound.

And that's where this episode goes.

I share a deeply personal story about one of my closest friends growing up, body image, and the realization that the same distorted thinking that can affect the way we see ourselves often sneaks into the way we see our work, too.

In this episode, we'll cover:

If you've ever found yourself endlessly tweaking your galleries, chasing the "perfect" edit, or convincing yourself that you'll finally market your business once your work is "good enough"...

This one's for you.

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Cold Open
00:47 Episode Disclaimer
01:59 Remember That Girl
02:56 Beauty She Couldn't See
04:45 Body Image Spiral
06:14 Evidence Wasn't Enough
07:09 Business Mirror Moment
07:18 Preset DM Story
08:17 No One Click Fix
09:16 Hundreds Of Presets
10:42 Confidence Behind Tinkering
12:50 Tough Love Advice
13:30 Her Honest Breakthrough
14:01 Editing as Avoidance
14:52 The Deeper Wound
15:54 Business Dysmorphia
18:21 Presets Aren’t the Fix
20:10 Perfectionism Disguised
24:04 The Real Cost
25:14 Questions to Sit With
26:48 What We Could Build
27:41 Closing and Support
28:15 Podcast Wrap Up

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

If you've ever caught yourself saying, I don't have time, I'm not good at business, I'll start next year, or I've already tried that and it didn't work... this episode is for you.

Today I'm calling out the six biggest excuses keeping photographers stuck. Because the truth is, your camera isn't the problem. Your editing isn't the problem. Your talent isn't the problem.

Your excuses are.

In this episode, I'm breaking down the lies we tell ourselves that feel productive, responsible, or even logical, but are quietly costing us bookings, confidence, momentum, and ultimately... six figures.

I'm sharing the mindset shifts that helped me build financial freedom after my life completely fell apart, and why waiting for the perfect time, consuming endless free content, or quitting after one failed attempt will keep you exactly where you are.

This episode is packed with tough love, real talk, and practical perspective that will challenge the way you think about your business and the woman running it.

In this episode, we'll cover:

If you're ready to stop playing small, stop waiting, and start taking ownership of your success, this episode is your wake-up call.

Bye for now, Posers.

Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome to Posers
00:35 Spicy Mom Energy
03:40 Excuse One No Time
09:09 Excuse Two Business Skills
12:10 Excuse Three Start Now
14:15 Excuse Four Right Time
17:01 Excuse Five Invest Wisely
22:34 Excuse Six Tried Before
26:32 No Bullshit Pep Talk
29:36 Outro and Call to Action

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

Yes. I am quoting Vanilla Ice.

Yes, it shows my age. I don't care.

Because before you roll your eyes and keep scrolling... I need you to actually stop and listen to what I'm about to say. This might be the most important conversation we've had on this podcast yet.

Your ideal clients are out there right now. They are spending money. They are trusting other businesses with their time, their attention, and their wallets. And they have absolutely no idea you exist.

Not because your work isn't good enough. Not because your prices are too high. Not because the market is too saturated.

Because you are waiting to be found instead of going where they already are.
This episode isn't about strategy. I'm not handing you a script today. What I AM doing is dismantling the mindset that is quietly keeping your business smaller than it deserves to be — because no amount of strategy works until this part does.

We're talking about fear. Rejection. What it actually costs you to stay invisible. And why Jen Gottlieb is right when she says that being found isn't just a goal — it's your responsibility.
The how is coming. And when it does, it's going to change everything.

But first — we fix the brain.

Tits up and ears open.

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Intro
00:45 Owning My Blind Spots
06:27 Why Collaboration Works
07:34 Responsibility To Be Found
13:12 Interruption Vs Trust
16:23 Fear Of Rejection
17:22 Rejection Therapy Lessons
20:40 Pitch The Gap
26:25 One Small Next Step
28:38 Wrap Up And Resources
30:00 Subscribe And Goodbye

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

🔗 Resources mentioned:
Jen Gottlieb Keynote → https://www.instagram.com/p/DZk6hWRvSDr/

Jia Jiang - What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection (TED Talk) → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vZXgApsPCQ

Adam Grant - How to Pitch Your Best Ideas → https://www.ted.com/talks/worklife_with_adam_grant_how_to_pitch_your_best_ideas

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

I was supposed to go to Lowe's.

