Taking the first step forward can change your life
Let me start by saying—hard work is never truly done.
When we talk about freedom, certain images naturally come to mind—a mini photo reel playing in the back of your head. Maybe it’s driving through towering pine trees, the sunlight filtering through the leaves, warming your face. Or maybe it’s spending uninterrupted time with your family on a perfect summer day. For some, it’s the ability to live and work on their own terms, untethered to a single place or job. The vision of freedom looks different for everyone, but at its core, it represents the feeling we all long for.
Recently, someone asked me, “How do you step into your creative freedom?”
And honestly, the answer is right there in the question—you step into it. Even if it’s just a small step, even if it feels uncertain, any movement forward brings you closer to where you want to be. As a nurse, I remind myself of this constantly. Taking the first step isn’t easy—in fact, it’s often the hardest part—but it’s also the most rewarding.
One of my most pivotal “first steps” was photographing my very first wedding. It was for a friend, and to say I was terrified would be an understatement. My inner critic was ruthless—“What if you mess up?” “Good thing you’re not getting paid, because this is going to be a disaster.” “You could lose this friendship.” Pretty brutal, right?
But I made a choice. I decided not to listen. I told my self-doubt to take a back seat because, honestly? I’ve got this. I let the fear fuel me rather than stop me. Without even realizing it, I stepped into my creative freedom that day. It took more courage than I knew I had (and a lot of effort to keep my hands from shaking while taking photos), but I did it. And when I came out on the other side, I realized something powerful—taking that first step is scary, but the reward is worth it.
And in case you’re wondering how that wedding turned out? I’m going to be humble here and say… I crushed it. And so can you.
Here’s an image from that very first wedding—proof that fear doesn’t have to hold you back.
Molina Wedding, 2018
Aside from taking the first step forward, I can give you some pointers on the mindset and qualities that can help you along with this process and I want to begin breaking down the barriers and the lies that you (I) have been telling yourself (myself).
A mindset of courage: this is changing the way you speak to yourself and saying “I can do this, I am capable, I got this,” rather than “I don’t think I am good enough to do this” or the biggie, “someone else has done this already and it is probably better than what I am doing.” Yep, you guessed it, I have said every single one of those lies to myself. My inner critic told me that I couldn’t and until I put an end to her lies, I couldn’t step forward. This is courage. To take your inner lies and completely demolish them. And then tell yourself, “I’m proud of you.”
Wake up in the morning and begin your routine: I cannot tell you how important it is to have consistency. No joke, I didn’t begin to establish a routine until about a month ago and within that small amount of time, I am seeing so much more productivity than ever before. We are creatures of habit and even more so, we need the stability. If we are constantly changing up our routine, how effective is our day going to be when we don’t know how much time we have. Every second counts! Every minute is your life and that is so heckin’ valuable! I cant emphasize this enough.
Write it down: those goals you have? Write ‘em down. Those fears you have? Write ‘em down. When you begin writing things down, you begin a conversation with your subconscious saying “I see you, I acknowledge you are there, and I want to work with you.” As time goes by, you can slowly begin to put a checkmark next to these inner thoughts and tangibly see your progress. It’s not simple, you’ll forget that you should be writing things down, and you may have to start over again and again until you get it right. But that’s your soul saying “you’re not ready yet, let’s keep working on this.”
You have got this. You CAN move forward into your own creative, spiritual, physical freedom. Whatever the type of freedom you need, you have got this. The hard work is never done but you can take it on one. step. at a time.
Cheers to your baby steps.
Love you, Cass
