Things We'll Be Doing as Creators to Level Up in 2025

In this episode, we take a moment to reflect on 2024, exploring both our mindset principles and growth as photographers. We then shift our focus to the key areas we plan to actively improve in 2025.

Expect to learn:

- How to tell if you need less hustle and more downtime.
- how to "close loops" and why open loops should be priority
- the continued importance of being more than just a photographer
- why we want less jobs that pay more; how we plan to build that "roster"

Sponsor:

Thanks to Tamron for being our lead sponsor this episode! They're having a Holiday Instant Savings event from right now until January 5th, 2025. Explore the 25-78mm f/2.8 G2 lens with $200 off and deals on many more lenses by clicking www.tamron-americas.com or by visiting your local Tamron authorized dealer.

Our Links:

Book a one time virtual 30 minute 1-on-1 session with Aaron or Seth entirely for FREE by using the code "FREETRIAL" at checkout: https://thephotographermindset.com/products/60-minute-virtual-1-on-1-session

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Thanks for listening!
Go get shooting, go get editing, and stay focused.

@sethmacey
@mantis_photography
@thephotographermindset

Transcript

00:00:09.24
Seth Macey
Hey man, how's it going? How are you?

00:00:10.99
Aaron
Good. How are you?

00:00:12.50
Seth Macey
Do you want to know something cool?

00:00:14.31
Aaron
Yeah.

00:00:15.06
Seth Macey
This is episode 250.

00:00:17.07
Aaron
Oh, wow.

00:00:18.77
Seth Macey
Episode 250 in the last one of 2024 to end the year.

00:00:22.41
Aaron
To end the year 250. Pretty sick.

00:00:26.29
Seth Macey
Was it a good a year for you? How would you rate your year out of 10?

00:00:29.09
Aaron
Oh, and every year is a 10.

00:00:31.84
Seth Macey
No, you're the worst.

00:00:33.97
Aaron
Yeah, it was and good.

00:00:35.29
Seth Macey
Fair though, I guess it's very positive.

00:00:38.86
Aaron
it ah It went by seemingly quickly now that I think back to it. ah No major issues, which is always good. um Yeah, I think it was pretty fruitful.

00:00:54.60
Seth Macey
Yeah, I guess it's a good year when you don't step on a landmine figuratively.

00:00:58.67
Aaron
Yeah. Um, comfortable place with photography and life and work and and everything. So, um, feels, feels pretty good. Like to build upon that going into next year.

00:01:11.30
Seth Macey
Yeah. And we're going to do, we're going to do exactly that this year.

00:01:11.55
Aaron
And.

00:01:13.63
Seth Macey
We're going to talk about things we want to focus on and get better. Life wise, photography wise, mindset wise, moving into 2025 that some people can maybe, uh, some people are like, Hey, yeah, me too.

00:01:25.91
Seth Macey
Or, Oh, that's a good idea. I'm going to implement that in a way, you know, keep it short, keep it simple.

00:01:29.85
Aaron
Yeah, I do.

00:01:33.89
Seth Macey
We probably won't keep it simple. Let's be honest. We, we tangent.

00:01:39.72
Aaron
We do.

00:01:40.77
Seth Macey
But I figured we'd both share too. Maybe two things that we want to focus on moving into new year and, uh, make an episode out of that. So with that, do you want to go first? You want me to go first?

00:01:51.45
Aaron
You can go first.

00:01:53.30
Seth Macey
All right. Let me pull up my notes.

00:01:55.20
Aaron
Oh, he has notes.

00:01:56.14
Seth Macey
So I've, yeah, but they're simple notes.

00:01:56.80
Aaron
I have no notes.

00:01:58.54
Seth Macey
Don't worry. Don't worry. I need to get better at being more type B in situations.

00:02:05.10
Aaron
Type B.

00:02:06.21
Seth Macey
Yeah. Like getting, doing a little bit of unlearning. from the, I've been very much operating from the mentality of go, go, go, go, go, efficiency, efficiency, efficiency, effort, effort, effort, effort, effort, effort. And that's great. You know, sometimes we talk about how strengths can be our biggest weaknesses. I think sometimes I just need to be okay. For example, like flipping on an Xbox and playing a video game for an hour with friends or something, or

00:02:40.79
Seth Macey
You know, something that has no obvious or direct productive value, but is valuable in the sense of, I think I'm more so thinking human connection, like making more time to just shoot the shit with buddies and stuff where it's not even necessarily involving a camera or something creative. You know what I'm trying to say as opposed to

00:03:11.98
Seth Macey
always feeling like not putting a hundred percent effort into something productive is like a waste of time.

00:03:24.53
Aaron
Right. That's a good one.

00:03:29.52
Seth Macey
So that's my first one. And it kind of ties into, I'll keep going. It kind of ties into my second one, which is we talk a lot about, I guess, I think we've done some episodes where we talk about being fluid and also being rigid, right? With in terms of, uh, you know, it's buzzword, I dislike it, but like having non-negotiables and things that get done no matter what, for example,

00:03:58.60
Seth Macey
I know this relates to you. Eight hours of sleep is a non negotiable, right? I think, I think you're fairly habitualized. You have your, your, your things that you do on the daily, right?

00:04:11.25
Aaron
Yeah, I would say.

00:04:11.89
Seth Macey
whether they're at the same time every day or not. I definitely have mine. Like I, I always stretch every day. I always try and get eight hours of sleep. We know the cold showers, the runs, that kind of stuff that people either think are ridiculous or get, but where I'm going with this also is I think he can have a, those things are designed like I feel so,

00:04:35.08
Seth Macey
Rituals and habits like that. I feel like give us a sense of control and obvious agency which allows us to Control our environment and our day and plan into your future which I feel like is helpful for avoiding anxiety Is that fair to say Right

00:04:53.25
Aaron
Yeah, ah but I would say that it gives you some comfort, some structure, some routine, which just helps knowing your your day-to-day plans.

00:05:06.69
Aaron
I'm big on um'm big on like timing and

00:05:06.70
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:05:11.15
Aaron
When's this appointment? When's that appointment? like but Because so I'm doing, I think, a good amount. Not saying way more than anyone else, but just every human, every adult human is, especially one with ah with kids, or a kid, ah or dogs, or pets, or whatever. like you're You're not just thinking about just yourself.

00:05:32.12
Aaron
So there's a there's a juggling act that has to go into all of life. So every day, it's hard for me to think very forward, ah like two weeks from now, three weeks from now, unless it's really something that's in the calendar.

00:05:47.24
Seth Macey
Right.

00:05:47.27
Aaron
But on a day to day basis, I'm very conscious of what's tomorrow look like, and like fitting in puzzle pieces as I kind of go. ah And if I don't, then I'm going to miss something.

00:05:57.41
Seth Macey
Right.

00:06:01.36
Seth Macey
Got it. So for me, a lot of my daily habits or things I do as part of my routine are difficult on purpose. We've talked about this, for example, remember I did the, did the cold shower last year was or 2023, 2023 was a cold shower every single day or a cold plunge, which was shitty.

00:06:25.04
Seth Macey
And it was a, we all, we all know that story. It was a experiment to do something difficult. And it, but it's stuck as part of my routine. And so a lot of, you know, I have other things like that, like running and things like that. And originally the thought was if you do these difficult things daily,

00:06:47.66
Seth Macey
they'll make you, you know, more resilient when other tough times come or they'll make you mentally stronger. That kind that kind of thought process. And I'm realizing that it can work the other way against you. For example, if you miss, like, let's say you miss your streak, right? You miss your cold shower for the day or you miss two runs. It's part of your daily routine that helps you stay, that helps you stay kind of grounded and sane.