My husband and I were out running errands and I remembered that Grouse House an antique and vintage home goods warehouse that an interior design client had been telling me about for weeks was having a sale. So I made an executive decision that a Saturday at a gorgeous warehouse full of vintage European furniture sounded a lot better than a Saturday looking at plastic planters under fluorescent lighting.

I did not expect to spend a thousand dollars. I also did not expect to walk out with a collaboration in the works, a lunch date on the calendar, and a Matriarch session booked.

But that's what happened. And in this episode I'm walking you through the whole thing the DMs, the content, the collab pitch that happened mid-candle-order because I think the way it unfolded is more useful to you than any strategy I could draw up on a whiteboard.

I also want to talk about something my girl Laura Stansberry brought up in my Posers membership when I shared this story, because she named a pattern that I know a lot of you are stuck in too, where you try to do a collaboration, end up giving away a free session, get one post out of it, and never hear from them again.

That's not a collaboration. And by the end of this episode you'll know exactly what the difference is.

Here's what we're getting into:

This is one of those episodes where the story is the strategy. I hope it makes you want to get your boots on the ground.

Timestamps:
00:00 Podcast Intro
00:42 What Collaboration Means
03:14 Weddings As Client Rooms
05:08 Working The Room
07:27 Warehouse Sale Story
12:25 Content That Builds Trust
21:21 DMs And The Soft Pitch
24:53 Avoiding Freebie Traps
28:16 Collab Is Access Exchange
31:15 Seven Step Playbook
38:17 Wrap Up And Call To Action
40:31 Outro And Reviews

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → If this episode lit something up for you, if you recognized yourself in the pattern of working hard without seeing the growth you know you're capable of the Posers Mastermind is where we fix that.

This is my most comprehensive program for photographers who are done leaving money on the table and ready to build a business with actual strategy behind it. We go deep on marketing, lead generation, content, email, sales psychology, pricing, client experience, and the mindset it takes to run a profitable company, not just a busy one. Everything I taught in this episode is just the surface of what we build together inside.

I built this business as a single mom of three boys with no fallback plan and no safety net. Failure genuinely was not an option.

The strategies I teach inside the Mastermind are the same ones that turned my camera into a career, my career into a company, and my company into a life I'm incredibly proud of.

If you're ready to stop hoping the bookings come and start building the machine that makes them get on the waitlist for the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral

Apparently we're having a Pratt Boy Summer.

Not because Spencer Pratt should be mayor of Los Angeles.

But because he accidentally became one of the most fascinating marketing case studies I've seen all year.

After stumbling across a breakdown of his campaign, I realized something that photographers, business owners, and creators need to hear:
The market doesn't always reward the most qualified person.

It rewards the person people can't stop talking about.

In this episode, we're unpacking cult psychology, audience building, attention economics, reality television, Taylor Swift, Apple, political campaigns, and why Spencer Pratt seems to understand something about human behavior that most business owners completely miss.

We'll talk about belonging, common enemies, shared language, building a world around your brand, and the surprising reason some people become impossible to ignore while others stay invisible despite having more talent, experience, and expertise.

And yes...
We're also talking about the confidence of a mediocre white man.
Tits up and ears open.

Timestamps:
00:00 Graduation Emotional Whiplash
03:19 Spencer Pratt Case Study
07:20 Attention Beats Qualifications
08:48 Belonging Over Agreement
11:07 Own The Villain
12:47 Create A Common Enemy
15:57 Shared Language Signals
17:39 Build A Brand World
19:57 Mediocre White Man Confidence
26:06 Be Impossible To Ignore

🔗 Connect with Jodi:
📸 Website: https://www.j-annephotography.com
📷 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j.annephotography

Love this kind of coaching?
Make sure you’re on my newsletter list where I share the behind-the-scenes of launches, pricing, posing psychology, and what it really takes to scale a photography business with soul.

📣 Help Spread the Word!
The Mastermind Waitlist → The Posers Mastermind is sold out for this round, but you can always hop on the waitlist for next year!! Join the waitlist so you don’t miss the next round. https://j-anne-photography.kit.com/posers-waitlist

The Posing Method → My signature course that teaches you how to pose the brain instead of the body so you can drop dopamine and oxytocin in the first two minutes of a shoot and completely transform your galleries. https://j-annephotography.com/the-posing-method

Pass Platinum → Stop scrambling for a last-minute sale.
Use my link to get 2 months of Platinum free WITH A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE when you start collecting cash on autopilot. https://success.passgallery.com/jodianne-platinum-referral