Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amanda Westcott. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Amanda thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear your thoughts about family businesses.

We are a husband and wife team. We have been together 20 years now. Officially worked together for about 13 years of those 20. We started the business in Toronto, then we redirected our efforts into moving to New York and continuing the business there. All we had was our cat and our dreams. A lot of people thought we were crazy. Not the part about us moving to New York. That, they were completely fine with. We actually have friends and family that were TOO supportive and had TOO much confidence in us. We’d be 3 days into the move and they’d be like “how are the shoots coming along?” I was like GIVE ME TIME! I don’t even have furniture yet! What they actually thought was crazy was working with your partner. I guess that was the relatable part that they could grasp. We are together 24/7. Work together, play together, eat together, sleep together (Eh eh! Mind out of the gutter!) When we were in Covid lockdowns you hear of all the relationships falling apart because they’ve never spent that much time together. Meanwhile, we were training for this! I think the important thing is (and this applies to more than just the work) is to make sure that your fundamental goals are the same, and how much you want it. So when things get tough, (like making rent in one of the most expensive cities in the world) and you don’t have enough clients, and jobs yet, you stick it out and not resent the other person. Of course, with that said there were definitely growing pains and not always rainbows and sunshine. When you’re working with colleagues, there are some things you hold back and don’t say because of certain etiquettes and professionalism. Working with your spouse, there is little to no line, I’d argue you can say too much and on things that oftentimes, totally irrelevant. But especially in the creative field when things can be subjective, having no boundaries can be tough. But after over a decade of working together professionally, and 20 years of being together, you learn what is worth the fight and what buttons to push or not push.

Working together does have their benefits though. Yes, there’s always the risk you can lose together, but you also win together. Whether that’s achievements or actual awards. Or also in our case, we get to travel and experience so many places together. Now that we have a daughter, we get to bring her along too. Yes, work and life seem to blend together a lot and there may not feel like there’s a balance. But I don’t always find that a bad thing, as long as that thing you’re doing (and together) is something you enjoy.

People ask us all the time whether we want our daughter to get into the family business. We want her to get into the business of what makes her happy (CUE THE CHEESE CONFETTI!) But honestly, it comes down to the fundamentals again. I love being a photographer but it really is such a hard business to break into and even moreso, to maintain. So whatever she chooses, she better love it or want it that much to endure the ups and downs of it all.

Amanda, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

On paper, I’ve been a photographer for about 15 years. But I’ve been surrounded by photography all my life. My dad was a photographer, but that’s not what got me interested in photography, the opposite in fact. We all know, when it’s your parents, nothing they say or do is cool, relevant, or interesting. Thor’s kid doesn’t care about his hammer, or how hot he is (lol), you’re just lame dad. What I did try to get from my dad though (who I found out, was not lame at all), was his outlook on life, forever the optimist and the ability to befriend anyone. He came to visit us in New York one time, we were in the subway station. I turn around for one second and I see he’s chatting it up with the conductor, all smiles, like they’ve known each other for years! I’ve always admired that about him and tried to emulate that in both life and in work. Talent and skills only take you so far. At the end of the day, who do you want to spend 12+ hours with on a long and grueling shoot day. I remember how people make me feel, so I want to make sure I always leave people with a positive feeling. Especially since most of my work in shooting portraits, involve relationships with people.

One of the first big projects I worked on, I was a production assistant/videographer/photographer/jester on a documentary for CBS Sports/Showtime based on Army vs Navy football. It focuses on their military training, as well as division 1 football. I was still living in Canada at the time and there were lots of traveling and long shoot days. We worked with producers, creative directors, to lieutenants, and even generals. Some shoot days we would hike over 10 hours in a forest during what the Army would call “tactical ops” training. I was carrying all the shoot gear, everyone’s food, water (because remember, I was also the productions assistant) while also shooting! It was definitely grueling, and tested all the limits. But what I remember most and what I got from that project (besides Emmys…subtle flex), were all the friends and relationships I still have to this day. Professionally, because of that project I got one of my biggest and consistent clients at the time, Showtime, who I worked with for over a decade and has opened up so many doors for me. Personally, I cannot even tell you how many people I’m still friends with, some even best friends. What’s better, is that we’re all still working together in some capacity, which means we get to also travel together, and create cool sh*t together!