00:07:18.95
Seth Macey
that just missing one or missing a couple of things can unhinge you.

00:07:27.24
Aaron
Hmm.

00:07:27.40
Seth Macey
And that's the opposite effect. So I'm trying to moving into 2025. being finding the balance between being okay with not accomplishing something for the day that's usually part of my routine and all but also not letting it slide long term because if missing the habit or the thing one time causes anxiety, frustration, unease. It's not really, so you actually become more fragile, I've found because it's, and it's not serving what it initially set out to do, but not taking it so far where, you know, you just stop doing the the thing altogether and, and you creep into apathy territory. So I guess, I guess the keyword would be balance and

00:08:22.68
Seth Macey
being not overly rigid to the point where missing something that you set out or plan to do causes the reverse effect, essentially like weakness on your mind.

00:08:39.32
Aaron
Yeah, and and one of mine is kind of the opposite of that, or like what you're saying, so it's the balance part but not slipping into um apathy or or or missing things for a long time.

00:08:50.37
Seth Macey
Hmm.

00:08:51.65
Aaron
ah But i I wonder, you mentioned something, and I'm playing devil's advocate, and i I don't know if it's necessarily true or not true, but ah yeah when you say, or when people say, like, doing hard things, that's gonna help you for when life gets hard.

00:09:08.74
Aaron
Now, jumping in the cold ocean is tough. But I don't care, I feel like, if you do that a hundred times in a row, and then lose a parent that first time,

00:09:18.87
Seth Macey
Mm-hmm. Of course.

00:09:23.69
Aaron
you're going to reflect on that. i i I would argue that doing the same hard thing makes that same hard thing easier.

00:09:32.88
Seth Macey
Yes, I would agree with that as well.

00:09:34.65
Aaron
Because when you get a new, a new stressor in life, ah i it almost is a separate entity that you have to get through.

00:09:35.00
Seth Macey
So oh yeah.

00:09:44.29
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:09:45.02
Aaron
And you may have skills and you may have things, but like, I don't know how much easier new things become um when they're tough.

00:09:51.97
Seth Macey
Right. So so then I'll clarify from how I view it. It's not so much that, hey, if I go in the cold water all the time, then when, you know, my dog dies, it'll be super easy.

00:09:56.89
Aaron
Okay.

00:10:05.12
Seth Macey
he ah That's ridiculous.

00:10:05.56
Aaron
Right.

00:10:06.80
Seth Macey
I think it's.

00:10:10.90
Seth Macey
Here's an acute stress that's not majorly overwhelming, like a life event like that would be.

00:10:18.65
Seth Macey
here's a chance on a small scale to practice something daily and to practice being able to keep my mind functioning rather than I'm going to be able to cope with the worst of the worst and just not even have it phase me.

00:10:27.04
Aaron
Bye.

00:10:33.87
Seth Macey
I don't think that's it. I think it's, I can operate in and cognitively function under stress repeatedly and more so I think it's,

00:10:50.33
Seth Macey
the hard things and doing the hard things concept. Like you said, it isn't to make really, really tough hard things easy. It's being able to cue into how you feel in that moment. So cold, cold shower. I'm panicking. I'm freaking out. This is so cold. I feel like I'm going to die in here and things you mentioned counting counting breath.

00:11:18.05
Seth Macey
That's a useful tool for when you're having another stressor, maybe not to the extent you described outside of that environment to bring yourself back into a place where you can move forward and operate and function in a way that avoids you completely cratering.

00:11:42.45
Aaron
Yeah.

00:11:46.20
Aaron
Yeah.

00:11:47.45
Seth Macey
Does that make more sense? Cause you're right.

00:11:49.08
Aaron
Yeah.

00:11:49.43
Seth Macey
Going into cold shower makes you better at being cold. I mean, you could, you could neanderthal it like that. But if you look for the the nuances, I think you can build skills and is somewhat safe in an acute way.

00:12:06.89
Seth Macey
Right.

00:12:08.08
Aaron
Yeah, that makes that makes sense. ah just yeah I think definitely, it's definitely the ability to stay in a cognitive awareness and balance during hard times and hopefully being able to apply anything.

00:12:09.83
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:12:28.58
Aaron
um But just I just imagine like, getting on stage and singing a song in front of a thousand people for the first time.

00:12:30.98
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:12:36.91
Seth Macey
and

00:12:38.70
Aaron
like the you have to still you you You will be very nervous, probably. ah You have to be very conscious to be in that state to be like, okay, well,

00:12:50.40
Aaron
from my cold plunge experience. I'm gonna, I need to do some box breathing beforehand. I don't know if it alleviates the nerves as much as doing that a hundred nights in a row, a hundred open mics in a row.

00:13:00.86
Seth Macey
Right.

00:13:02.93
Aaron
Then you'll be like, Oh, I've, I've, I've survived this exact thing.

00:13:06.58
Seth Macey
Mm hmm.

00:13:07.49
Aaron
So maybe it's a, you did it for a year.

00:13:08.83
Seth Macey
Well, maybe, maybe the.

00:13:11.09
Aaron
I mean, you move on to the next hard thing. You just build, you keep building your, your parallels to life events.

00:13:14.44
Seth Macey
Mm hmm.

00:13:18.54
Seth Macey
Or hard thing a gives you the courage to do hard thing B for the first time.

00:13:23.01
Aaron
Yeah. Or knowing you can get through it. Right. That, that, that might be more of the key. I got through this one hard thing. It was hard in the beginning and now.

00:13:31.59
Seth Macey
Laughing noise. Say it again.

00:13:33.56
Aaron
Yeah. What was that?

00:13:34.54
Seth Macey
I accidentally pressed my sound board and it was.

00:13:35.87
Aaron
I thought it was your dog. I was like, what is your dog aspirating? What's happening?

00:13:41.91
Seth Macey
What's it from? That's, uh, Zach Elifernakis. No, I would have my hand on the slider and like, I thought it was your dog. But yeah, maybe hard thing A helps me get through with our hard thing B.

00:13:49.83
Aaron
Yeah.

00:13:52.70
Seth Macey
And I do hard thing B enough times so that hard thing, harder thing C is still stressful, but manageable, right?

00:14:00.87
Aaron
Yeah, yeah. I think in this year, related to that and and being able to relax and take some take some breaths and minutes and watch TV or watch a show or read a book or ah go for a walk without the camera, not post something for two months, not feel like, I don't know, I i think this year was a year

00:14:20.87
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:14:31.20
Aaron
of kind of realizing you can get stuck in a a lot of time traps. ah i really We just had Ian on. I really commend his passion and his love. And it's some it's it's him. that's what This is what he loves to do. And that's not for everyone, ah just as like someone practicing putting for eight hours or guitar scales for eight hours a day is not for everyone. ah Ian definitely found his thing.

00:14:59.83
Aaron
ah

00:14:59.83
Seth Macey
Right.

00:15:02.54
Aaron
to me, you know, as, as a dad and and and whatnot, like there's, I've just sort of realized again, that balance, maybe balance is going to be the key word here again, as it often is. ah But the balance between like, hey man, if you're going to spend three hours editing this real, that's why your son's upstairs watching TV.

00:15:26.71
Aaron
What the fuck? You know, at the end of the day,

00:15:28.66
Seth Macey
yeah

00:15:32.29
Aaron
Uh, that's, that's a, that's a bad transaction. That's a bad for me, for me, for me.

00:15:36.00
Seth Macey
For you. For you. For you. Yeah.

