Paying It Forward - Being Inspired and Inspiring Others
Paying it forward or to respond to a person’s kindness to oneself by being kind to someone else. Possibly one of life’s simplest concepts when you really think about it, it makes you feel so good and really doesn’t require much effort.
I am a big believer in giving back to others when someone gives to you. When someone helps you out or does something nice for you, why not try to do something nice for someone else? This is something that I try to live by in all aspects of my life, be it personal or business/career.
The reason for this feel good post is because someone “paid it forward” to me the other day and it feels amazing. So amazing, I feel inclined to share this with all of you here.
I had a conversation the other day with a fellow photographer who is accomplished in her own right. We were speaking about photography in general, about my work and her work. She took some time and browsed through a bunch of my images and came back to me and was really impressed with my work. She asked if the urban/landscape/architecture genre is one that I am passionate about. I responded promptly and enthusiastically “YES”. My friend proceeded to tell me she can see the passion in my images, that it’s quite evident and clearly comes through when looking at them. It was such an incredibly respectful thing to say and to get that kind of praise from such an accomplished photographer was amazing. I personally cannot think of a better compliment to give another photographer, to me that is the highest form of flattery and appreciation for another person’s work.
We continued to discuss our passion and love for our craft, she offered me advice, opinions and guidance with regards to my photography. This friend is a full time photographer and she shared with me that even if she wasn’t getting a dime for it, she would still be doing it because of her passion, dedication and love for the art of photography. Now that in itself is something phenomenal that not many people can say they about their careers. When you have that kind of passion and love for something you do it’s a rare commodity in this life so when and if you find something you are so passionate about, pay it forward by sharing your knowledge and love for it with other like minded people.
After our conversation I felt this overwhelming sense of passion, excitement, inspiration and encouragement, I felt on top of the world! I was compelled to get my thoughts and elation down onto the proverbial paper that is my computer. I can only hope these said emotions come across in my post and most importantly I have an opportunity to pay it forward and inspire someone else the way I was inspired!
Image courtesy of carlyalyssathome.com