I help photographers and creative entrepreneurs over 40 reclaim their confidence, cut through the noise, and build bold, independent lives through no-BS insight, experience, and action. Welcome to my Substack. I am glad you are here.
It’s a question I ask of my students every so often.
Not because it’s clever.
But because it can expose our internal stories.
What will you do in the next five minutes to advance your goals?
Not tomorrow.
Not next week.
Not after the kids leave home.
Not when the economy improves.
Not when you get a new camera.
Not when AI settles down.
Not when you feel more confident.
What will you do in the next five minutes?
The answers are always revealing, and the non-answers even more so.
Some people immediately have an instant reaction.
“I’ll write 100 words.”
“I’ll send an email.”
“I’ll make a photograph.”
“I’ll research a prospect.”
“I’ll record a video.”
Those people tend to move through life… differently.
Not because they’re smarter, or because they’re more talented.
Because they understand that progress is built from tiny actions repeated over time.
Tiny Action > Tiny Action > Tiny Action > Tiny Action = Change.
But most folks struggle with the question itself.
That’s quite revealing and may expose a hidden danger: the real problem.
The real problem often appears the moment someone explains why they can’t do anything in the next five minutes.
Oh, they’ll have a litany of reasons (excuses?) why there is nothing they can do.
Outdated gear, portfolio not ready, too old for the market, the economy sucks, AI has already taken every job there is, (fill in any Facebook bullshit about a beloved victim status, hell—there’s gotta be a million of them), yadda yadda yadda…
But…
The camera isn’t the problem.
The portfolio isn’t the problem.
Age isn’t the problem.
The economy isn’t the problem.
AI isn’t the problem.
And self-proclaimed victim status is most certainly not the problem.
The problem is usually the story they’ve chosen to believe.
“I need more information.”
“I need a better plan.”
“I need more confidence.”
“I need the right opportunity.”
“I need more time.”
”I’m too old.”
”I’m only shooting 36MP, and I don’t have a Leica.”
”I hate AI.”
”The economy just sucks!”
OK… Maybe.
Or maybe those stories have become a comfortable place to hide.
I’ve spent years mentoring photographers and creatives.
The successful ones weren’t always the most talented.
They weren’t always the most connected.
They weren’t always the most experienced.
They were usually the ones willing to make the next move.
Even when they didn’t feel ready.
Especially when they didn’t feel ready.
The struggling ones often had a different habit.
They spent a ton of energy explaining why they couldn’t move.
And one thing I can tell you about explanations is that they can become a narrative that leads to an identity.
Photographer A:
I always ask for five photos per week for portfolio work, and a specific number of contacts/pitches per week based on the level of the photographer and market. This photographer never did less than 20 photos per week, and always doubled the agreed to number of contacts. She is now a top shooter with an impressive catalog of work… all since 2022. That’s right, since the covidiocy, even with AI rising, she has built an impressive amount of work.Photographer B:
I worked with a photographer from Europe, a very difficult market to try to start a business in. We agreed on the approach, which would be comfortable, but aggressive - and in the Euro, aggressive is your only chance. He went a month without making a single image, never contacted a single opportunity, and gave nothing but excuses: the weather, the lockdown, the this the that… Meanwhile, another photographer I worked with built an entire photo business from scratch in a town less than 300 miles away. I parted ways. I didn’t want his money.
It’s your radio; change the damned station.
Once you start telling yourself a story often enough, your brain begins gathering evidence to support it.
Hey… it’s what our brains were designed to do!
“I’m too old.”
You’ll find evidence.
“The market is saturated.”
You’ll find evidence.
“Nobody hires photographers anymore.”
You’ll find evidence.
“AI is going to replace me.”
You’ll find the damned evidence.
I can’t help you there, the evidence is simply overwhelming.
The brain is remarkably good at defending the position it’s been assigned.
And that raises an uncomfortable question only you can answer.
What story are you constantly writing and rewriting in your head?
Because well-rehearsed stories become defensible beliefs.
Then those beliefs become decisions.
And those decisions become your life.
That’s why I like the five-minute question.
It cuts through the stories.
It cuts through the excuses.
It cuts through the noise.
It doesn’t ask what you believe.
It asks what you’re willing to do.
So I’ll ask it again.
What will you do in the next five minutes to advance your goals?
Not tomorrow. Not next week. Or when the economy turns around, or we discover that the AI techbros are really aliens who have come to devour our resources and replace us with androids who can do the Macarena.
You’ve got the next five minutes.
Five.
Minutes.
Your answer will reveal more than you think.
Now fix it; you have five minutes.
My Motion Class starts next Saturday. The enrollment button is currently out of commission as we are moving the site over, but if you want in, drop me a note at don.giannatti@gmail.com, and I will send you an enroll button. I will honor the pre-enrollment price of $299 for anyone wanting in.
If you’re over 40 and still hungry to make, build, and create, stick around. This space is for people who aren’t done yet (and never will be). I’ve got five decades of wins, failures, comebacks, and creative battles under my belt, and I’m sharing everything that still works—and burning the rest.
No fluff.
No hustle porn.
Just real tools for building a creative life on your own damn terms.
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