How This Mom Left the 9-5

Kim, was a new mother and had a high paying management job with a well known company. But every day she went to the office, was another day she was missing out on watching her new baby grow up. She really wanted to find flexibility and freedom to be with her family but still needed to make ends meet. After graduating Pretty Focused, she was able to earn the income she needed to quit her 9-5. Now 6 years and 3 boys later, she’s working when she wants, how much she wants, and her family has the financial freedom they need to live the way they want.

Here's her story at a glance:

• Kim was desperate to quit her high paying corporate job to stay at home with her son
• She met with Melodee to learn about what working for food bloggers entailed and if it was the right fit for her
• She took the leap and learned how to work for food bloggers
• Kim had consistent clients within two months of quitting her 9-5
• Now has 3 boys, homeschools and works for clients on her own schedule

Read her full story

Get To Know Kim

• 0:00 Countdown
• 2:52 Why did you need to quit your corporate job?
• 5:21 What were your biggest concerns about working for food bloggers?
• 12:23 What have the last six years looked like for you?
• 14:34 How many clients have you had over the last six years?
• 17:27 What were fears did you face?
• 20:39 How do you balance working and raising kids?
• 24:17 What is the demand for food photographers?
• 27:02 What have you learned since starting your business?
• 34:08 How much advertising do you need to do to get clients?
• 42:25 What do bloggers hire for?
• 49:27 What is Pretty Focused?

Resources Mentioned

• Pretty Focused Food Blog Photography
• The Pretty Focused Roadmap
• Artificial Lighting Masterclass

Discovering the Demand for Food Photographers

In 2016, Kim’s first son was born.  She loved being a mom more than anything and each day that she left him and drove across town to that corporate building, was just one more day of missing out on watching him grow up.  When he was a few months old, she’d had enough. She and her husband started looking for options that would allow Kim to stay home and make up the difference in income they needed at the time.

At the prompting of her sister, Kim reached out to Melodee.  Over a tearful conversation at a nearby Starbucks, Kim asked if there was a way that she could work for food bloggers, too.  Melodee began explaining what the demand was in the industry for food photographers, what the work looked like and what kind of camera equipment she needed to start with.

Within a few short months of that conversation, Kim began working with clients. She was able to confidently quit her high paying corporate job and be the stay at home mom she had dreamed of becoming. She had gained the ultimate financial freedom and flexibility her family needed.

The Transformational Power of Pretty Focused

Now, six years and three boys later, Kim is still working with clients.  With the birth of each son, she’s been able to take time off that she’s needed and step back into working with clients when she is ready, on her timetable.

Aside from crushing every financial goal she set, she’s discovered a new sense of confidence in knowing her value and charging her worth.  This has allowed her to charge top dollar for her work and given her a  “work smarter, not harder” mindset which has only left more time to spend with her family.  She has even been able to apply her new skills beyond food blog photographing to restaurant photographing, working with brands and being a food stylist for a cookbook that will be published later this year.

Her life changing experience has been contagious.  Since that meeting with Melodee, she’s invited others to join Pretty Focused who have had transformational stories of their own, including this one.  Her sister is now a blossoming Pretty Focused student who is well on her way to success!