EPISODE SUMMARY
We are so excited to welcome Molly McCauley, a destination wedding photographer, and the host of Make Pretty Workshops.
We’re talking with her today about her journey into developing international workshops and what really goes behind making a workshop come to life. Molly tells us the scoop about what goes on behind the scenes to create a seamless experience for her attendee’s and how her background in planning has helped with that. If you’ve thought about creating your own workshop or thinking of heading to one but don’t know how to choose, Molly. has some great tips so listen in.
MOLLY MCCAULEY DARES YOU:
I dare you to believe in yourself and get out of your own way. Because we sometimes are our biggest hurdles. And if you need help, you can ask any three of us and we will tell you that you can do it.
FAST FACTS ABOUT MOLLY MCCAULEY
What do you shoot with?
Contax 645. I just added a Contax N1, which I am very excited about and is my new baby. Then I work in the digital world of Canon.
What’s your favorite post-wedding snack?
I am based on both coasts, so if I’m in California and there’s an In N’ Out nearby, we’ll definitely wait the 25 minutes in the drive through for that. When I’m actually backing up files or anything, I almost always have a glass of wine and popcorn or Justin’s peanut butter cups.
What’s your favorite pump-up jam?
Silence is really, really good for me because I am already a very active brain in general. Undiagnosed ADD for sure. I think I am already so pumped and amped when I’m either going to a workshop or a wedding that the silence is really key in balancing myself out.
What is your favorite thing to do outside of your business?
I grew up in a huge sports family so I love going to baseball games. I love traveling for any and all reasons and I am a huge advocate for dog rescue.
What’s the best education you’ve learned from?
Making all the mistakes. I learned by doing and I think that everybody wants a shortcut. While I love to work with my coaching clients, I can only do so much. There are certain things that you just have to learn by suffering through and, hopefully, it’s short and sweet.
But there are just certain things that unless you make that mistake, you don’t truly learn it. And then some mistakes are really hard to make, but once you make them, you’ll never make them again. So I think for me, it’s mostly just been by doing all the wrong things.
What is one daring leap you’ve taken in your business?
These workshops. I would say leaving all of my part-time gigs, leaving all of my side hustles and really trying to finally lean into myself and take myself seriously. I think because I was a creative my whole life and I don’t have a business degree, or hadn’t run a business prior to this.
I just thought that I was doing it for fun and then I happened to make a career out of it. But I didn’t trust myself to be successful. Once I finally made the decision to let all of the other stuff go and just letting all of the extra fluff go and focusing on me was probably the biggest daring leap for myself.
What is one thing you feel like you’re really great at in your business?
Networking, I’m a people person first and foremost. I’ve always been a helper and just very interested in people. I’m also a naturally optimistic person and I think that when you take on something as heavily emotional as wedding photography and, or these editorial shoots, it’s important to be able to roll with the punches.
But also be able to keep your eye on the prize and understand that this is for a bigger thing and it is going to work out. I think being a natural optimist has really helped me in terms of believing that I can reach the goals that I want to and do the things that I don’t see people doing.
Where can our listeners find you?
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