There’s something powerful about being in a room full of people who get it.

Who know what it’s like to shoot six sessions in a week and still feel behind (or conversely, have ZERO shoots in a week despite long hours and lots of effort). Who have a million creative ideas but no time to make them happen. Who dream of going full time — but are stuck playing small because they don’t have a clear path forward.

That’s why the College Mastermind exists.

It’s not just about bookings or branding (though there’s a lot of that too). It’s about building something that lasts. A business that doesn’t burn you out. A business that’s focused on serving people. A life you’re proud to call your own.

The stories below? They’re not unicorns. They’re photographers who said yes — and backed it up with action, accountability, and one heck of a community.

Elijah: Building a Vision From an Out-of-State Reality

Building a business is hard enough when you’re doing it in your own back yard. But when Elijah joined the College Mastermind, he was living in one state, with dreams of building a business in another… after he finished up his time in the military. 

Over the course of his time in the Mastermind, Elijah built a Campus Rep team at Florida State, and has started to see real momentum. He’s even started posting about that momentum consistently (shoutout to his wife for helping with that!). His biggest shift? He began to see that the discipline he thought came from the military was actually something within him all along.

This year. Elijah had four bookings under his belt… in his future home state. All because he had a vision for his family and business, combined with systems and support he found  in the College Mastermind, and his discipline and drive to implement.

Now, Elijah’s got his sights set on 15–20 grad bookings next season, an expanding relationship with sororities on campus, and has made it official: he’s transitioning out of the military to go full time. with his phtoography! Oh, and he’s gonna do it all while spending more time with his family living near the beach.

Let’s just say… the entire Mastermind group believes him…. and believes in him!

Click here to build the future you’re dreaming of!

Caitlyn & Joseph : New Baby, New Business, Record-Breaking Year

In the middle of growing her photography business, Caitlyn also grew something else: a human. She and her husband, Joseph, packed up an emerging business up north that was starting to see several thousand dollars a year in revenue, moving south to Florida while she was pregnant with their third child. 

They had their baby (woohoo! 🎉), wrapped up year 1 at UF, and still managed to book two sorority bid days, build out a rep team, and pull in $23,000 in revenue — 86% of it from college photography.

Fast forward one year: Caitlyn & Joseph are up to $33k, hired an associate, raised their prices, outsourced everything from babysitting to bookkeeping, and have 64 students on their early access list. Oh — and did we mention they’re homeschooling?

And in the process? Joseph’s assistance with Caitlyn’s bookkeeping has led to him starting his own bookkeeping business.

You see, for Caitlyn and Joseph, this is not just building a business… it’s about building freedom for their family. Through the College Mastermind, they’re implementing systems that allow their business to support their life, not the other way around!

Click here to build a business that serves your life goals!

Mary Kathryn: Scaling Big Without Burning Out

Mary Kathryn (or MK as we all like to call her around here) has been doing this a long time… her first grad session was back in 2014. But over the last few years, she’s gone from talented solo photographer slaving away on the side of a full-time job, to a full-time visionary business owner.

Quitting her full time job at the University of Alabama allowed MK the time to (1) jump in the College Mastermind, and (2) more strategically build the business of her dreams. She’s 4X’d her prices, built an associate team (currently at 4 — soon to be 6), pulls multi-six-figure years, and this past year began adding hundreds of dollars in average revenue per session through our Post Session Reveal system. But she’s also dialing things back in the best way: with her first baby on the way, MK was able to reduce her personal shoot volume and add begin building passive revenue streams, building a business that supports her growing family!

Her next goals? $100k from associates alone and a $500k/year business overall. And the belief she’s breaking? That she has to do it all herself.

Spoiler alert: she doesn’t. And you don’t either.

Click here to scale faster than you ever thought possible!

Sari: When Life Wrecks Your Plans… and You Win Anyway

Sari’s story reads like a rollercoaster. She jumped in the College Mastermind in 2023, and quickly caught absolute fire — shooting for the OSU All-Girl Cheer Team, opening a studio, getting booked more (and at higher rates!) than ever before! 

Then came the crash — literally. A car accident. MRI results. Adrenal fatigue. Her grandbaby in the ICU. Identity stolen. CRM hacked. And she had to shut down her studio.

But here’s the wild part: her business still grew.

Because she had systems in place, a team that could step up, and a mindset that wouldn’t quit, Sari kept earning through passive income from packages and print upgrades. And now? She’s launching a flagship senior experience, building a multi-person team, and is on track for her first six-figure year… all in an insane roller coaster of a season in her personal life!

I’ve got one more story to share with you tomorrow, but I’ll pause here, because this is a LOT of goodness to take in all at once!

Every story you just read started with the same thing: a moment of yes.

Yes to stepping into the unknown. Yes to doing business differently. Yes to surrounding themselves with people who are going where they want to go.

And you?

You’re one yes away too.

Click here to learn more about what your yes could look like!