049: Mastering the Art of Self-Promotion without Selling Out

Mica: [00:00:00] Welcome. To the 49th episode of The Savory Shot. A podcast about the art and soul of working in food photography. I'm your host, who loves you most. Mica McCook. I am a food photographer born and based in Austin, Texas. If you are from the Texas area, come holla at your girl. Come say hi. First, before I do anything else, I just want to say thank you to the listeners for joining me.

I don't care if this is your first time or your 49th time listening, thank you for being here. Welcome to the Hot Mess Express. Take a look around, take a load off, kick back your feet?

Relax a little, you're home. But y'all let's get into today's episode.

I want to talk about a topic that truthfully makes me uncomfortable, not because I don't know a thing or two about it, but mainly because, [00:01:00] well, you'll see. I want to talk about self promotion. I know that I'm not the only one who just feels icky and gross whenever you hear the term self promotion. Have you ever promoted yourself with this obvious call to action and felt like a sleazy salesperson. That's me. That's my experience. I don't speak for the rest of y'all, but just the thought of self promotion makes me like want to slick back my hair with some grease because I just, I feel so gross about it. But I want to talk about why you shouldn't feel gross. I've talked to several photographers who stand on business. They convinced me to be a self promoter. At the beginning of our conversations, I was not in it to win it, but after hearing their advice and what they had to say, I [00:02:00] am definitely going to be utilizing some of the tips that they've given to me. Y'all, it's difficult for me to brag about my work, to brag about my accomplishments. I tend to keep pretty low key about stuff that I accomplish, but my photographer friends have convinced me that self promotion is a necessity to make it in this world. The biggest reason being if you won't promote your stuff, then who will? It makes total sense, right?

I didn't get it, but I get it now. I truly do get it. So that's what we're gonna talk about today We're gonna talk about how to promote yourself without feeling like you sold your soul to the devil herself

But y'all before we get into all of that grab your coffee a pen and a paper and let's start the show

[00:03:00] [00:04:00]

Mica: Let me ask y'all something. Have you ever felt awkward talking about your own successes? I know I have. When I got the mentorship with Apostrophe Reps, I really kept a lot of it pretty mum. I didn't talk about it. And really, if it weren't for my husband and my friend, Ana, no one would have known that I was even a part of this mentorship. And I guess the reason why I never really talked at length about it is because I just felt awkward and gross and cringe and I didn't want to be like, Hey, I'm bragging.

Look how awesome I am. Look how, ooh, I am. And it just made me really think. Why does it feel so cringy to give ourselves a pat on the back? I know this isn't the case for everyone. I'm speaking for myself and on behalf of anyone who feels the same way as me. So for the ones who don't feel cringy about it, answer me.[00:05:00]

Why does it feel so cringy?

This topic is super important to me because as artists, we often struggle with self promotion. We're taught to be humble, don't brag, don't put your stuff out there, but humility shouldn't mean hiding our accomplishments. Earlier this year, I started on this journey of self love.

I started talking to myself the way I wanted to be talked to, treating myself the way I wanted to be treated. And y'all, the effect it's had on me has been huge. It's changed how I walk, how I talk, how I see myself. It's manifested into other areas of my life. I'm making bolder choices in fashion.

I'm trying new makeup tips out. I'm smiling more. I am just walking around with such a different positive energy. And the energy that I'm putting out I'm [00:06:00] getting right back in. So it's just been wonderful being on this journey of self love. I have a theory that self promotion works the same. You need to promote yourself the way you want to be promoted. Think about it. If you don't celebrate your achievements, then who will? We often wait for others to notice our hard work, but why? Why do we do that? Why do we wait for someone else to give us permission to shout our accomplishments from the mountaintop?

It's okay to give ourselves a shout out. We should be giving ourselves shout outs. Start by acknowledging your wins, big or small. Did you nail a photo shoot? Did you land a new client? Did you send out a bunch of leads and everybody opened it? Share it, talk about it. When you start appreciating your own efforts, it becomes easier for others to appreciate them too.

When you're happy and confident, that energy spreads to those [00:07:00] around you. By celebrating your achievements, you show others that it's okay to be proud of their hard work too. And that will encourage your counterparts to start sharing about their accomplishments and what they're doing in their businesses.

And then you can celebrate that and you can celebrate each other. And it's a big old celebration.

Celebration of love. Say what. Okay. That was like random off the cuff. I've had a lot of cafe buffet. So work with me, people. Imagine you just finished a challenging photo shoot and the pictures turned out amazing.

Instead of just keeping that joy to yourself, share it, talk about it, go on social media, go on your LinkedIn and say, Hey, man, We just wrapped up this bomb ass, tough shoot. I can't wait to share the final images with you. Can't tell you what it's about, but just know that this was an incredible opportunity.

