Creatrix is officially ten years old! WHAAAAAAT?! If you’ve never heard how this business came to be, it was a dark and stormy night…but really, I was in the military. Yes, me. In the military. I was discharged in 2011 and not a moment too soon. I’m positive I would have been kicked out, especially if I was stationed on a ship as they had promised. See, I’m always the rebel. I don’t do it on purpose, I just follow my own path. You know who that pisses off? People. Granted, I broke the rules and gave attitude left and right. Hell, I pierced my nose in 2006…I didn’t get out until 2011. To say that had been a contentious debate with my superiors more than once would be an understatement. I almost got kicked out because I pierced my nip-nops and a doctor had the audacity to reprimand me during a pap smear. When I told her the examination was over and that she wasn’t welcome to talk to me anymore, she reported me for insubordination. Lucky for me, there were rules in place that made my autonomous demand legally allowed. Yes, legally allowed. Humans are property in the military. Needless to say, I recognized where my attitude was going to take me and escaped with an honorable discharge and full benefits.
I don’t regret being in the military. It paid for my entire Bachelor’s degree and 90% of my Master’s degree. It would have paid for the entire Master’s if I hadn’t farted around with degrees in the beginning but that’s beside the point. I also receive medical care for the rest of my life and free meals on Veterans Day. Discounts on phone bills and oil changes at Jiffy Lube. All in all, it was a fair trade. At the time, when I decided to GTFO of the military, I didn’t want to work for anyone unless it was on my terms. Don’t ask me how but the Universe was like, “Jenna, you should become a professional photographer.”
I knew nothing about business and almost nothing about photography. That’s how odd it was at the time. Sometimes the Universe speaks to you and if you listen, you end up in a rewarding career for ten years. This brings me to today. Ten years of running a business. Boy. IT’S EXHAUSTING Y’ALL. I love my job but the constant fearful hustle is exhausting.
My company has provided me with so many benefits though. Free travel, expense write-offs, meeting some of the coolest people and living the kind of life people only dream of. Creatrix has become an extension of who I am. Hell, I even trademarked the name in the photography world because no one is going to take a part of me without my permission. The fact that I’ve done this for ten years is a weird thing to process. My very first wedding was amazing and I didn’t actually make any money. The photos are cringy AF but I refuse to delete the blog because I want to remember where I’ve come from.
My goal is that by 2023, I’m not doing this full-time anymore. I love my job but I don’t want it to feel like a job anymore. It’s really really weird to consider that I’ve been doing this for ten years. I’m not anywhere I imagined seven years ago. It makes me excited to discover what will happen in seven more.
