The ARC Creative Podcast: Educating + Inspiring Creatives to Excel as Artists, Entrepreneurs & Humans.

Do you ever feel like there's just not enough time in the day to deliver to your clients, hone your craft, and grow your creative business? Yeah, me too. As Mike Vardy explains, the problem might not be that we have too little time, but that we're not using the time we have effectively.

Mike is an expert in personal productivity and time management, and is ready to help us get our productivity back on track. He is the founder of Productivityist, the creator of TimeCrafting and a renowned author and public speaker.

Before joining us at The Experience this October in Vancouver BC, Mike is bringing his wealth of knowledge to the studio to simplify the process of being a more productive and attentive person. By using his background in comedy as a way to stay both entertaining and informative, Mike helps people all over the world 'define their days, funnel their focus and make every moment count.'

Tackling topics like your to-do list, evening and morning routines and the importance of which app you interact with, today's episode is necessary for anyone looking to improve their time management. Have you tried any of Mike's productivity tips? What helps you maximize your daily productivity? Let us know in the comments on the episode page!

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Money and time – the currency of life
• Easy tips to be more productive in everything you do
• Why you should write everything down
• How daily journaling can help you live a more productive life
• How to pick the right app for your photography
• Why morning and evening routines can be a key to productivity

QUOTES:

"Slowly I went away from being the parody of productivity into an actual pundit and even a philosopher. Which is what I have become, I've gone from being a productivity enthusiast to a specialist to a strategist and now, even more, a philosopher." (5:24)

"Time management is a really dry topic, it just is! So by making it more human, and one of the best ways to make something more human is to bring the humor to it, I think that makes it more accessible." (10:00)

"The app is not the important thing, it's the framework, it's the skill, it's the intention, don't worry about the app because the app comes secondary. Instead, focus on the app within first." (18:50)

"It's about creating boundaries for yourself, it's about knowing yourself first, saying 'hey this is what I've seen' creating boundaries so that you work within that data that you have, and then respecting boundaries, which is the hardest part." (33:22)

"It's all about awareness. And in order to be truly aware you have to be honest with yourself, and sometimes that can be painful." (35:23)

RESOURCES:

Take your craft to the next level at The Experience in Vancouver this October

Productivityist

Getting Things Done

Follow the Productivityist on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

Todoist App

Asana App

5 Minute Journal

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For many of us looking to get established in the photography, or really any creative industry, two of the biggest struggles are finding enough time to hone our craft while balancing the rest of our lives, and knowing when the time is right to make the leap into full-time creative work.

LA wedding and lifestyle photographer Caroline Tran began as a physics teacher, and after years of being creatively drained, she decided to make the switch to photographer. Her work can be seen internationally in print and online, and is centered around passion and playfulness.

Juggling kids, starting and maintaining a business and staying sane can be a juggling act, one that Caroline knows well and is more than qualified to share some tips and advice on. Caroline gives us some insight into how to transition from a 9-5 by setting concrete goals, playing off your individuality and educating your clients. She focuses on building a business to fit into your lifestyle, not the other way around. By starting your business from within and marketing yourself in the right way, Caroline helps remind us of the passion for photography that we all share.

Are you currently trying to make the transition into full-time creative work? What's holding you back? If you already have made the leap, how did you know when the time was right to do so? Let us know in the comments on the episode page!

IN THIS EPISODE:

• How to create hype around your products
• Marketing yourself as 'one of a kind'
• Lessons for anyone in their first few years of their photography business
• The importance of passion and exclusivity

QUOTES:

"If you market yourself as the artist there will never be any other competition, you are the only one." 7:30

"When I started this business the first thing I did was [figure out] who my target audience is, what I was trying to do, how I was trying to market myself. And I think I just had a lot clearer vision coming into this business." 13:15

"One of the most liberating things as an artist is to remind yourself that you don't have to please everybody. The quickest way to not please anybody is by trying to please everybody. Because you are not going to be able to please everybody, so once you give yourself permission to not have to please everybody you can start creating without fear." 18:36

"Each milestone in your life demands of you a little bit differently. So being realistic about that and setting your yearly goals for that purpose [is key]" 30:19

RESOURCES:

Caroline Tran's Website

Follow Caroline on Instagram | Pinterest | Twitter | Facebook

Check out the full show notes page here

Keep up with everything ARC here

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Join us for The Experience In Vancouver

Do you ever feel that little impulse to take a shot that doesn't make sense, and it pays off in the end? That little twinge of excitement informs a lot of today's guest's philosophies on photography and creativity, which he generously shares with us today.

Ross Harvey has been shooting weddings for over 8 years, and his career is founded in his research on happiness and creativity in psychology and philosophy. He was awarded Best Photographer in England in 2013 and 2014, and has been a judge for that competition since 2015. He's UK's Number 1 Fearless Photographer from 2013-2016, and was recently added to Harper's Bazaar's list of Top Wedding Photographers in the World.

Today he talks to us about street photography, as well as his thoughts on intuition and following your excitement as an artist. We also discuss managing your mindset and emotional state and how that impacts your work. He talks about his experience at the ARC Experience last year and gives a couple of tips on branding and pricing from his upcoming talk at this year's conference.

Have you brought street photography skills into your wedding photography work? Do you have any stories about following your creative impulses? Let us know in the comments on the episode page!

IN THIS EPISODE:

• The role of street photography in developing Ross's creativity
• How to bring street photography skills into wedding photography work
• How to follow your intuition and align with your excitement as a photographer
• The importance of optimizing your mindset and "mind mechanics" in your photography
• Some tips on raising your rates

QUOTES:

"It's easy to pick the technically best pictures, but they're not always the best pictures because they might lack in emotion or substance." 5:29

"Imperfections can actually lead to a style, which sets you out from everybody else." 11:29

"Your excitement is like a compass, and it pulls you in a certain direction. And when you walk or run in that direction, life seems to just align itself, and you will also find yourself happy, because you're doing something that you're aligned with." 13:07

"Every time I look back on my life, no matter what I've done, I can't remember a single time that I've ever been let down by following my intuition. Not once." 24:01

RESOURCES:

Ross's Website

Follow Ross on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Train with Ross

Check out the full show notes page here

Keep up with everything ARC here

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Join us for The Experience In Vancouver

In this short episode, we break down what to expect from the ARC Creative Podcast, including topics, future guests, and an introduction to your host, wedding + street photographer and founder of The ARC Experience conference, Sachin Khona.

RESOURCES:

Keep up with everything ARC here

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Join us for The Experience In Vancouver