I'm so proud of myself. Or something like that. I don't know. That's like on the whim of what I would say, but post your [00:08:00] stuff on social media. I have a friend that I went to high school with and I love following his Facebook posts because the man is. Maybe I should bring him on the show and interview him on this very topic because the man knows all about self promotion like he is so good at it and he talks about so many things that he accomplishes with the company that he owns.

He started working there right outside of high school. He rose up through the ranks as a team lead, as a manager, as the store manager. And then eventually he went on to buy it and now he owns it. Shout out to Blazer Tag, go hang out there. But what I love about his post is that he is just constantly promoting his businesses. He's promoting his friends businesses, he's promoting his accomplishments, things that he's doing.

If he works out, he posts about it. Anybody that works at his company and they accomplish something, he posts about it. The reason why Blazer Tag is so successful and so busy [00:09:00] all the time like for real that place is busy twenty four seven is because he is constantly putting out there about what a wonderful company this is. How hard he's worked for it and he just promotes it promotes it but he promotes it in a way where it doesn't feel like you're being sold to. He's giving you little nuggets every single day so when you think about where are we going to take the family for a big party for my kid?

You already know, Blazertag. When someone asks you, Hey, where's a great place to have our company party? Your first thought will be Blazer Tag. He's just so gifted at that. So you need to do the same with your photography. Talk about everything that you're doing in your job. If you're doing test shoots, if you're shopping for props, if you're thinking about doing a project, if there's a company that you're interested in working with, if you booked something, talk about that.

Those are all different forms of promotion, and I get it, [00:10:00] I really get it, that it might feel awkward at first. I know for me it still feels awkward, I feel a little bit sleazy, but it's not.

But I know why I feel this way. We've all been taught to be humble, to not brag about ourselves. The photographers that I spoke with, they told me that there's a difference between bragging and sharing your joy.

It's not like you're saying, Ooh, look at me. I'm so great. I'm so awesome. It's about saying, Hey, I worked really hard on this and I am very proud of what I accomplished. It's about being genuine and honest about your journey. You share the good, the bad, the ugly.

Don't just be all about the highlights. That's also what I love about my friend, Joe owner of Blazer Tag. What I love about his post is that he really does keep it real. He tells you the good days. He tells you the bad days. He tells you about failures, but how he turned that failure into a lesson.

Those are all things that you can do as well as a photographer. And I know [00:11:00] that as photographers, we feel this pressure to appear like we're always busy and swimming in client work and all that jazz. But you can be quite honest and say, Hey, it's been a pretty slow year, but this is what I'm doing in my downtime.

It's about being genuine, about being honest about your journey. People can sense when you're being authentic. that whole, fake it till you make it. Yeah, that only works if you're a good liar. And if you're like me and a terrible liar, then it will not work out at all. People know when you're full of shit.

So when you are honest, they appreciate your honesty. And when you do accomplish something, and you do have something to promote and brag about, they will be right there with you cheering you on because they know all the steps that you took to get there, they see all the test shoots that you're doing.

They see all the research that you're doing. It's like they're on that journey with you. So when you promote and talk about these things, [00:12:00] they want to celebrate right there with you. And more than anything, you're teaching others to respect and value what you do. You're showing that creative work requires skill, requires dedication and talent.

One of the type of posts that I hate, and I'm not coming for anyone, I'm just saying how I say it, but one of the type of posts that I hate is when photographers, creatives, complain about how clients just don't know, do you want to know why we charge what we charge?

Like I, I, No one wants to be talked to, no one wants to be lectured to. That kind of post will get a quick swipe from me. I won't even bother going through it because it just, it feels like you're shaming the client for being a cheap bastard and they're always going to be a cheap bastard. So just kindly say no and move on.

But the ones who just show what they do, they show the creative work that it requires. The skill, the dedication, the talent, the test shoots, the [00:13:00] collaborations, the research, the all of that. They demonstrate that creative professionals deserve recognition and respect. They're showing you what you do without lecturing you, without pointing their finger and saying, Do you see how hard I work, mothafucka?

You see everything that goes into the behind the scenes of a shoot. Preparing for a shoot, the actual shoot. All of that. Also, promoting those milestones. don't forget to celebrate the milestones. I don't care if you book a big client, if you finish a challenging shoot, if you reach a personal goal, take the time to celebrate that and put that out on your Facebook, on your LinkedIn, on your Instagram, go in your stories and say, Hey, I thought you should know, but I just made a castle out of Play Doh and I'm very proud.

I don't know if that has anything to do with food photography, but it might. You could share it. Maybe you [00:14:00] baked a pie and you have a new appreciation for pie baking. And you're like, Ooh, I think I could do this in another shoot. Something, anything, share these milestones with your community and let them celebrate with you.

Like I said, people love to par-tay. We all love a good party. We want you to succeed. We want to celebrate with you. And yeah, there are going to be some folks out there who guzzle down that hater raid and they're going to be off to the side, just hating, doing what they do, hating. But for the most part, a great way to build a community around your work is to keep people updated.