00:15:39.22
Aaron
Uh, and, and that's kind of the, that's the place I've realized. I feel like a little bit this year is like. And that's why I have a lot of ideas in that graveyard because there's a there's a lot of ideas. There's a lot of things to do and a lot of be lot abilities to be creative and a lot of um just concepts you might want to tackle. But sometimes you for me, I'm realizing I'm just going to really be choosy.

00:16:09.20
Aaron
with the gigs I take, and that might be a ah dollar amount with the price I put on time, with the posts that I have. ah Just being more careful, I think, with the one commodity we can't really change, which is time.

00:16:30.63
Seth Macey
Yeah. Well, so let me ask you, this is ties into my other thing as well. Uh, I also want to get better at not feeling guilty for doing things that I deem quote, unproductive.

00:16:43.76
Seth Macey
You ever struggle with this?

00:16:44.11
Aaron
Yeah.

00:16:47.87
Seth Macey
but Building on your point. Oh my God. I just watched 50 minutes of Netflix and and this ties in as well with what we've been talking about, uh, on recent episodes. I, at least I have with having a kinder voice because my voice goes to unique.

00:16:59.65
Seth Macey
This is my thought process. Okay. Which I'm trying to get better at. You definitely need to relax and just chill out. Let's say that's Netflix. Okay. Watch 50 minutes of Netflix. Dude, what are you doing? You just wasted 50 minutes of your life on that. You could have been doing something productive. Like that's not what that's not going to get you further. Like what are you doing? And then there's a guilt because you listen to that voice and I'm trying to get better at, I think the struggle is deciding whether or not that voice is right.

00:17:33.05
Seth Macey
or if it's I guess wrong and also realizing trying to make friends with that voice in a way that it's hey I hear you and I know you're just trying to help I know that's all it is and now almost not taking your own voice personally I know we're getting into like accept inception here but that's that's why I can describe it

00:17:53.42
Aaron
yeah

00:17:55.95
Aaron
yeah Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I might be too kind to myself.

00:18:05.49
Seth Macey
Really? How can you be, how can you be too kind? That's interesting.

00:18:08.50
Aaron
I just don't. I don't know what it is. ah It's come with age a bit. I mean, I wasn't always, but they're, listen, I'm like,

00:18:22.88
Aaron
I don't know, i'm in i'm in the I'm in the middle, I'm in the prime of my life. Maybe it's some midlife crisis stuff or...

00:18:28.75
Seth Macey
You keep priming, man. What are you talking about?

00:18:30.43
Aaron
Sure, sure, but I'm just saying.

00:18:32.00
Seth Macey
You do. I'm just saying you, I'm, I'm kissing bud here.

00:18:34.92
Aaron
Thank you, thank you. ah i just If I need to go to bed at 7pm and I'm gonna miss out on whatever, like it's it's okay.

00:18:45.95
Aaron
If I need a nap, It's okay.

00:18:49.13
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:18:49.15
Aaron
I'm taking one. I'm going to enjoy it. If I, I mean, I mean, I know the opposite. Like i I can get very strict with like diet and exercise and then that voice becomes restrictive because there's a plan, but it's, buts so that's a, that's a, that's a tough way to live all the time.

00:19:11.15
Aaron
I feel like, uh, it's so,

00:19:11.53
Seth Macey
yeah

00:19:17.11
Aaron
Again, balance. You have to be able to look in the mirror and say, do I have a problem with Netflix? Like I've watched 17 hours this week. Oh, I don't know if that's helping me reach my goals.

00:19:32.36
Aaron
If your goals are, hey, my goals are I work nine to five, I've got a good salary, I'm paying my bills, and you know what? When I get home, I do a quick exercise for 30 minutes, and then i I love cinema.

00:19:46.67
Seth Macey
Mm-hmm.

00:19:46.98
Aaron
I love movies. I love TV. That's what I like.

00:19:50.47
Seth Macey
Mm-hmm.

00:19:50.52
Aaron
That's what I'm gonna do. I'm not gonna feel guilty about it. But if your goals are like, I want to exercise every day or I'm trying to train for a marathon with my buddy or what have you. And I watched you know four seasons of CSI Miami, whatever. ah And I didn't work out this week. Now I'm like, it's interfering with other pieces of my life.

00:20:16.74
Aaron
or my son's upstairs playing games by himself and I'm addicted to the show, right? Now it's like, it's, it's moving into other things. So I think if you can be very honest with yourself and that voice can be honest with yourself and you're again, looking in the mirror and saying like, this isn't a problem. Yeah. I watched two hours of Netflix today, but I probably won't turn the TV on for another week. Like it's, it's not a big deal.

00:20:45.08
Seth Macey
I think the other thing too,

00:20:48.37
Seth Macey
I've actually toyed with this idea of starting to remove, not entirely, but reduce rather some of the podcast content creators I consume.

00:21:00.06
Seth Macey
So big Huberman lab listener. I am big modern wisdom listener with Chris Williamson.

00:21:09.17
Aaron
Yeah.

00:21:09.79
Seth Macey
Love that show.

00:21:13.33
Seth Macey
You know, the list goes on, but the theme amongst all those is, optimization, productivity. And I feel like if you're some, but I feel like I need to hear less of that at times because you can get caught in an echo chamber where that's all, it's the only way you know how to function. So recently I've been listening to Theo Vaughn.

00:21:44.08
Seth Macey
I mean, it was a comedian, right? And sometimes it's just kind of, they're insightful conversations, but sometimes it's just, it's entertainment, right?

00:21:52.46
Aaron
Yeah. Yeah.

00:21:54.96
Seth Macey
and Because you you become who you spend most of your time with, whether that's a parasocial relationship or not, right? You become the content creators you constantly consume or the podcasts or whatever.

00:22:11.82
Seth Macey
So I feel like if you're already someone who's

00:22:12.11
Aaron
Yeah.

00:22:16.15
Seth Macey
and in my case feels like they're constantly on a mission to be the most efficient and get things done and try and improve and prove and optimize. Continuing to listen and dig deeper into more of that style of content is not going to help you find that balance that you that at least I've indicated I desire moving into the new year.

00:22:37.64
Aaron
Yeah, i would ah I would equate it to, if you look at a lot of ads and marketing towards women, a lot of it preys on appearance and makeup and foundation and hair and this, and you're you're not thin enough, you're not young enough, you're not, the list goes on and on and on. That's a lot of the marketing, billions of dollars spent into making, I feel like women feel less than, I feel like the, you what's that?

00:23:09.42
Seth Macey
subtle way too. And subtly.

00:23:13.83
Aaron
Yeah. And sometimes not so subtly, but yes. Uh, it's a, it's a constant theme. And even on like Instagram, you're fighting against constant, like,

00:23:29.53
Aaron
imagery of the the perfect housewife, the perfect business woman, the perfect exercise fitness model, whatever it may be.

00:23:41.63
Aaron
And the products around that are to better themselves in whichever way the product deems. I think for men, these podcasts are preying on the sense of men, how do you get better, richer, more powerful, stronger, more masculine, those kinds of things.

00:24:04.88
Aaron
I think the whole lot of us are pretty average and that's okay. Like there's a whole group of us, billions of people that are just people trying to get by and you can kind of drive yourself crazy.

00:24:10.86
Seth Macey
right

00:24:24.22
Aaron
I think trying to compare yourself or optimize yourself to a point where you're like, She's like, this, this really just isn't me though.

00:24:33.35
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:24:33.37
Aaron
Like there's, there's certain people out there with chips on their shoulders that, um, you don't want their, you don't want their life. You don't want the chip on the shoulder that got them to put in 12 hours a day since they're four years old on guitar or golf or creating a business or making their first million or whatever it is.

00:24:55.54
Aaron
It's just sometimes it's like that looks cool, like the shiny part of it, but the other part of it's like, I'm, I'm good just being kind of comfortable and, and average and finding some new skills and what have you.

