Relationships Are the Job: The Highest ROI Decision You’ll Ever Make w/Sarah Bradshaw
Jan 14, 2024
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Sarah Bradshaw, professional wedding photographer, shares her journey of detaching from groupthink in the wedding photography industry. She discusses mindset shifts, the importance of outreach, and her approach to selling. The podcast also covers building a luxury wedding business, finding harmony and setting boundaries for success, and strategic actions for achieving success.
Prioritize individuality and authenticity, stepping away from groupthink and embracing what works best for your business.
Build strong relationships and deliver exceptional value to planners and clients for success in the luxury wedding market.
Embrace healthy risk-taking, redefine success and failure based on personal goals, and continually adjust strategies for long-term growth in the industry.
Deep dives
Focus on Practical Strategies and Insights to Grow Your Luxury Wedding Business
The podcast episode emphasizes the goal of providing practical strategies, insights, and inspiration to help individuals in the wedding industry break into the luxury wedding market. By prioritizing the truly exceptional and going beyond current limits, listeners are encouraged to make bold moves in their business. The importance of learning from industry experts and gaining behind-the-scenes insights is highlighted, with an emphasis on building strong relationships and delivering exceptional value to planners and clients. The episode also explores the process of renovating and fine-tuning a business, as well as the significance of understanding different philosophies and strategies in the luxury wedding industry. Overall, the episode encourages listeners to focus on their strengths, redefine success based on personal values, and navigate risks with a mindset of continuous improvement.
Sarah Bradshaw's Transformation and Growth in the Wedding Photography Industry
The conversation features Sarah Bradshaw, a wedding photographer with 16 years of experience, as she discusses her journey of transformation and growth in the wedding photography industry. Sarah highlights her focus on serving clients who prioritize family and legacy and strive to create intimate, hospitality-oriented wedding experiences. She shares the process of reevaluating her business and educating herself on building a luxury wedding brand. Sarah emphasizes the importance of understanding unique giftings, maintaining a generational focus, and aligning business strategies with personal values. She credits her mindset shift to self-awareness, constructive criticism, and reading books from various industries. Sarah concludes by expressing her desire to work without trying to prove herself, aiming to photograph and interact with others from a place of confidence and genuine curiosity.
Overcoming Challenges and Embracing Consistency and Persistence
During the podcast, Sarah Bradshaw discusses the challenges she faced and how she overcame them in her wedding photography business. She highlights her resistance to certain changes and the need to let go of trying to prove herself in the industry. Sarah emphasizes the importance of consistency and persistence, both in terms of reaching out to planners and continuously improving her work. She reflects on the value of constructive criticism, the ability to believe in praise, and the significance of understanding the definitions of success and failure on a personal level. Sarah also discusses the role of healthy risk-taking and the importance of a mindset that embraces learning and growth.
Balancing Risk and Helping Others in the Luxury Wedding Industry
Sarah Bradshaw shares her perspective on risk-taking in the luxury wedding industry during the podcast. She emphasizes the need to do things scared and highlights the importance of taking risks that align with personal goals and values. Sarah discusses the benefits of constantly iterating and adjusting strategies while staying in the game for the long term. She notes the significance of redefining failure, success, and sustainability based on individual definitions and desired outcomes. Sarah also touches on the essential role of healthy constructive criticism and the value of learning from and helping others in the industry.
Building Confidence and Overcoming Insecurities in the Wedding Photography Industry
The podcast episode explores Sarah Bradshaw's journey of building confidence and overcoming insecurities in the wedding photography industry. Sarah shares how her mindset shifted from seeking external validation to finding internal security. She discusses the importance of believing in positive feedback and embracing constructive criticism. Sarah also highlights the value of defining success and failure in one's own terms and setting boundaries to ensure work-life harmony. She emphasizes the need for continuous learning, the importance of surrounding oneself with industry peers, and seeking guidance from professionals who have achieved success.
In an industry like wedding photography, “there are as many opinions as there are planners”. It's easy to get caught up in groupthink and herd mentality. People parrot information about running our businesses and what it takes to succeed like it’s universal truth when it’s one perspective.
All information and advice is meaningless if it’s not filtered through what works best for us. Sometimes, the most profitable decision we can make is stepping away from the herd.
That was the case for Sarah Bradshaw. She detached from groupthink, tore her business down to the studs and rebuilt it better. Because of that, she was able to shift from what seems important in growing our businesses to what actually moves the needle.
What were the key mindset shifts in this journey? Why is outreach truly the job? In this episode, Sarah talks about her business, her decisions and her approach to selling.
Guest Bio
Since 2008, Sarah Bradshaw has been known for creating iconic wedding day photographs. Drawing inspiration from classical architecture, vintage fashion, and modern interior design, she uses her well-honed skills as a storyteller to create heirloom images full of warmth, light, and palpable emotion. Her enduring purpose, that guides everything she does, is to inspire a vision of intentional, generational love and connection through timeless and authentic imagery.
Want a clear and comprehensive roadmap on how to succeed in the luxury wedding market? Check out the Business of Luxury Weddings course. You’ll learn the entire business model and thought process - so you can sign consistent 5-figure contracts, build a powerful network of the right people, and travel to iconic destinations. Learn more and join the waitlist at SageJourney.co.
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