That word… “CONFIDENT“.

The last FFT was pretty long, so I decided to go a light on you guys for the weekend!

Let me address an elephant that might be in the room… Do I consider myself confident? You all know I am honest….regardless of how my honesty may translate to others. So, I think I appear confident to most. Do I consider myself confident? No.

I do feel I have convictions.

Let me give you the definition of conviction…”a firmly held belief or opinion.”

I am fairly educated, but the first time I heard that word used freely was when my brother said it at my mother’s funeral. My mom passed away WAY too young almost 3 years ago to cancer. I personally wasn’t strong enough to speak myself at her funeral…so my brother wrote out a letter that he read to the church on our behalf for our mom. He said… ” Our mother held steadfast within her convictions”

My mother was very strong. She was extremely educated with multiple degrees…and went back to school to become an ordained minister by earning a masters of divinity when she left the medical field.

She encompassed everything I hope I can achieve….mentally, physically and spiritually.

My entire life I felt my mother was the true definition of confidence. When my brother said that…it made me rethink a lot of things…mostly about me. Having convictions isn’t necessarily confidence.  It is having a firm belief in one or more things. THAT’S IT!

THAT IS ME!

Then I looked back at myself…and photography. I have a LOOOTTTT of convictions!!!

– Full Sun

– Natural Light…well ALL LIGHT!

– My time

– My family

I mean the list can go on and on… but I have my beliefs and I stick to them. I grow and nurture those convictions of mine. As a result… they have helped me in more ways than one! I have convintions within my work. I have convictions regarding how I run my business.

Does that mean I am confident? No! Im insecure about a lot of things…but my convictions help shape me as a person. I would suspect that each and every one of you have your own convictions. I think it is important to really think about them and write them down. They shape and form who you are. They define your artistic vision.

Own them….

Remember…No one can tell you that your convictions are incorrect. Because of that fact alone….makes you appear confident.

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

~AW

( please ignore the typos and grammar. This post was written from the heart, and not perfection)