We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sonya Peacocke a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sonya, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?
My optimism is a gift from God.
Life historically has not been easy for me. In my story, there is childhood abuse and suddenly losing my husband at 25 to Leukemia. Both experiences give me an excellent excuse to be a negative soul, and no one would blame me!
Thankfully, this life presents us with choices, and I choose to see who God is and allow his love to fuel my optimism.
God comforts and is close to me (Pslam 34:18, Romans 15:13)
God Protects me(Psalm 46:1, Psalm 62:5-8).
God Loves me (John 3:16-17)
There’s more, but unfortunately, I’ve run out of room.
Optimism is a product of the love and protection I feel from God, and when He isn’t my main focus, my optimism wavers.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
When my late husband was here on earth with me, he had a videography business and encouraged me to pick up a camera. I did a lot of second-hand learning about light, composition, editing, cameras, etc.
When he died it was difficult to pick up the camera again, but eventually, I did. I quickly recognized that branding photography and videography was what I desired to do, so I made it happen.
I specifically love capturing eye-catching product shots and organic real-life moments of a business owner showcasing their craft.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Grit: Life is full of ebbs and flows of both excruciatingly difficult and wonderful. To endure and keep moving forward you need Grit.
Faith:
Without faith, the foundation that I stand on would have to be 100% man-made, and I know for sure that will fail me. I choose to stand on solid ground that I can always rely on. No matter how many times I have to rebuild the house, I will continue to build it on my rock, which is Christ.
The Art of Quitting:
Quitting isn’t always the negative thing that you think it is. Quitting means saying no when you’ve committed to something you shouldn’t have. Quitting means you can stop doing that thing that once served you, but no longer does. It takes a lot of guts and solid wisdom to quit when it’s good, but there’s an opportunity for growth.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
Creating a perfect system
Honestly, there are no perfect systems, but I can try!
Owning a small business with my husband was one thing, but starting again as a widow is another. There’s no one to bounce ideas off of, no one to organize the receipts, no one to help choose the best-upgraded lighting system or decide who’s going to cook dinner.
It went from a healthy growing business, and then I had to re-group and restart by myself. The system is good because of my experience, but it has been difficult handling everything from a website(it’s in the works), marketing, creating, scheduling, continuing education, client relations, branding, and … well… making dinner.
Any creative will tell you that holding the business side together is a necessary and difficult task, but we live to get that dream shot caught on camera. The one we dream about for years and enjoy for ten minutes before the next great idea presents itself.
My late husband’s motto was to keep moving forward and that attitude has brought me where I am today, so even though it’s tough out there, I will keep moving forward and I encourage you to do the same.
Contact Info:
- Website: sonyapeacockephotography@gmail.com
- Instagram: Sonya_peacocke_photography
