With a Grain of Salt

Depression is something every person on the planet deals with at some point in their lives, and for us not to talk about it or be open about it, is dumb. It benefits no one by staying silent. We need to end this stigma of shame culture surrounding mental health and depression. I have a long and entangled history with depression which I go into detail within the podcast. But I will say that the point where depression or mental health becomes dangerous is when you don't talk to someone about it. There are so many great resources out there. Here in the US and in the UK there is https://www.betterhelp.com. At BetterHelp.com there are licensed counselors who you can meet with online to talk about any number of mental health issues you might be having. The best way out of depression is by talking to someone about it, so please, don't be ashamed or afraid to ask for help. Please enjoy the podcast and be sure to leave a positive comment. -Justin

There have been so many times in my personal and professional careers that I have been so fearful of failure that I have made myself sick. In our society, we are, taught to be fearful of failure from a very young age. We are conditioned to think that if we fail our school homework or projects or sports that OUR LIFE WILL COME TO AN END. And we continue to be conditioned in this mindset long into our adulthood and then into seniority. It comes down to “if you don’t do this thing or if you fail at this certain thing then YOU WILL BE HOMELESS AND DIE and so we drive ourselves insane working for this fear of failure machine. I, like you, was trapped in this cycle for the longest time until I got so sick both physically and mentally that I had to change something. I think where I began to change was when I left my job as an executive chef because I was so exhausted from being made to feel like I didn’t do this thing or that I was going to fail at life become nothing. I got to the point where I just stopped caring because I was so exhausted from being made to feel this way. It wasn’t until I started my own business that I learned through so much trial and error that failure. In itself IS NOT THE END. In a lot of cases, it is the beginning. Failure is a vital part of progression and eventually success. I was so sick of things happening to me that I made a conscious choice to make things happen for me. Fear is a funny thing. If you let it, it will keep you prisoner forever, and when we fear something we become irrational and volatile. But fear is not something that needs to control you, instead, learn to master your fear and you will truly find peace. Of course, you will fail, make mistakes and give in to fear but that’s all just part of the process. There is a difference between being a slave to your fear and occasionally being afraid of things. Failure is just as useful as a success because it teaches you something. We can always learn something or take something away from our failures just as much as from our successes. As a headshot photographer, it is partly my job to help people face their fears and insecurities of body image. I often have to work with people to understand that true beauty comes from the inside and no matter what failures they’ve experienced or mistakes they’ve made or no matter what negative thing anyone has ever said to them ultimately doesn’t matter unless they allow it to matter. People who are afraid or miserable will try to make you miserable and afraid so that they don’t feel so crappy and if you do anything good or if anything good happens to you they will try to drag you down to their level. But you cannot let others control the outcome of your life. Ultimately you are the master of your destiny, any progression, successes or failures happen because of the choices you make. I clung to the motto of “Do not tell me what I can or cannot do” for most of my life. Meaning do not try to control the outcome of my life because I will be the master of my destiny. You are valuable, You can do it, You will fail, You will make mistakes and You will learn from it, You are talented and You will succeed. Do not let failure be the end.