We recently connected with Teri Maye and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Teri, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

My mission is very personal to me. I have struggled from a very young age to feel unconditional love and be accepted by those around me, but I also struggled to unconditionally love myself, to love my body, my smile, just me! I was “taught” at a very young age that in order to receive love I had to endure all that came with it. I have been through abuse (physical, emotional and sexual) in my life. All of this taught me at a young age that I didn’t have the freedom to use my voice and speak up to trust the men in my life. I always felt abandoned by these men, always begging for attention. I spent many years carrying around so much shame and guilt. I didn’t even recognize myself. I was so broken, I didn’t even trust my own thoughts. I lived my life filling various roles that I were needed at the time, like a wife, a friend, a daughter, a mother, and a victim. I found my worth came from others and not myself.

My body changed and I didn’t know how to accept it, especially when others didn’t. My thoughts, emotions, fears, desires all changed and I did not feel safe to share it with those around me. My mission is personal to me because it’s one that has helped me heal, one that has allowed my friends and strangers to heal and give them the courage to find themselves, their passion, their desires, their trust but really radical love for themselves! My mission is to help women reconnect, rediscover, and love the body she is in. Not to just give her confidence but to help her love the physical person she is while also allowing her to find her voice! Allowing her to truly experience intimacy with herself and others.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I started in the photography community back in 2011. I can’t believe how long ago that was, it really just feels like I blinked and time passed by. When I started my journey into photography it was to become a wedding photographer. I wanted to capture this special day of others, weddings were fun, full of love and life. I have shed several tears at many weddings. The entire idea of photography that intrigued me the most was the idea of saving those memories. One day you would remember that silly thing your kiddo did, that event, but what about those little life moments? The way you looked at each stage in life? I love looking back on the past with my daughter. I get to remember how cute they were with that new hairstyle, or just appreciate the way we all spent time together. Photography for me has always been a glimpse into that time in our lives, good or bad. Back in 2018 I started my journey into boudoir. I could pinpoint during a session when my client felt lighter, brighter, confident, and even her own version of sexy! She was reclaiming herself right before my eyes. That is when I knew I needed to help all women feel this way, to see themselves in these ways, to help heal whatever their limiting beliefs about themselves were. So many stages in my life I hadn’t fully loved the way I looked. I have looked back on these periods…. not once have I ever said wow I look terrible. I have gone through many different stages that robbed me of feeling confident, comfortable, beautiful, sexy or anything that resembled something positive. When I look back on those memories I do not see those mental blocks in my past self. In my heavy gym era I see strength, I see happiness and I even see the physical changes to my body… I couldn’t back then. When I became pregnant for the first time I didn’t see this beautiful body that is growing a tiny person, I saw the version of me that was still not good enough. During my recovery from surgery I hated my scars, I thought they made me unattractive, today I appreciate that they are a part of my journey.

My hope, mission and purpose is to help others look inside and find out why the person they see is not the person they are, followed by showing them who they are through my perspective and artistic eye. I have been on a self-healing and self-discovery journey and what I know is that there were times in my life that I would lose myself, the person I am, the things I enjoy doing, the things I desired with my spouse, some time to myself. I help others move through this journey into discovering one’s self outside of their roles in life. This is exactly why I left wedding photography and built my brand in intimate portraits and coaching as well as business branding. This is to help my clients reclaim themselves and love the body they are in. To feel like the strong, confident, sexy, badass loving soul she truly is! I want to shout it from the rooftops that we as women can be everything we desire to be but still knowing yourself, loving yourself and not feeling guilty for any of it!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The lesson I have had to unlearn is that my worth comes from others and the way I serve them. I have been taught from a very young age that not only do I need to be seen but not heard. When I voiced my thoughts or feelings I was abandoned again. I had such a need to be validated that relationship decisions were very poor. I dated men or even married someone who was abusive and put me down all the time. I was taught over time that even if I did have an opinion that I was crazy. I was taught that I couldn’t even trust my own thoughts or feelings. I was taught that if I didn’t show up for others the way they wanted that I would be hurt. There was a part of my life that I had accepted to be the case. This started to shift slightly when I became a mom, I had my kiddos who loved me regardless. But they still needed me to help them and I felt so much value from that. It wasn’t until they started learning to do things for themselves and needing me less that I realized I was still finding my value in others. Today, while I still have a long way to go, I am finding value in myself, in the things I enjoy and who I am becoming every day!

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

I love this question so much because the answer is I love my clients! We have so much fun together. I end up being friends with most of my clients because I want so badly to help lift them up and support them. I have a family that has transitioned with me during every milestone they had over 6-8 years. Weddings, family photos, boudoir photos, a wedding for their son. I even sat down and shared a few beers with this family before I moved out of the state. I know they are grandparents now and are expecting a second grand baby next year! The personal connections I make with my clients are my second favorite part of what I do. I have many clients who have become friends and I cheer them on their journeys through life. It is the connection we make and the fun we have to keep my clients coming back! I also have built a customer loyalty program that offers special items to my previous clients. The client referral program also allows past clients to receive credit towards products or a new photo shoot!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.terimaye.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teri.maye
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Terimaye/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teri-maye
• Twitter: @BoudoirRadiant

Image Credits

Photo credit:Teri Maye