If there is one thing I’m definitely learning
about the key to success, it’s that it all boils down to attitude. With the
wrong attitude, you’ll compare the successes of others to your “failures” and tell
yourself that you’re too limited to accomplish some of these things. With the
right attitude, you learn from the success of others, take people’s advice with
a grain of salt (remembering to keep your mind open) and know that limitations
and “failures” thrive on doubt. I use quotation marks with the word failures
because I believe, as many do, that you only truly fail when you stop trying.
I’m definitely
guilty of letting myself believe I can’t achieve something, but every day, I’m
reminding myself that I can’t think that way. Even if I don’t become the exact
actress/writer/singer/photographer/philanthropist/filmmaker/artist that I want
to be, there is no harm in believing I can be those things one day. Age, social
class, financial status and appearances should mean nothing because a strong drive
is all it really takes and I can’t waste precious time on doubting myself. And
neither can you. Let’s decide today to
carry no more uncertainty with us. As
one of my close friends, Robert, said, “How does doubting yourself serve you?
It doesn’t. So stop doing the things that no longer serve you.”
You can learn something from every
person in your life
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| My first fashion shoot was with someone I met at school: Annabelle. Little did I know how far this aspiring model would go. This picture was taken on a patch of grass on campus. |
I met this
wonderful girl, Annabelle Lyttle, my junior year at New Mexico State University on the
set of a student film. As a photographer, I was drawn to her look: unique and
ethereal. I had never done any sort of fashion photography, so I asked her if I
could take her portraits with a special theme I had in mind. It turned out
modeling was one of her many aspirations (at 5’10” with her exceptional
features, I could see why!).
After taking her
pictures and getting to know her a little, I knew she had the kind of attitude
one needs in pursuit of reaching goals. She was confident yet humble; friendly
yet kept her wits about her. At the time, she was 18 years old, but now, at 21,
she has gone further than many have at 28.
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Modeling and
acting is something Annabelle has wanted to do since she was less than four
feet tall. Like many of us, she played dress-up, was always ready for a picture
and made movies with her friends and a little camcorder.
As a freshman at
NMSU, Annabelle had already acted in several plays and films by the end of the
spring semester. It came as a surprise to many of her peers when she did not
return to NMSU. But the reason she didn’t return to the university had nothing
to do with anything negative: it was simply because her experiences showed her
what she was capable of and she decided to take a risk and walk another path to
follow her ambitions.
No risk-taking goes unrewarded (click "Read more" below)
