I was sitting in the living room with my sweet Mama one day recently, sharing my heart about this dream. She looked at me with questions in her eyes, having come from a long background in the financial business world. She asked, “Sweetie, I think I’m confused. If you’ve worked so hard the last several years to grow your business, why would you want to just give all of those hard earned secrets away?”

I can’t fault her for this opinion, because so many other people feel this way, and the industry she has worked in her entire life has taught her to protect industry knowledge like a treasure you have to not just seek, but earn.

So, I shared something I heard from Casey Weigand at last year’s Pursuit conference.

“A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.”

I am so thankful to be a member of an industry where so many people truly believe in building each other up, creating community, and at the heart of it all desire to serve others. My business wouldn’t be where it is without the mentors and friends I have made over the last several years who not only continue to give me wisdom and advice, but genuinely care about me and want to see me succeed.

Last year, I tried to give back in small ways by taking on two interns and pouring my knowledge into them. It really made me come back to the heart of teaching (my Masters is in Elementary Education) and realize I would love to teach within the industry. To serve others, to motivate and inspire them.

I’m so excited to announce I am now offering One-on-One Mentoring for photographers and small business owners! I would love to talk to you more about your struggles and celebrate your victories with you! My focus is going to be on helping small business owners who are just beginning their adventure in entrepreneurship, people who are still working a day job to support their daydream and want to create some balance in their lives, and photographers who are curious about film and are interested in making that transition into the Hybrid world.

If this is something you’re interested in, email me at nikki@nikkisanterre.com!