Podcast Ep 394 - Still Chasing the Perfect Plan? Here’s the Truth

You Think It Will Be Better “There” — But What If the Treasure Is Already Here?

Most photographers are chasing a place they call there.

"There" might look like a certain number of clients.
A revenue goal.
A full calendar.
A version of success that finally feels safe, stable, and secure.

And without even realizing it, we tell ourselves a story:
“When I get there, I’ll finally feel better.”

But what if that’s the problem?

What if the relief, confidence, and freedom you think live there aren’t actually waiting at the finish line at all?

In the coaching call that inspired this conversation, Heather explored a powerful idea: the emotions we think success will give us — security, stability, confidence, freedom — don’t come from hitting a number. They come from the thoughts we believe about ourselves. And if those thoughts don’t change, the feeling won’t either.

You might feel proud for a moment. Happy for a few minutes.
And then… underwhelmed.

Because the external milestone was never designed to fix an internal belief.

This is why Heather turned to The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho — a story about a shepherd named Santiago who travels across continents searching for treasure, only to discover it was buried back home, right where his journey began.

It’s a metaphor that mirrors so many photographers’ experiences in business.

We think we’re chasing clients, income, or better marketing strategies.
But what we’re really chasing is identity.

We are becoming the person who can hold the business we want.

The journey isn’t tactical.
It’s identity-based.

Every obstacle you face — pricing that doesn’t work, confusion, doubt, fear, offers that fall flat — is not a sign you’re doing it wrong. It’s training. It’s identity training. The invisible equity you’re building: resilience, courage, certainty, self-trust.

Even the seasons that feel “stuck” have meaning.

In The Alchemist, Santiago stays in the crystal shop longer than he should because it feels safe. Predictable. Secure. And if you’re honest, you’ve had crystal shop moments too — underpricing, saying yes to clients you’ve outgrown, staying in business models or platforms that no longer feel aligned.

Those seasons are not wasted. They are data.
They reveal what you’re no longer available for.

The treasure, Heather reminds us, is not another checklist.
It’s not the perfect strategy.
It’s not the one right answer.

The treasure has always been within you: your belief, creativity, courage, resourcefulness, and ability to connect with people.

Strategy does not create results.
The version of you who executes the strategy does.

And when you begin to trust that — when you stop assuming it will be better there than it is here — something shifts. You stop gripping so tightly. You start listening to your intuition. You take action from belief instead of fear.

The final realization is this: you are not becoming someone new.
You are uncovering what was always there.

So wherever you are on your journey — at the beginning, in the desert, at the crystal shop, or finally seeing the treasure — it’s perfect. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s building the version of you who can see what you already have.

The treasure was never somewhere else.
It was always you.