Become a confident storyteller for your brand to stand out and sell more. I'm a Visual Brand Coach and Award-Winning Photographer (featured in NY Times, Instagram, Apple). I help badass women entrepreneurs own their stories, showcase their uniqueness, and create brands that are downright magical. Ready to make your brand sizzle? Get your hands on my free brand guide packed with five essential ingredients to create an unforgettable brand experience.
10 Things Iโd Tell My Younger Self ๐
|
โ Dear Reader, โ Todayโs my birthday, and I thought I'd share 10 things Iโd tell my younger self.
โก๏ธ ๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฝ ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป. Whether in branding, business, or life, start messy, start scared, but start. Youโll grow through the process. โก๏ธ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ป๐ผ, whether itโs with clients, friends, or family. Not everyone is your person, and youโre not everyoneโs either. โก๏ธ Get some kick-ass, sexy photos of yourselfโyouโll thank yourself 10, 20, or even 50 years down the road. P.S. ๐๐โ๐ ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ผ ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ฒโfind a talented photographer. ๐ โก๏ธ Good food fuels the body, but real connection feeds the soul. ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ต๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐โ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ, ๐ฏ๐ผ๐ฑ๐, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ถ๐, and keep people around who challenge and make you laugh. โก๏ธ Choose a partner who ๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐๐ต, and date a LOT to know yourselfโbecause when you marry, youโre marrying the whole family, too. โก๏ธ Donโt drift through life in the dark or on a hamster wheel. Your trauma isnโt your fault, but ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ฝ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐. โก๏ธ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐น๐. Friends who donโt support your dreams or challenge you to grow donโt deserve a front-row seat. โก๏ธ Celebrate your cultural identityโ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ปโ๐ ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ ๐ถ๐ป. Standing out is powerful, so donโt be afraid to be seen. โก๏ธ Invest in therapy and find someone who truly gets you, culturally and personally. ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐บ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ. โก๏ธ Be your ๐ผ๐๐ป ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ. Other peopleโs opinions may be loud, but your belief in yourself counts the most. โฐโโค Bonus: โก๏ธ Remember, you can be ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ต ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐. Show up for yourself, do the work, and enjoy the journey. xo, โ PS. Help me decideโwhat should fill my glass today? ๐ฅ โ |
The Secret Sauce is Your Story
Become a confident storyteller for your brand to stand out and sell more. I'm a Visual Brand Coach and Award-Winning Photographer (featured in NY Times, Instagram, Apple). I help badass women entrepreneurs own their stories, showcase their uniqueness, and create brands that are downright magical. Ready to make your brand sizzle? Get your hands on my free brand guide packed with five essential ingredients to create an unforgettable brand experience.
Hey Reader, On Monday, I ran the Vision Board Workshop. People came with different starting points. Some had a word, some didn't. By the end of the workshop, everyone had one.And a plan for getting their board doneโwhich I walked them through in Canva Focus. Elevate. Progression. Intuition. Audacious. Phoenix. Nourish. Freedom. Here's what Ashwini, a new connection through LinkedIn, said afterward: This is a wonderful exercise. Alpana, you are so genuine and smart. I am happy to pay more and...
Dear Reader, I wanted to pop in and say thank you for being in my world and for your support over the years. I started my photography business in 2007 after a stranger came to purchase a baby carrier from my Craigslist ad. She saw a travel photo on my mantle and asked if I'd photograph her child. She persisted after I ghosted her and became my first paid client. One of the images from that session still hangs at Palo Alto Medical Foundationโa reminder of those early days. Some of you also...
Reader, She said, โIโm 65, and Iโm not finished.โ Hell yes. Sheโd heard me speak at a summit โ and one of my AI portraits, me with a unicorn, stirred something in her. She felt seen. The power of being seen โ through AI. Not as โmomโ or โgrandma,โ but as a woman whoโs lived many lives and is filled with stories โ from her three degrees, two universities in different countries and four/five carreers across different industrires. She told me, โIโve spent decades showing up for everyone else....