00:25:10.09
Aaron
Like I, I set your problem.

00:25:11.18
Seth Macey
But why is it so dissatisfying for so many people? I mean, we're ah we're here or you know, we're here weekly to get better, right?

00:25:18.97
Aaron
Yeah. Well, let's, I guess learning you can say is getting better, but you could also just say learning doesn't necessarily mean like getting better, but like talking things out, having fun on, on doing a puzzle, trying to.

00:25:28.22
Seth Macey
Fair.

00:25:34.87
Aaron
All this stuff's fun in in moderation, maybe. You know, like you you love hockey, I'm sure. I've never seen you play, but just by the way you talk about it and you're still doing it, like I bet you're a very good hoer hockey player. But if you're every day, you're talking to me about like, I i want to make the NHL.

00:25:53.64
Aaron
You know, like at some point you have to say like that, no offense, maybe you can, I don't know. But I'm just saying, at some point you have to be like, you know what, that's not, that's not my narrative.

00:26:01.02
Seth Macey
Not anymore.

00:26:05.98
Aaron
Like that's not for me. I like hockey. I'm going to play every week. I'm going to, I'm going to try to do well.

00:26:10.05
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:26:11.72
Aaron
I'm going to try to do good. But like, uh,

00:26:16.10
Seth Macey
Someday we'll sit down and have a chat about my childhood and hockey. Cause that was, that was life. Like life was hockey at the highest level from the time I was nine years old to the time I went to my first year of college.

00:26:24.15
Aaron
Yeah, I bet.

00:26:29.56
Aaron
Have you seen that reel of the the Canadian birth?

00:26:33.21
Seth Macey
Yeah, coming out of the ice with a hockey stick and maple syrup.

00:26:36.00
Aaron
Yeah, the whole gear.

00:26:37.17
Seth Macey
Pretty much, man.

00:26:37.68
Aaron
Just soaking wet. Yeah.

00:26:40.15
Seth Macey
But it's funny you say that, because like by the end of my hockey career, they like man coaches, people know in all sports, coaches can be so emotionally abusive at the highest level. And then like you're you're trying to, at least I was, like I was performing to impress a parent at times.

00:26:57.51
Seth Macey
and uh like fell out of love with the game kind of sounds sad it is to be honest um it's and it's not their fault it's just i got to a point where i realized what you described this isn't part this isn't my this isn't in my future right and when that's all you know i remember really really struggling man because i'd like i was like what do i do with my life now i tell i've done i've gone to school I've slept and I've played hockey and traveled.

00:27:26.86
Seth Macey
that's That's been my life for 15 years. So what now?

00:27:30.10
Aaron
yeah

00:27:31.61
Seth Macey
And now only recently I go on the ice just in a friendly men's league once a week and I look forward to it. You ask Haley, like I talk about it the next day, like, Oh, I can't look, I'm so excited for an S for her next Tuesday.

00:27:46.17
Seth Macey
And I like I like that I like knowing that I'm never going to be a professional. Now there's people I grew up playing with who are in the National Hockey League now and it's like good for them like that was their path. But it took a while to get there. Took a while it really did take a while to get there. And funny enough, I think

00:28:06.26
Seth Macey
I think part of what I've described in the first time, how deep are we in here? 28 minutes. I think from a young age, there was such a pressure to perform that I think part of me still equates performance, outcome and result to love.

00:28:27.12
Seth Macey
Do you understand what I'm saying?

00:28:28.49
Aaron
I want you to explain deeper though.

00:28:31.53
Seth Macey
Like performing well means you're worthy of love.

00:28:37.06
Aaron
Like from a parent is what you're referring to.

00:28:39.21
Seth Macey
out that way at times Even if that's not what was indicated, and like not even that's that's not, that's not what was meant.

00:28:40.94
Aaron
Yeah.

00:28:46.25
Seth Macey
Right.

00:28:47.54
Aaron
Yeah.

00:28:48.24
Seth Macey
ah Because

00:28:51.35
Seth Macey
car rides home after a good game were so pleasant in car rides home after a poor performance for whatever reason, we're dead silent.

00:29:06.37
Aaron
Yeah.

00:29:07.63
Seth Macey
And as opposed to what we've talked about, which is, did you do your best?

00:29:19.55
Seth Macey
Yes or no. why Why? And just kind of like, I don't know, celebrating both the stellar performance and also the lows and and realizing it's just a part of the game. I think I've carried that with me where, and this is a realization I've had in maybe the last month or two,

00:29:50.26
Seth Macey
as to why I value great performance. you You have to do as best as you can. Otherwise, don't even bother.

00:30:03.28
Aaron
Yeah. And I i got to tell you someone that I mean, we're on the podcast. We're talking about mindset all the time of counseling background, psychology background. I have lived through sports with my parents who I don't think really cared that much, but I had those tough coaches.

00:30:21.21
Aaron
ah And as a dad watching my son play soccer and and doing well, um I totally feel

00:30:22.52
Seth Macey
Mm.

00:30:33.46
Aaron
for your, your parents narrative and their story and like it, it's, you know, it's a lading when your son does well or daughter, your child does well.

00:30:44.85
Seth Macey
right

00:30:45.83
Aaron
It's like. Nothing feels better, especially like learning situations. Hey, uh, Ben, let's work on this. Um, let's, let's do this little move.

00:30:56.92
Aaron
Uh, this will help you out. And then they incorporate it in the next game. It's like, wow. So cool.

00:31:04.08
Seth Macey
Yeah, you're seeing the product of effort, right?

00:31:04.14
Aaron
Uh, yeah.

00:31:05.64
Seth Macey
That you were a part of.

00:31:07.68
Aaron
And it's, it's just really genuinely want him to do well. Like I really do. And when there's moments of. all people I mean, all, all athletes have bad games or their legs aren't under them or they just feel like I'm not as fast today or my stomach hurts or whatever it is.

00:31:27.78
Aaron
Like we've all, we've all been there where it's like, I'm just, I'm a big basketball player. Like sometimes you can make every shot.

00:31:33.03
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:31:35.11
Aaron
You feel like you shoot up. And sometimes it's like, no matter what happening is happening, the ball's not going in.

00:31:39.81
Seth Macey
I heard you try the worst it gets.

00:31:40.72
Aaron
And I'm just, yeah, that too. And I think that's. That was important for me growing up with coaches because you talked about the, and I was kind of smirking that the coach that, you know, would light a fire under your butt would make you go out and perform. I preferred the opposite of that. The coach that was like super positive and believed in me.

00:32:05.78
Seth Macey
Well, I preferred that too. It just didn't work.

00:32:09.29
Aaron
That, well, that's what I'm saying. That worked for me better. The coach that was freaking out. If I made a mistake, then I got a little bit tense and a little bit nervous to make a mistake. Now, however, I did think of one caveat. That was more when yeah I wasn't in the tier of the best players. I was a sophomore in basketball and there was junior and senior players that were, so I was trying to make myself. And if I made a mistake, it felt.

00:32:36.35
Aaron
yeah Like, I just got 10 stuff because I was not the best player out there and I didn't want to mess it up for the team.

00:32:42.23
Seth Macey
Right.

00:32:42.36
Aaron
I had other people looking down at me. When I was older, a senior, ah and felt confident in my sport, that technique did help a little bit more because I was like, I know I can do it. Like, he's right.

00:32:53.71
Aaron
um But but to your back to your point, going home and riding, you know, me gently being like, hey, ah you know, what could we have worked on better?

00:33:07.27
Aaron
What could have gone better? Or like delicately talking about these things you can see sometimes.

