The Creative Family Feature is a monthly blog series featuring women & men in the C@H family who are building community & education right where they are. We’re inspired by the big things our family members are doing and love being able to celebrate alongside them!! Whether it’s through hosting their own educational experience, building a community-driven team or fostering education with their industry peers, they’re making big dreams happen all over the country!

This month’s Creative Family Feature is Round 10 panelist and Creative 24/7 member Rebecca Rice!

 

 

Tell us about your story! How did your business begin? We want to celebrate the highs & lows of your biz journey with you!

I started my photography business officially about 3 years ago. I’m a youth pastor full-time, so photography is a fun side-gig for me. I have always been an entrepreneur at heart, so I love the business side of things. I’m the kind of person who has lots of hobbies, but those hobbies always got old with time and I’d switch to something else. Photography has been the first hobby that has turned into a true passion for me to stick with! It’s funny, because I really started my photography business by accident. I don’t have that story of knowing my whole life that I’d want to be a photographer like so many others do. My sister was actually taking a photography class in college and was playing around with our mom’s camera. She was a wedding photographer back in the day, so she had all the gear. One day I figured it would be fun to tag along with my sister and take photos of each other for her class. I ended up really enjoying it, so I posted about it to my social media. It didn’t take too long before family friends were asking me to take photos of them for their Christmas cards. Being the entrepreneur that I am, I jumped at the opportunity! After photographing a few families, I decided to just go all in and make this thing a real business. That was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! I now specialize in shooting families, and especially love those with young kids. (Bring me ALL the toddlers!! Crazy, I know.) Along the way, I started a Facebook community to teach moms how to use their DSLR cameras. Through that community, Mom Photography 101, I’m now able to pour into almost 7,000 moms and photographers all over the world! Some just want to take better pictures of their kids, some want to start doing photography as a side business to help out their families, and some already have a photography business and are looking to grow it. I’ve since created courses, templates, and presets to help equip moms and photographers to run thriving businesses of their own. As a youth pastor, I knew I have a passion for teaching. But I didn’t know that I’d love teaching moms about photography as much as I love teaching teenagers about Jesus! I could have gone full-time with my photography a year ago, but I choose to keep it a side-gig because I am called to ministry, and I know God wants me in both the church and the photography world. I feel so humbled and honored thinking about the platform God has allowed me to have in the photography world to serve more of His people and equip them to make an impact in their own families.

My favorite thing about building my own business is:

I truly love the business side of things!! Marketing, finances, launch strategy…I love it all!

 

If I could give one piece of advice to another entrepreneur it would be:

Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. Focus on what you’re doing, and always give it your best. Comparison is such a dangerous trap to fall into. Just work on being the best you can be, and always be open to growing.

In 2020, I’m most excited about these things in my business:

I am in the process of putting together a collection of mini-courses designed to take moms from “mom-tog” to professional photographer. It’s called the Mom-tog Business Journey! I just launched Phase 1: Getting Started, and I’ll be launching Phase 2: Building Your Brand and Phase 3: Marketing to Sell later this year. I’m also super excited to continue growing the education side of my business! I have the opportunity to be a panel leader at Round 10 (YAY!!), and am working on connecting with podcasts and other avenues to get my message out there.

 

Since joining the Creative at Heart family, this has happened in my business:

Since joining the Creative at Heart family, I have seen tremendous growth in myself and my business! My Pinterest game is rocking, I’m consistently making my website and products better, my sales have increased, and I have gained a broader understanding of what goes into running a healthy, thriving business. I have implemented so many systems that I learned from Creative 24/7, and they have helped my business run smoother than ever.

 

Before Creative at Heart I felt…

The best way I can describe it is stuck in a rut. I knew I wanted to grow my business, but I honestly didn’t know how. I had already done everything I knew to do (and it worked), but I had hit my ceiling.

 

Now that I have been to Creative at Heart / am a part of Creative 24/7 I feel …

 

Now I feel like the possibilities for my business are infinite! I am constantly growing and learning something new, and that is helping me to shape my business in a way that it is now constantly growing, too.

 

If I could have coffee with anyone, it would be:

Katelyn James! I have been following her for quite a while, and I just love her story and her genuine personality that shines through everything she does. And our kids are the same age!

 

If someone is on the fence about joining Creative 24/7, I’d tell them:

DO IT!! Seriously, it’s such an easy way to invest into yourself and your business every month. You’ll walk away with actionable steps you can take THAT MONTH to grow your business right away. And the educators are top-notch!

 

 

Connect with Rebecca:Website//Blog//IG