Surround Yourself with Motivated Creatives

People will either inspire or drain you and your creativity. Why not be around those who motivate you? 

American entrepreneur and motivational speaker Jim Rohn once said, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." This is important in almost all aspects of life. But I've found that it really hits home in my own photography pursuits. The creative world is ever-changing and moves a thousand miles a minute. Your artistic and photography endeavors have no time to be questioned or thought twice about - by you or anyone else. Being around others who help steer you in the path of success and least resistance in the creative world is imperative to your passion and career.

By taking a look at your own surroundings, you can start to understand how your friends shape your life and creative goals. I always knew I wanted to pursue my passions in the art world. At a young age, I discovered photography and have never looked back. Through my efforts, though, there have always been those who spoke down to me or didn't believe in what I was doing. Many discredited a life devoted to the arts, simply because they lacked understanding in the possibilities and happiness of a career dedicated to creativity.

Countless times throughout school, people - those I thought to be friends - seemed to almost hate the fact that I was pursuing something different. It wasn't mathematics, or science, or a passion focused in the fields of STEM, but it was something I loved. Photography, no matter the subject, has always offered me an authentic outlet for expression and communication. It was my high school teachers who I felt truly first recognized and believed in my ambitions and goals. These individuals dedicate their lives to teaching others of the endless possibilities of careers that pursued creativity and art. My motivated teachers became friends, and in turn, motivated me to strive for more - to strive for excellence. Rather than be distracted by naysayers, I found comfort in going to school because I knew I'd have a system of support rather than of negativity and a lack of understanding.

In college, I finally found a wide variety of individuals who thought the way I did, and who wanted also to pursue a life filled with art, photography, and/or cinematography. I was fortunate to meet like-minded friends and talented photographers like Kevin McAvey, Francis Zuber, and Kevin Stewart, who, after graduation, left their hometowns for the American West in pursuit of fresh powder and photographic opportunities. Since starting new lives and new homes, they've all created new connections in the photography world and have inspired me to push just that much harder and do the same. As mainly a landscape photographer, I sometimes find myself struggling to capture the human element in my photographs. These three photographers make this side of photography look easy, which is constant motivation for me to further develop the skill.

Through surrounding myself with motivated creatives, I was able to meet people like Colby Yee. Yee's knack for storytelling through photography and his videos is remarkable. His attention to detail and focus on capturing the personality of his subjects has motivated me to want to look at my own subjects in a new light and to begin dipping my toes in the vast world of making videos. 

In pursuit of finding other motivated creatives, I was able to meet Damian Battinelli. Battinelli's remarkable talent behind the lens and computer has completely opened my eyes to a new side of the art world. His photographic style has motivated me to question the "why" behind the creation of images and has motivated me to re-examine and cement my own motives each time I click the shutter. His work ethic and his sky-high goals and ambitions have motivated me to always want to do more, make more connections, and surround myself with even more motivated creatives. 

Rather than constantly having to listen to negative remarks and having the negativity affect my attitude and drive toward a successful career in photography, I'm surrounding myself with perpetual positivity and motivation that matches, or goes beyond, my own. By encircling myself with true friends and other motivated and driven photographers and videographers, I began to find that my own drive for excellence within photography and creativity soared to new heights. Has surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals had positive effects on you? If so, who are they and why do these people motivate you? 

Lead image credit: Francis Zuber.