About the good, the bad, the ugly, because they want to celebrate with you when you reach that mountaintop. They know all the work that you've put into where you're at and they want to celebrate with you. They want to do that. So share it, promote it, do all that. Don't be shy. Show the world what you're capable of.

Show the world what is tough. [00:15:00] Just show.

Mica: So one of the questions I asked my photo friends is what can people who just don't feel comfortable with self promotion, like how can they get into the habit of it without being thrown out to the wolves at a networking event?

And someone mentioned the term safe bragging. I've never heard of it, I don't know if y'all have, but the way it was explained to me is safe bragging happens when you share your wins in a comfortable environment, like at home with your family or with your friends.

It helps build your confidence without the pressure of a professional setting. So one place someone recommended is on your personal Facebook, just talk about something that you accomplished. And I thought that was a great idea, but safe bragging is a great way to ease [00:16:00] into the habit of self promotion.

It allows you to talk about your accomplishments in a supportive and understanding environment. So your friends and your families are there to cheer you on. That one auntie that just likes everything you do and they say, beautiful mija, or maybe that's just my family. Maybe that's just my family. But in my case, it's always my mom who comments on everything.

So that's a good place to start mainly because they genuinely want to hear about your successes. They care about you. They love you. So start with them and you can get used to the idea of talking about your accomplishments without feeling like you are boasting.

So for example, my family has a group chat and shout out to my amazing, awesome, super smart, super beautiful niece, Alicia.

She has been keeping us up to date. She's currently in nursing school. So she's just been keeping us up to date with how everything is going. Every time she passes the test, every time she [00:17:00] accomplishes a milestone, she keeps us updated and we cheer her on and we support her.

Practice safe bragging. It helps build your confidence. The more you talk about your accomplishments in a safe environment, the more natural it will feel. It's like building a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. As you become more comfortable sharing your successes with family and friends, you find it easier to talk about them in other settings. Like colleagues, clients, you can go on your business social media and talk about that. I just want to give a shout out to my husband, Aaron, because. He. Maybe I should interview him about promotion because every time I accomplish something that man is on his Facebook and he is singing my praises, bragging me up and down all over Texas, like the man promotes me like no one's business.

Every single time I meet one of his colleagues or a friend, they're like, oh my gosh, we've heard so much about you and about your photography. [00:18:00] Aaron talks so much about things that you have accomplished. We heard about your mentorship. Congratulations on that. I'm like, Who are you and why are you putting my business out there?

But that's what my husband does. So I want to give him a shout out for doing that. So find people in your world that will also brag about you and put your accomplishments out there. But really though, I love that he does that. The positive reinforcement, it's incredibly motivating.

It gives me the boost, the confidence to share my achievements with a wider audience. So shout out to my husband for doing that. Love you boo. Once you're comfortable. sharing your accomplishments at home, then you can start practicing safe bragging in small professional settings. So you can begin with colleagues or a mentor you trust and respect.

You want to know what a great, safe bragging environment is? Your Newsletter. Like that is the place to brag about yourself. That is the place to [00:19:00] like, put it out there and be like, yo, this is what I accomplished.

Look at all these wonderful, amazing things that I accomplished. So go ahead, start safe bragging today. I feel like we need to come up with a different term because safe bragging just sounds, I don't know. Maybe we'll just keep it a safe bragging. Y'all tell me what you think. Should we keep it safe bragging or should we come up with a different term for it?

Just tell me what you think. I'll put out like a survey on the Insta and hear from you guys. And we'll go from there. But seriously though, start bragging, start promoting yourself and let your accomplishments shine.

Mica: So there you have it, y'all. I hope you enjoyed this convo about self promotion. Remember, make it a mindset. Love yourself. Promote your [00:20:00] achievements. Practice safe bragging. You will be amazed at how much easier it gets. So y'all, thank you so much for joining me on today's episode. I appreciate each and every one of you. Y'all, I cannot believe this is the 49th episode. We are one episode away from 50 episodes. I just, I'm flabbergasted. I'm gassed with the flabber, the gassed, I don't know where that's going, but I'm very excited. I feel like I should do something to celebrate, maybe a little teeny tiny celebration, but I haven't quite decided because I don't know.

50 seems like a great milestone, and it is, don't get your girl wrong, but I feel like a hundred episodes is really where it's at. Whatever, I'm gonna celebrate either way, whether it's with a little teeny tiny cupcake or I don't know, maybe I'll get some champagne and do a little toast to myself. I'll be like that Snoop Dogg video where he's like, and, and I like to thank [00:21:00] me for all my hard work.

But I want to hear your thoughts on self promotion, what your experience has been like, what did you take away from this episode? So let me hear it. Let me have it. Can't wait to hear what you have to say. So here's a little affirmation for you.

You are your biggest cheerleader. So go out there and show yourself, treat yourself. Bye y'all. Thanks for listening.