sacred sundays vol 5.
reintroductions 🤍
This past year I have spent hours rewiring my mind and working on my mental health which despite my public persona (I’m very good at pretending to be okay) had become quite debilitating. It’s been a journey but every day I can see just how much my overall mental health, well-being, and self-esteem have improved.
I am very proud of myself but… of course, I wish I could say that it’s been an easier process. Today I feel the healthiest that I’ve ever been mentally BUT at the most uncomfortable point that I’ve ever experienced maintaining my photography business/career.
Ultimately, I hit a point where it was either my well-being or keeping the photography bizzness afloat and I chose myself. I’ve come to realize that the busier we are, the less time we have to examine the quality of our minds. The more we have to “work, work, work” the less we can even notice that there is something going on within in the first place.
Despite my long-standing passion for photography, when my mental health took a toll and I experienced severe burnout, I found myself unable to muster the emotional energy to actively pursue new clients. It sucked the love out of something so special and that used to bring me so much joy in the beginning. For months, I felt uninspired, hopeless, and stuck.
And a hard truth that I’ve had to come to terms with after freelancing full-time for three years, is that when something happens to you, and you’re not prepared you may have nothing to fall back on financially. I eventually sought help from my family, friends, and a therapist. Thanks to me finally getting the support I needed, I’m now much better and overall I’ve learned so much. But I still have a long way to go.
I now understand that I had to experience this season of my life where everything had to fall apart, leaving me to carefully sift thrift the pieces. I get to leave the parts that no longer work and reimagine the ones that do. This gets to be a new chapter for me not only as a photographer but as the artist, Taylor Simone.
I get to reintroduce myself, this time with fresh new eyes and a clearer mind. One thing that I’ve decided for sure is that I’d like to create some separation between myself as a photography business owner and an artist. For years I’ve tried to merge the two after witnessing many of the photographers that I admire somehow ‘successfully’ do it, but I’ve decided that I just want to do things differently.
While I still have every intention to continue redesigning my photography business to my needs and using it to make a living, I’m really excited to continue cultivating myself as an artist. It’s often difficult to label myself as a photographer when my creative curiosities far surpass that label. In all honesty, I find it very hard to label myself at all.
If you’re reading this newsletter, know that you’ll be getting more of that experimental artistic side of me here. I have a mission to fulfill and I need my own digital garden to brainstorm, share, and philosophize on the ways that I artistically navigate the world through my own perspective as a woman. That’s why I love it here so very much. I need that kind of freedom which can often be limited when I’m photographing projects for work.
The more that I begin to understand who I am, the more that I realize that I have so much power within my own creative voice. I know that as a black woman artist raised in rural Louisiana, I have a very unique way of seeing the world.
Through the art and content that I share, I feel compelled to guide women through their own individual transformations and reinventions. From the good and the bad, I want to show women that there are ways to overcome the current self that they may be stuck in and to have some fucking fun while doing it. I truly believe that sharing our creativity is another form of medicine and by giving you a dose of mine I have faith that it’s going to show you how to activate your own remedy.
OFFERINGS
As you’ve read, I’m currently in the process of redesigning my photography business. I could really use a lot of work in this season to make up for the time I’ve needed to recenter myself. My fall calendar is fully open for booking portraits, engagement, branding, and commercial photography. I’m also offering virtual one-on-one mentor sessions for women creatives priced at $111 for one hour. I’d love to work with you and consider recommending me to a friend you think I’d vibe with.
Q&A’s
For my next upcoming newsletter, I would like to answer your questions about myself or about any life topics in general (relationships, sex, wellness, femininity, self-care, etc). I’ll share advice, tips, and thoughts from my own perspective. All questions will be anonymous and you can submit your questions below. Can’t wait to read what questions you all have on your minds.
I find myself in yet another season of reinvention myself, especially when it comes to my writing craft. It's refreshing to read your vulnerability throughout because it is so exhausting to practically lose so much or go through difficult seasons without talking about it. Cheers to you!!