00:33:12.98
Seth Macey
But are you, are you assuming, are you assuming he already knows the game went bad or are you asking first?

00:33:13.18
Aaron
in this

00:33:19.95
Aaron
ah Say that again, I coughed went right when you were asking.

00:33:21.95
Seth Macey
Are you assuming that he knows it was a subpar performance or are you asking and getting confirmation?

00:33:28.78
Aaron
Uh, I think either way or asking, I think asking more like, let's, let's talk about things. Or I say, I've said this, Hey, do you want to hear a few things that I've noticed today?

00:33:41.23
Aaron
Like things like that. But um my point is like super delicate and like really trying to approach it in the best way possible. And you can see the like deflation, right? Like, Oh, he's, he's talking about, I didn't hustle, I didn't hustle enough.

00:33:51.88
Seth Macey
yeah how would i

00:33:55.82
Aaron
So. It all goes back to like, I'm not enough. And I always end those conversations with like, dude, but you're doing awesome. You're nine years old. I just want you to have fun. Like I'm just trying to help you because you tell me you love soccer and I want you to keep playing.

00:34:09.98
Aaron
Like I'm just trying to help. But if you tell me you want to quit soccer tomorrow, that's up to you.

00:34:12.01
Seth Macey
Yeah. Power to play well.

00:34:15.04
Aaron
Like I'm not a soccer player. I'm just trying to help you enjoy this game the best that you can. Like I'm tip toeing around that.

00:34:22.18
Seth Macey
I feel you need to have those conversations on good days though too.

00:34:25.13
Aaron
I do. Oh, absolutely.

00:34:26.52
Seth Macey
Yeah. Because otherwise it's dad thinks I played bad. He's talking about me quitting.

00:34:31.17
Aaron
Yeah, no.

00:34:32.88
Seth Macey
Maybe I should quit. Maybe I am that and I'm not very good. You know what I mean?

00:34:36.78
Aaron
Yeah.

00:34:37.24
Seth Macey
You, you, you, it begins to like reinforce.

00:34:39.87
Aaron
No, everything you do as a, as a parent, you're a almost after every, no matter what, like you're, you're going to cause, you're going to cause trauma and damage and, and this and that there's a, there's a piece of that.

00:34:44.42
Seth Macey
Right, right, right.

00:34:50.49
Aaron
i I do believe that because our, as children, we're looking for so much just blind acceptance.

00:34:57.33
Seth Macey
Mm hmm.

00:34:57.78
Aaron
That's not. It's not quite how it is. ah And your parents should unconditionally love you, but they should also direct you and push you and guide you.

00:35:01.69
Seth Macey
No.

00:35:09.00
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:35:10.52
Aaron
Just it ah in a nice way.

00:35:10.56
Seth Macey
Yeah, for sure.

00:35:12.40
Aaron
like a I mean, there's a way about it, right? um so

00:35:15.83
Seth Macey
Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong, like I'm grateful for a lot of that of of what you just described. um But I do feel like

00:35:27.63
Seth Macey
I don't know, reputation and performance has been drilled into me very young um and like not quitting things, which is

00:35:43.05
Aaron
Yeah.

00:35:45.21
Seth Macey
You know, that's a good thing to teach.

00:35:49.02
Aaron
Yeah.

00:35:50.04
Seth Macey
Sometimes you do need to cut your losses though. Right. So I understand it's a balance and I understand everyone's trying to do the best they can do as well. Right. Uh, but it's funny. It even comes up sometimes now where like, we'll have a, we'll have an episode that doesn't, that I thought was going to do well.

00:36:05.81
Seth Macey
And we put a lot of effort into and thought, and then you look at the stats and you're like, huh, it kind of flopped. And it's like, well, I have to catch myself. and celebrate the fact that, Hey, you sat down, you had a good conversation. There, you know, there was five DMS about how good it was and how helpful it was and trying to focus on that and not get caught up in. I was 20% less streamed than usual. Wonder why? Wonder what we must not be good enough, right? It's really easy to go down that path in all avenues. Even with like Instagram links, you know, you can go down that path too, right? So

00:36:40.73
Aaron
Yeah, yeah, I'm, I'm happiest on the show when we don't talk stats for a while.

00:36:48.61
Seth Macey
stats. What do you mean?

00:36:49.76
Aaron
Like you if you don't nothing, it's like sometimes it's good and you're like, Hey, we're up, you know, whatever percent just randomly like, ah Hey, that this episode did well.

00:36:51.59
Seth Macey
Right.

00:36:59.14
Aaron
We're 30% less or 30% more.

00:37:00.55
Seth Macey
Yeah. You can get lost in statistics, huh? You can just end it.

00:37:02.92
Aaron
yeah

00:37:03.23
Seth Macey
And then you, like you said, you would, I feel you, you kind of lose this sense of agency where it's, you start blindly making content for

00:37:15.20
Seth Macey
I want you, the audience, which is, I understand you're supposed to do that, but also at the same time, the audience mutually benefits from your own originality. I feel like where's the line between I'm making this for you and I'm making this for me, the Rick Rubin thing, because the audience may come last, but it does matter.

00:37:25.82
Aaron
let's

00:37:33.53
Seth Macey
Right.

00:37:35.26
Aaron
Yeah.

00:37:35.59
Seth Macey
I would add to his quote.

00:37:39.32
Aaron
Yeah. Uh, John, John Mayer was talking about creating a set list and feeling like I need to play. It was interesting. Just even creating the songs like, Oh, that was a hit.

00:37:52.77
Aaron
Like I need to play that one. They need to hear it.

00:37:54.56
Seth Macey
Right.

00:37:55.77
Aaron
And he's like the the sets that I catered for the audience thinking what they wanted to hear were the ones that I was not super invested in because I didn't necessarily want to play them. And then the audience didn't respond the way I thought they would.

00:38:15.19
Seth Macey
Because it's not genuine, it doesn't come across.

00:38:17.26
Aaron
Versus I want to play these songs and I'm going to love it. And therefore the audience will hopefully feel that energy.

00:38:23.99
Seth Macey
a

00:38:25.90
Aaron
And now everyone's happy.

00:38:28.52
Seth Macey
Yeah, that makes sense. That makes sense. Well, we've tangent. Tangented.

00:38:34.06
Aaron
Tangented.

00:38:35.94
Seth Macey
A lot. ah Do you have any things on your list moving to 2025 that you want to focus more on?

00:38:37.07
Aaron
and

00:38:41.10
Seth Macey
Get better at photography wise, life wise? I mean, it all blends into our practice of photography. I hope people always remember that. That's why we stray. you know yeah I feel like the foundations for being better at anything or or maybe not even better, but just uncovering some things

00:38:49.95
Aaron
Yeah.

00:38:59.16
Aaron
Yeah, I remember Adam Coppola talking about like gold tier clients and silver tier.

00:39:05.37
Seth Macey
Do you want more of those?

00:39:07.76
Aaron
I don't. Yeah, I'm still I'm not I like where I am in my life with my my career. I like photography stuff. I really would like to be.

00:39:21.34
Aaron
very deliberate and picky with what I'm doing, you know? ah Yeah, I think I already am.

00:39:26.26
Seth Macey
Even more so, I think you already are.

00:39:29.96
Aaron
I think this year so was the start of that.

00:39:32.09
Seth Macey
Mm-hmm.

00:39:32.86
Aaron
ah To really try to pinpoint certain things and certain projects that I'm doing and concentrate on them because I love them and like want to do them and do them to the fullest of my ability and feel like I'm being compensated and appreciated and, and it's just a good match.

