Allison's Blog

Quitting a Call Center Job

I used to work as a customer service rep for a medical and dental supply corporation. I'm still friends with many of my past coworkers. My past supervisor still checks in on me to see how things are going. I knew I had a great team and I knew I was helping people as a call center rep. But...the dream of running my own video production company was calling. 

Work Life Balance

A big adjustment I had was balancing mom/wife life and work life. I have a supportive husband working as a real estate agent and I have 2 lively kids under the age of 3. I want to elevate and support my husband. I want to make my children proud. I want to be happy with the projects and work I do for others.

I also want a clean and tidy house...but...thank God for our screened-in, front porch!

Teaching A Video Production Class

I looked forward to teaching this class for weeks. I had to borrow a friend's projector and bring all my own filming equipment to the local community center. I imagined my Micro Movie Making class would go perfectly...but technical difficulties attacked! The students were especially nice and I was still able to send them resources and visuals after the class. The biggest problem was feeling disappointed in myself for not being able to run a perfect movie making class. I think we all can relate to being our own worst critic...and it was especially hard to wait until after the class was over to do any...critiquing. 

An unexpected achievement was hearing a need from the community...a need for more training with video editing. When I wrote my business plan I knew I wanted to do more workshops for the DIY business owner but I wasn't sure what they would want. After this class...I think I'll be focusing on video editing workshops in the near future...and trying not to be so hard on myself when things don't go as planned.

New Business Owner Mistakes

I've worked with a couple local businesses to help with their social media platforms. This opportunity came about from the movie making class I taught at the CCA a couple weeks ago. Now that I have a couple businesses working with me, it's time to add on more clients. 

So naturally I would need business cards to give to potential new clients...right? Why didn't I get business cards sooner? Why did it take me 5 hours to order them? It wasn't because I was technically challenged. Nope. It was my overthinking and overcomplicating the simplest of things...my logo. Should I keep the original or redesign? Should I just touch up the original? Maybe I should draw a comet in the logo, maybe I should change the font, maybe I'm making it worse, maybe I should do vertical business cards...and so on. There are so many choices to make and while I love the valuable lessons that come with making mistakes...I'd rather just be perfect and not make or design mistakes. So I'm learning to catch myself when I start to overthink and we'll see how much progress I make in the months ahead.

Valuing Mental Health

Bittersweet milestones and letting go...

In this video update I’m sharing about this upcoming week’s events and how it affects my emotional and mental health.

Grief is hard because sometimes you don’t even know you’re going to feel sad about something that you expected to make you happy. Healing can bring new blessings and hope but no one ever promised healing wouldn't hurt.

Support from others is tremendous, even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. Allowing yourself to take a break, unwind, and express yourself without fear proves to be a big help for me.

 Attack of the Bugs!

This tour had an abundance of laughs and after-rain bugs. Determination can still be defeated by nature when it comes to real estate photography. I teamed up with my husband, Ben Clark, to photograph his listing in Saxis, VA. We had a family friend watch the kids and we set out to get the perfect sunset shot with the house and private beach under a gold and pink sky. Ben's weather app predicted 50% chance of rain but we were hopeful that in the timeframe of an hour the weather would cooperate and the rain clouds would shrink to make a beautiful backdrop.

What I didn't expect was the biggest bug attack of my life! I exited the car to see if I could steal just one shot while Ben locked the house. WHAM! A bug rammed into my camera gimbal causing a loud sound and a whiplash of the camera. Bugs whipped around my ears and crawled all over me. Flies, mosquitoes, dragonflies, damselflies, and other unidentified bugs were zipping around and celebrating in the moisture from the fresh rain. We had to retreat. We would return another day to get the photos; but I still enjoyed the adventure.

I had high hopes for 2022 but in review it was a hard year for my business. I worked with a few local small businesses. My zeal for doing a good job overlooked the fact that I wasn't charging enough for my services to break even. I was working long hours but not progressing. 

I started researching and educating myself when I felt discouraged. After interacting with my local community, I learned that video production isn't relied on as much as word-of-mouth in a small town. The power of word-of-mouth is incredible! The problem was my services weren't needed enough to produce living wages for my family and me. My services could be offered in larger cities...but I was running out of finances to invest in marketing.

I took a part time job at a hotel to provide steady income. I felt defeated. I felt like a failure. When I started my company I didn't imagine working as a guest services agent on the side. This is not what I wanted! 

Over time I found meaning in my choices. I did what I had to for my family. We survived because I swallowed my pride and did what I had to for income. I felt like a failure, but I did not give up on my company. I didn't close any accounts or take down my website. I was just quiet for a few months. I didn't realize the groundwork I set months before would help me as the year continued.

When I wasn't working at the hotel or watching my kids I continued a photography project for Dockside Properties. In October of 2021 we met to discuss the project. I was commissioned to take photos of Chincoteague for the calendar they wanted to distribute with their marketing materials. It took the entire year of 2022 to complete since I was photographing local festivals and events. I captured nature around the island in different seasons. I wanted to make sure anything I presented was very "Chincoteague." The final meeting to approve the calendar felt rewarding. The lead broker absolutely loved the final product. If I had thrown the calendar together last minute I know she would have disapproved and discourage anyone from using me again.

My husband used me for his social media posts as a realtor. I enjoyed collaborating with him on silly ideas the most! We ended up making family memories in the process. Our little kids started asking if we were going to make another video today.

I took on a couple of weddings in the fall. I photographed for one couple on the beach and I created a wedding video for the other couple. I was nervous and fairly new to this. I had only photographed one wedding in the past. I didn't know these couples very well. I didn't want to mess up. I still had my part time job at the hotel. I could have used a number of excuses to have these people find someone else but I didn't want to do that. I wanted to try. I wanted to reconnect with what I loved.

I learned more about Instagram algorithms and focused on getting clarity with my goals for my business. I realized I needed to focus on two target markets. I narrowed down to videos for weddings and real estate. I cleaned up my social media on Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Pinterest. I reorganized my website. I planned what I would share online. I learned there is a whole psychology with social media. I recognized when I needed to take a break from posting online to help refresh my mind.

At the end of the year I tackled one of my fears. I was intimidated to try and get my pilot's license to fly drones. It was a dream I had when I first started my business. I wanted to get paid to fly and film with a drone. I bought a DJI mini 3 pro with my credit card. I bought an online course to have a trained pilot walk me through everything I needed to know to pass the FAA Part 107 test. Many things can be uncertain, but I knew education was valuable and something no one could take away from me once I learned it.

I still have challenges in 2023 but I believe the choices I made in 2022 have prepared me for what lies ahead. 

I rebranded. I write and illustrate heartwarming children's storybooks. I'm in the slow process of making animations and short films that match these storybooks. After reading Pony Swim! one day, my 3 year old asked if we could watch the movie. I told her there wasn't a movie...not yet.  

When I'm not making picture books, I'm designing original coloring books and journals. I am improving my skills and networking with other artists. I'm listening to parents, grandparents, aunties, uncles, educators and children to understand how I can effectively help families bond together. I still have challenges and I have learned to trust the process of facing these challenges. 

My hope is to help all kinds of families connect more deeply. 

Stories change overtime with everyone, including me. I'm grateful my story isn't over yet. I plan to update you soon on here. In the meantime follow me on social media to see the latest projects and behind-the-scenes stories!