We recently connected with Jared Gehman and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Jared, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
My optimism comes from my faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches Christians to trust in the Lord and not lean on our own understanding. When I graduated college with my Bachelor’s degree, I was ready to continue school to get my Master’s degree – I was already accepted into a Master’s program, I had all of my plans lined up… but they were my own plans. Then God opened a door of opportunity to move to Nashville, TN. I prayed about the decision a lot, and was confident that God wanted me to move to Nashville. So, I did – but there were still bumps in the road. I work opportunity that I moved to Nashville to pursue fell through, and I was left in a new city with no job. But as the Bible teaches, the Lord provided. Trusting in Him led me to where I am now, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I am a tour photographer and video editor. I am also a drummer and have toured as a drummer, but the majority of my work these days are in the photo/video realm. There are a few bands that I tour with as a photographer, which means I ride on the tour bus with them and take photos of their concerts. I’m very grateful for the opportunity, and it is a lot of fun to be creative and experiment with my photography – but just like any job, it does feel like work after some time. I also do a lot of video editing. I’m blessed to have been able to edit a wide variety of projects, including music videos, commercials, TV shows, documentaries, short films, and more. This work is largely remote and purely editing, meaning that I usually don’t shoot the videos that I edit – I receive the clips from the client and put together an edit from there. I’m grateful to have a job as remote and flexible as editing, because it allows me to get some work done regardless of if I’m at home or on the road!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I think having a faith in Jesus Christ had an undeniable impact on my journey. Being rooted in faith has shaped me in ways I can’t explain, including the development of my work ethic and my skills as a creative. Beyond that, simply getting experience in my craft has had a huge impact. When I was in college, I worked as the photographer for my school’s marketing department, which resulted in me going out and doing photo shoots nearly every day of the week. Some of the photo shoots were dull, and some where exciting – but they all got experience under my belt in not only shooting, but also in being able to edit photos efficiently – which is now an essential aspect of my work. I would also encourage others to practice undistracted work. Being able to work on a task for long periods of time is a skill that can be practiced and built over time. That is something I have worked on and has allowed me to grow as a video editor. I encourage others to look into methods such as the Pomodoro Technique for ways to build this skill.
What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?
I think it is wise to have a hybrid-method mindset regarding developing one’s strengths versus diversifying one’s skills.
On one hand, becoming rich in knowledge and ability in a single skill is the best way to find success. If you have a well-developed skill that meets the needs of clients, it is simple supply and demand. You will find clients who will pay for your service.
On the other hand, not being reliant on a single skill is also wise. In my experience touring, I have talked with many individuals who have had a similar experience. They get an awesome opportunity in their 20’s to hit the road and be a rockstar. They make great money, buy a house and nice cars, and continue touring for the next decade or two. But eventually they get married and start having a family, and they want to stop touring to spend more time with their spouse and children – but they can’t. They have no job experience or skills that are applicable outside of touring, and they can’t keep up with the lifestyle they built if they started over in an entirely new career – so they are stuck on the road, away from their families. This same principle applies to vastly different career paths. Even if a job does not require you to travel, nearly any job can be lost unexpectedly, leaving an individual without income.
Because of this, I’ve found that a hybrid-method career path is wise. In other words, develop two skills. Mine are concert photography and video editing. If I some day desire to stop touring, I have enough experience in video editing that I could turn it into my full-time job. Or vice-versa, if AI takes over video editing and that skill is no longer needed in this world, I could turn to photography as a full-time job.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jaredgehman.myportfolio.com/
- Instagram: @jared.gehman
Image Credits
Photo of myself is credited to Kadin Tooley.
All other photos are taken by myself.
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