00:39:53.53
Aaron
We all have a good match together, a good vibe together. I want a lot, a lot of the, or I should say a few of those clients over the year versus a lot of just trying to build up my portfolio built.

00:40:07.24
Aaron
Like I don't, I'm not on a stage where I feel like I need to take on extra stuff.

00:40:08.70
Seth Macey
yeah

00:40:13.72
Aaron
That's not going to be super fruitful in, in, in work, in pleasure, in, ah monetary gains, whatever it may be. I just want to be a little bit more picky with that and then use my time to do what you're saying is like get back into working out more consistently.

00:40:35.26
Aaron
um um Some nagging injuries that have caused that sort of slide in and doing things and then

00:40:40.55
Seth Macey
Mm hmm.

00:40:44.69
Aaron
Like i so I say, my life's pretty full, so if you if you open a vacuum, ah it's gonna go, it's gonna suck into, like, something else will fill it up.

00:40:54.16
Seth Macey
ah pretty good pretty good

00:40:55.95
Aaron
That was good, right?

00:40:55.98
Seth Macey
foley

00:40:58.39
Seth Macey
yeah

00:40:59.23
Aaron
ah But something's going to take its place really fast, and then it becomes difficult to sort of undo everything. And maybe that's a bit of an excuse, but it's ah I want to carve out more consistent time to yeah know take care of myself, eat really well, take the time to cook, to shop, versus just taking the easy route with some of that stuff.

00:41:19.98
Seth Macey
pretty good foley.

00:41:27.33
Seth Macey
Right.

00:41:27.54
Aaron
So that's a typical after the holidays thing. I think for most people to be like, whoa, December was rough. Like let's get back. Let's get back into it. It's a new year. Let's start fresh.

00:41:38.28
Aaron
Um, and humans love like end points and start points.

00:41:41.81
Seth Macey
Yeah. Yeah. So my question to you is what is, uh, what does that plan look like roughly for maybe we can make this an episode in the new year.

00:41:43.80
Aaron
So.

00:41:52.55
Seth Macey
What does that plan look like? Hey, I want to, I want less frequent clients that pay more. I mean, there's a people lot of people listening. He'll be like, me too. How are you?

00:42:03.03
Seth Macey
How are you going to attack that? Is it going to be larger scale projects with people you already work for?

00:42:05.78
Aaron
Okay.

00:42:10.16
Seth Macey
Is it going to be a lot of reaching out to bigger brands with bigger ideas? Is it, are you going to cut your quote silver to your client? Like, what does that look like for you?

00:42:20.44
Aaron
Yeah.

00:42:20.74
Seth Macey
Have you envisioned this?

00:42:22.83
Aaron
Yeah, i I think over the, I think I've learned over the four years of, of doing this like commercially, a few things.

00:42:34.22
Aaron
And I think the few things that I've learned are that I think in our minds, we think big, like we think ah Patagonia, Toyota, Lexus, like that's, that'd be awesome.

00:42:46.40
Aaron
I'm going to pitch them a few ideas. I think mostly that's a waste of time. Mostly.

00:42:51.98
Seth Macey
Yeah. Yeah.

00:42:53.53
Aaron
we We don't have a marketing agency. We don't, we're not like in New York city with, uh, top tier clients like that. I think you need a reputation and pro portfolio of working with those clients to really break through. There's exceptions, I'm sure. However, for most of us, uh, that just a little bit out of the realm and a little bit of a waste of time on the other end of that, for example, the.

00:43:24.64
Aaron
It can be the the businesses that don't understand that they are a business. I'll put it that way. The businesses that don't understand that they are a business and have to treat marketing seriously. That want photos that want this that don't know the ins and outs they get.

00:43:44.68
Aaron
licensing, what like they're arguing with you about it. They're, they're not understanding the whole process. They're nitpicking certain things. They're promising exposure or like just like that. ahh um I'm pretty good with that. I'm all set.

00:44:02.34
Aaron
I think the key demographic is really looking around your where you are. Hopefully you're in a place that has a bunch of businesses, some bigger than others, but locally where you can say like, Hey, I'm local and I want to create a partnership and I can do a lot of work for you.

00:44:23.00
Aaron
for a reasonable amount of money, but maybe a little bit less than a huge marketing ah campaign would come in for.

00:44:28.93
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:44:30.81
Aaron
Now, these are all the things I can do.

00:44:30.84
Seth Macey
yeah

00:44:33.91
Aaron
This is my portfolio. This is my experience. ah Knowing someone networking everywhere you go, I think is really helpful and has created my last two situations so ah for me that have been very good.

00:44:51.24
Aaron
is knowing people and and having the connection to to be able to talk to someone and pitch something and then take you seriously because they know you at least a little bit.

00:45:00.66
Seth Macey
Yeah. Yeah. And I think in the situation you just described to here's what I can do. ah Let me come in. Let me make you a free real.

00:45:10.35
Aaron
Yeah.

00:45:10.98
Seth Macey
That's so low cost that if it doesn't work out, it's not a huge waste of your time. but the the the risk-reward ratio is off the charts. like I think in that way often. What's the worst case and what's the best case? and If those two are the spread between those is quite large, then it's probably worth doing.

00:45:34.45
Seth Macey
It doesn't even need to be like is something, free work comes up a lot, right? And I think this is an instance where you can, it's tough to get somebody to commit to you prior to ever doing anything for them, unless you have a large body of work that's already the case study, right?

00:45:52.82
Aaron
right

00:45:53.46
Seth Macey
If you're pitching a tenting ah tent company and you already have tons of tent stuff, you don't need to offer them a freebie. It's like, hey, ah I've done the work. Here it is.

00:46:03.34
Aaron
right

00:46:03.51
Seth Macey
If you're going and pitching a construction company and you got nothing, I'm probably not going to give you thousands of dollars just off the bat. like I kind of want maybe want to see.

00:46:15.88
Seth Macey
The free trial is great, right?

00:46:17.04
Aaron
Right. Yeah, I agree.

00:46:19.35
Seth Macey
ah and And it gives you that chance to build the rapport. They get to feel what it's like working with you. And if you know your house is tidy and you have those skills in order, even if you don't, you can work on on on this instance. But if everything goes well, then that's a huge payoff potentially.

00:46:34.03
Seth Macey
ah So I think the other thing too, which can be helpful. You mentioned people who are confused with Mark or licensing and things like that. Two things I have on this actually, I've started at when I mentioned licensing and emails. Now I've started adding to the part where I mentioned licensing in in the, usually in the negotiations pitch phase. Uh, if you're unfamiliar with licensing, I'd be happy to send you another email that explains it for you. If you already know my apologies.

00:47:02.15
Seth Macey
Right. and Adding that in. So it's just, it's an open door for them to understand as opposed to just, here's my licensing fee. And then like you move on to the next point, the next point in your email, they'll do what what do you mean?

00:47:12.35
Aaron
Yeah, it's a good call.

00:47:14.55
Seth Macey
Whereas if you say, I'm happy to explain it to you, people might be, please do. And then it's, ah, that makes sense. Got it.

00:47:19.72
Aaron
Yep.

00:47:21.23
Seth Macey
The other thing point two is, you know, in your example, you mentioned locally, right? Pick up a local magazine in your town. You know, there's tons of them and see who's running ads because more than likely they have, they well, they clearly are familiar with advertising to some degree. They see the value in it. And maybe they are familiar with licensing and how that works. And you can skip a lot of hard steps as opposed to

00:47:56.50
Seth Macey
Here's this but local business that isn't advertising that doesn't have a huge Instagram presence. I'm going to, or sorry, not even like the Instagram presence doesn't matter.

