Meet Nicole Dion Clarkson

 

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nicole Dion Clarkson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Nicole Dion , thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?

I obtained my great work ethic from both parents. My father owned an auto shop and was a master performance mechanic, and my mother was in the U.S Army, Civil Engineer and a Middle School Math Teacher. In our family, everyone is held accountable for themselves. We’re encouraged to do our best with everything, from household chores, personal goals, career and work. I was taught, the results from your efforts should be driven by positive energy, good integrity, hard-work, accountability, preparedness & “Just get it done” attitude.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

My story? Oh where shall I start? My love & pursuit for photography re-started during Covid. Like many of us, it was a time of great loss. We were feared into seclusion & unsure about the immediate future. When I realized days turned into weeks, and weeks into a month I knew I had to use that time to develop a skill/talent that otherwise I would not have been able to invest in once the world resumed back to normal. So one day, I ordered a Lumix G7 ($500) camera and a Lumix 50mm f1.8 lens and taught myself photography. I spent hundreds of hours on Youtube tutorials, applying what I learned by taking test shots in the backyard, & many times calling my “phone a friend” for tech questions. By the 4th month, I started as an auto photographer attending local car meets, photographing owners cars for free until one day I was handed an envelope of $200 and was told to “Stop photographing cars for free”, and so I did.

Photography/Videography was not a new skill, but a re-discovery of a talent that I had placed on hold for 12+ years. I attended Arts Institute for video production (2004) after High School (as an early graduate) to pursue my love for film. After working Part-time as a barista & with high cost of living, it was not enough to sustain as a student and I could no longer afford school. I returned home (2006) & worked various jobs and put my creative talents on the back burner.

Photography, to my surprise was a hidden talent that was waiting to be discovered. I never intended to pursue photography and only wanted to learn it as a basic creative skill. I soon realized it was a natural talent and began to nurture it . Fast forward 4 years, I created “Nicole Dion Visuals LLC ” & have since captured events for Lexus (SuperBowl LVIII), (2024) Chipotle National Hockey games, (2024) Gitlab and many more corporate & private events a like.

It has always been in me to be a creative, & even through years of disconnect, I always found the positive in every situation. I’ve learned to create opportunities & develop new skills & talents that would have otherwise gone un-noticed.

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?

Three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge?

Consistency: Be consistent with learning, take initiative when possible. The best way to learn is to just “do it”, but do it consistently.

Self Discipline: You’re only going to get as far as your focus. So focus 100%!

Positive Mindset: For me, this is my driving force!

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

A challenge im currently facing is something many of us has, or have experienced & thats grief. I lost one of my brothers on 2/20/22 & my father on 3/18/2024. This has become the hardest thing to overcome, but with time, it has become easier. To give up would be a disservice to my hard-work, time and energy that i’ve invested this far. So like my dad would say, well, ……”Get to work.”

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Leadership Development
Embracing Risk

Embracing risk is one of the most powerful things anyone can do to level up

Leadership Development
Perspectives on Where and How to Foster Generosity

Core to our mission is building a more compassionate and generous world and so we

Productivity
Stories of Overcoming Creative Blocks and Finding New Paths to Creativity

“The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old