00:48:08.92
Seth Macey
Here's this business that isn't doing anything. I'm going to convince them. I think we can get excited about, I'm going to convince somebody to, to, uh, you know, start seeing the importance of having someone create assets.

00:48:22.42
Seth Macey
I think the sweet spot is like you said, somebody who wants it, who wants it, like better assets and is willing to, who is willing to sit down and decide what they can afford to be their own in-house marketing agency.

00:48:28.10
Aaron
Yeah.

00:48:37.28
Aaron
Right.

00:48:38.84
Seth Macey
And maybe you can create a job for yourself by being more than just a photographer, being that in-house marketing person.

00:48:46.70
Aaron
Yeah. And that's the feel that I've liked is I want to join your team.

00:48:50.84
Seth Macey
Right.

00:48:52.42
Aaron
That that that feels like we're all working together and it's helping everyone.

00:48:57.91
Seth Macey
It's so funny you said that because another point I have, the things I want to do moving into 2025 I have in all caps on my notes is be even more than a photographer. I put even more because we've said be more than a photographer, like even more.

00:49:07.02
Aaron
Yeah. Yeah.

00:49:11.63
Seth Macey
Like I'm i'm interested. How can I, with these people that you have relationships with, how can I make your marketing plan better? Like I have insight into the creative industry. I'm not necessarily a professional, but I know how video and works and see, I spend a lot of time on socials, especially when you're dealing with owners who are maybe of a generation above you, right?

00:49:30.97
Aaron
Yeah. Yeah. And, and they shouldn't really have time to be putting into their socials. Like if, if they're running a successful business, I mean themselves, right? They probably want someone to guide them. Uh, if they don't already have that person, uh, or if they have that person, but that person doesn't necessarily have the the skills to make compelling video or compelling photos.

00:49:58.13
Seth Macey
Right, right.

00:49:59.65
Aaron
So, so absolutely. Uh, yeah. And when you're, when you're on a team, you want to, I want to personally like over-deliver and I have no problem doing it because it's like, I want, if you succeed, I'm going to succeed.

00:50:09.00
Seth Macey
Well.

00:50:15.44
Seth Macey
Right, it's a good attitude.

00:50:17.11
Aaron
And if right.

00:50:18.13
Seth Macey
It's not zero sum, right, where I get paid and you do less, it's ah it's non zero sum.

00:50:23.56
Aaron
And I would love in the last like, again, the last couple of of gigs that I've got and the feel was not like this is a one off. The feel was like that this goes well on the first little section of this project.

00:50:39.54
Aaron
There's endless work. That's what it feels like.

00:50:42.06
Seth Macey
if you You and I are both good at vocalizing that I feel like off the start even in the meet and greet stage where hey, I feel like we've said this so many times. We're not about one off relationships. We're more interested in the long term if the chemistry is there something along those lines. I feel like people love to hear that because nobody wants to do one offs really. I mean, what

00:51:02.27
Aaron
Yeah, and if you think about it in that way, if you were working with a client that you do one big project for them a year, one well-paid project a year, and every year you gain one client,

00:51:17.16
Aaron
one additional client by year five, you have five big projects you're doing every single year and continuing those relationships, adding more.

00:51:28.72
Aaron
Uh, I, I think it's really good to be able to pinpoint those clients that are like, and and that's what I want to do a ah better job of.

00:51:38.49
Seth Macey
You're building a roster. That's what you're talking about. You're building a roster over the years where you can drop lesser paying

00:51:47.63
Aaron
Yeah.

00:51:48.85
Seth Macey
more frequent clients to do bigger scope projects with those who have a budget with those that you have a good relationship with.

00:51:56.98
Aaron
Yeah, recognizing a lot of green flags.

00:51:58.34
Seth Macey
macroplane Yeah.

00:51:59.45
Aaron
Yeah, a lot of green flags for further work and and.

00:52:04.25
Seth Macey
Quickly. What are your green flags for doing more work for somebody challenging you to be quick?

00:52:10.25
Aaron
Yeah, ah this is this pre doing the worker after the first

00:52:14.51
Seth Macey
Just in general, like throughout the whole process,

00:52:17.01
Aaron
Build process. Uh, well, number one, they, they like your work, right? They're, they, they are. They like your work to start. And then they like your work when you did the project for them.

00:52:28.93
Seth Macey
And that's confirmed through them literally saying that, wow, we love your work.

00:52:28.98
Aaron
Like, wow. Yeah. Wow, this is great. Or this is, this has been helpful or fantastic or you, wow, you really over delivered.

00:52:36.82
Seth Macey
their barefoot

00:52:38.33
Aaron
So they're valuing what has happened.

00:52:41.02
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:52:41.81
Aaron
Uh, number two, I feel like it's for when I worked with Telefunken, he, our initial meeting was,

00:52:53.66
Aaron
We need photos of this entire factory. ah We'd love to get photos of like the soundstage when when people perform here. That'd be really cool. ah We need tons of video video and reels for the manufacturing.

00:53:06.92
Aaron
A drone fly through would be really cool.

00:53:07.68
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:53:09.77
Aaron
Oh, you were going to take some of our wooden for microphones out into the woods and take photos of them in nature. That's cool. We like that idea. Maybe we could get all our different colors in like what's called like ah microphones in the wild.

00:53:23.39
Aaron
Can you do that? It just the list went on and on and on about their needs. And we only went like I was like, all right, well, what's your priority? Are the microphones in the wild?

00:53:34.02
Aaron
Let's start there.

00:53:35.02
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:53:35.16
Aaron
I did that all summer and.

00:53:36.33
Seth Macey
That's a good green flag.

00:53:38.33
Aaron
Yeah, and it's like, OK, let me knock this out of the park and ah got invited to their holiday party, which is really cool. And it's a funny story because I was he he ah he messages me, hey, can you come to our holiday party?

00:53:47.56
Seth Macey
you

00:53:52.42
Aaron
And I was like to photograph.

00:53:54.91
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:53:55.83
Aaron
And he's like, he's like, no, man, I want you to relax and like, have fun. So like, again, part of the team, right?

00:54:02.36
Seth Macey
yeah

00:54:03.04
Aaron
So that was a huge thing at that holiday. He's like, Hey, we want to, we, ah after the new year, like we're going to hit you up. We want it. We have an idea for some photographs with some of the new microphones coming out.

00:54:15.90
Aaron
cool, like let's keep it going.

00:54:18.01
Seth Macey
Yeah. Yeah.

00:54:18.11
Aaron
And then I'm sure I could go to him. Hey, I have an idea for 4th of July coming up or this or that. Like it's, it's one of those things where you get that good vibe and you feel like it's endless sort of, uh, work.

00:54:28.47
Seth Macey
Right. The green flag is that there's clearly going to be lots to do.

00:54:30.09
Aaron
Um, yeah.

00:54:33.67
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:54:34.00
Aaron
Yeah. So, so that's, that's the, that's the one major thing I'm looking at.

00:54:39.88
Seth Macey
i had one They pay on time.

00:54:41.15
Aaron
Yeah.

00:54:43.78
Aaron
Oh my God. Yes.

00:54:47.10
Aaron
Oh my God, huge.

00:54:47.52
Seth Macey
I'm not going to elaborate.

00:54:50.33
Aaron
That's such a stress.

00:54:51.06
Seth Macey
It's just nice right now.

00:54:53.03
Aaron
Yeah. What a stress relief when, uh, when that happens. It's just like, Oh, that was easy.

00:54:56.92
Seth Macey
Yeah.

00:54:59.97
Aaron
How professional.

00:55:00.31
Seth Macey
Yeah. Yeah.

00:55:02.40
Aaron
Yeah, absolutely.

00:55:04.60
Seth Macey
Yeah. I remember I got paid from a client today invoice and I was like, I will work for you and go above and beyond any day of the week.

00:55:12.86
Aaron
Yeah, it makes a difference.

00:55:15.32
Seth Macey
Uh,

00:55:15.91
Aaron
Those small things make a difference.

00:55:17.29
Seth Macey
It just builds trust to and confidence, right?

00:55:19.86
Aaron
Yep. Yeah.

00:55:20.60
Seth Macey
Uh, I have one last thing on my notes cause I know we both got to get going. I want to get better at closing loops, email correspondence.

00:55:29.97
Aaron
Closing loops, define loop.

00:55:39.94
Seth Macey
In other words, I feel really good and relieved when open ended tasks loops are closed finished.

00:55:55.95
Seth Macey
You know, done.

00:55:57.49
Aaron
Yeah.

00:55:59.45
Seth Macey
And I just I'm less stressed out.

00:56:07.13
Seth Macey
So I mean, the way I've been prioritizing lately is I say, what open loops do I have?

00:56:07.20
Aaron
Yeah, that's a great one.

00:56:11.71
Seth Macey
So for us right now, for example, a loop we have that's open is confirming our 2025 TPM retreat, getting that up.

00:56:21.04
Aaron
Yeah.

00:56:21.54
Seth Macey
Like that's a loop. It's just things you you need to do basically.

00:56:26.30
Aaron
Right. Yeah.

00:56:26.98
Seth Macey
And, um, I guess getting better at closing them. is prioritizing those open loops before starting new things, despite how enticing or how much you convince yourself that that new thing needs to be started.

00:56:44.37
Aaron
Right.

00:56:44.76
Seth Macey
I get we all have daily things, but it's easy to bounce around and it's easier for me to start and open a new loop when I've closed my others.

00:56:58.08
Seth Macey
I just work better that way.

00:57:01.93
Aaron
Yeah, I think that clears the brain, right?

00:57:04.68
Seth Macey
Yeah. So I write, I've been writing down on my to do list. The, uh, I used to operate whatever came to my mind first was clear. I went on my to list for my week. I was like, whatever comes to my mind first is clearly the most important. So I write them down in that order. And now I'm realizing maybe you're just writing those things first because you're the most excited about them. You see the difference, just like a little change in perspective. And I'm thinking, okay, well, rather than When it comes to mind first, what loops do I have open?

00:57:39.88
Seth Macey
And then those get written down first. I'd like to, and sometimes you slip. That's why I say I want to get better at it going into the new year because I feel so much better when those are done closed, closed loop.

00:57:45.58
Aaron
Mhm. Mhm.

00:57:52.94
Aaron
Yeah, that that makes sense for sure.

00:57:56.45
Seth Macey
Right.

00:57:57.59
Aaron
Yeah, I can't. There's not much to add to that one. That's just a good one.

00:58:01.62
Seth Macey
Do you have anything else?

00:58:05.84
Aaron
At the top of my head, no, I think I think carrying on. We were always looking at this show and seeing how we can grow or improve or and make sure that we're still enjoying it and doing.

00:58:19.24
Aaron
what we want to be doing. I think that's a ah good practice. um I know.

00:58:23.96
Seth Macey
We did a full year of YouTube.

00:58:26.86
Aaron
I noticed that as I, which seems crazy because it seems new.

00:58:30.18
Seth Macey
the So% of the podcast has been YouTubed. That's it.

00:58:36.08
Aaron
that' Yeah. That's a.

00:58:38.36
Seth Macey
Well, it'll be an asymptote, as we know, right?

00:58:42.41
Aaron
Yeah. Yeah.

00:58:43.25
Seth Macey
Just like this shows you've been a part of, the more we do, the closer it gets to the y-axis.

00:58:47.55
Aaron
Right. Right.

00:58:48.47
Seth Macey
There's value math, there's maybe I got it wrong, correct?

00:58:51.06
Aaron
One day I'll be in 99% of all shows.

00:58:53.55
Seth Macey
That's right, you'll be like 99.99999999999% but you'll never be at 100.

00:58:58.81
Aaron
Ever.

00:58:59.15
Seth Macey
Isn't that mind-blowing? Anyways.

00:59:02.28
Aaron
Unless they get erased.

00:59:02.78
Seth Macey
I want to say to you because you do our video editing and you get the YouTube discussions up. I appreciate you man. that's That's not easy work and you do it on weekends sometimes and not to not to get too gushy, but I'm grateful to have a teammate like you.

00:59:12.97
Aaron
Yeah. No.

00:59:19.96
Aaron
Oh, same, dude.

00:59:21.77
Seth Macey
so

00:59:23.19
Aaron
Yeah, and a nice young buck. ah It's good. Seth's energy keeps me young.

00:59:29.30
Seth Macey
There we go. And, uh, lastly, thanks everybody for 250 episodes.

00:59:30.36
Aaron
Yeah.

00:59:35.11
Seth Macey
That's cool.

00:59:37.83
Aaron
Super crazy.

00:59:38.25
Seth Macey
It's really cool.

00:59:40.32
Aaron
Thanks for how many were was I in?

00:59:44.91
Seth Macey
Over 200.

00:59:45.27
Aaron
To over 200.

00:59:47.36
Seth Macey
My guess would be like two, two Oh nine.

00:59:52.79
Aaron
All right. So in 41 more episodes, I'll thank you.

00:59:55.51
Seth Macey
250 of another party.

00:59:58.49
Aaron
Yeah.

00:59:58.99
Seth Macey
and No, but seriously, thanks everybody for for listening.

01:00:01.55
Aaron
That's pretty amazing.

01:00:03.43
Seth Macey
Whether you're new, whether you've been around since the beginning, whether you've popped in and out, we're so appreciative of you.

01:00:10.97
Aaron
Which is crazy. 250 weeks in a row.

01:00:15.14
Seth Macey
Yeah.

01:00:15.82
Aaron
Not missing one.

01:00:18.26
Seth Macey
Yeah. I mean, that's cool.

01:00:20.03
Aaron
Bravo.

01:00:20.51
Seth Macey
Would we freak out if we missed one?

01:00:24.38
Aaron
Yeah, it's getting heavy on top of it. Like you don't want to end the streak.

01:00:28.54
Seth Macey
No, it just adds.

01:00:30.25
Aaron
Yeah.

01:00:30.33
Seth Macey
It's like Atlas holding the the stone gets heavier.

01:00:32.71
Aaron
Right. Right. Yeah.

01:00:34.81
Seth Macey
But, uh, all, you know what? It's all, allll qui all, uh, sorry. All streaks end.

01:00:44.06
Aaron
Yeah.

01:00:44.25
Seth Macey
I'm trying to scare people. They just literally do. Like you could do this for another 80 years and die, right?

01:00:49.48
Aaron
We'll keep going.

01:00:49.72
Seth Macey
They all go away.

01:00:50.79
Aaron
Our kids will keep it going.

01:00:50.79
Seth Macey
But in the meantime, we'll program a, like we did talk about last episode, we'll program ourselves into a,

01:00:53.94
Aaron
yeah Yeah.

01:00:57.58
Seth Macey
AI model and we can have conversations forever, man.

01:01:00.38
Aaron
I'll train my son and your future kids. They'll just carry it on. Carry the torch.

01:01:07.50
Aaron
If they want to. Of course.

01:01:09.38
Seth Macey
Oh, did he disappear?

01:01:15.34
Seth Macey
Well, I think Aaron disappeared. So, till next time.

01:01:19.35
Aaron
Uh-oh.

01:01:19.56
Seth Macey
What a way to go into 2025.

01:01:20.50
Aaron
Seth throws.