Work takes up so much of all of our lives. I count my lucky ducks every day that I love what I do, and the people I do it with. Whether it’d be directing Mike Tyson on how to throw a punch (for a photo, not in general. I don’t have a death wish), running along side The Rock during WrestleMania, or following some genius engineers developing the highest tech in India, I can try to sound eloquent and use some fancy words used in a fancy sentence. But to put it simply, work hard, and don’t be an asshole.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Since we were just starting out, I took any job that was remotely related to my field. I am a photographer, but I was “raised” in the creative field among video production. I did a lot of PA (production assistant) jobs that paid <$200 for 14+ hour days, doing bitch work basically. It was very inconsistent and unglamorous. But I took what I could get. Because, also as a Canadian moving to America, it isn’t as easy as just pack your bags and move. Visas and legalities aside, to rent an apartment as a non citizen, they needed a guarantor (not uncommon), 6 months rent up front (not common), as well as first and last. New York is infamous for their ridiculous rent, so just think about that for a second. We were VERY cash poor. One day, I had a PA gig uptown. Call time was 6am. We had a cheque in the bank that was to be cleared by 5am. If it didn’t clear, I wouldn’t have had enough money to pay the subway fare to get to that shoot. Thankfully it did.

I think about that story often. I love that I lived through that, because it gave me the fire under my bum that I needed (that we all need), but I NEVER want to be in that position again. I know in the grand scheme of the world, these problems are minuscule, but nonetheless it was a time I’ll never forget. It’s a story that I always remind myself when I feel mildly irrationally inconvenienced, or times when I feel like I’m resting on my laurels from a “small success” to make sure I don’t rest too long.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Bad things happen, we get through them. Good things happen, they don’t last forever. That’s the cycle, that’s life. Our brain really is a funny place. We have a good year of business, we fear it might not happen again. We have a bad year of business, we think we’re doomed forever! We think our successes were luck, and the fails were our fault. Which is why businesses like Weight Watchers are so successful. It worked because Weight Watchers work. It didn’t, because of me. We never take a look at what other extenuating circumstances may be contributing to it. Remember Covid? (Like you could forget). That was the most extenuating of circumstances we could get. Talk about needing to pivot (PIVOT! Iykyk). But pivot in a sense of how we compartmentalized our time during it. Especially when it kept getting longer, and longer…and longer. I’m not going to lie, at the beginning of the lockdowns, I was capital T, Thriving! (After knowing we were likely not going to die from it of course). But as a business owner you’re constantly in hustle mode, flight or fight, or have some level of stress. We’re afraid we’re not productive enough, good enough, fast enough. But with Covid, NO ONE (not the rich, the poor, the famous, the mediocre) was able to work, to hustle…heck, we weren’t even allowed to go outside! I read a book with no guilt, watched TV with no guilt, baked (I love baking) with no guilt (fun fact: that’s when I learned how to make French Macarons). But long gone are those times, and it’s crazy how quickly we snap back to exactly how we were like before. All the stress, all the guilt. Can’t rest because you feel you need to be productive. Can’t be productive because you needed to rest – a vicious cycle. All self inflicted. I’m not saying to never feel those feels. I’m saying give yourself some grace. We live in a time where we think being constantly busy means success. Not to get all “kumbaya” on y’all, but it isn’t. After having my daughter 2 years ago, you really do see first hand how fast time really goes. A goal of having every second accounted for, is not it. Having a slow period doesn’t mean you’re doomed. Much like having a busy period doesn’t means you’re set for life. I’m starting to look at my life in seasons. Not just busy seasons, and slow seasons. But seasons in our lives. Hustle seasons, where your eye is on the prize. You eat, sleep, and dream your goals, and won’t take no for an answer. Relationship seasons. Whether it’s with your partner, your family, your friends, or your cat(s). Taking time to enjoy them, laugh at or with them and eat too much food. A “me” season, where you not only read books to better your career, but ones that just make you happy (The fluffiest and angstiest romance for me please!) A mom season. At first, as I’m sure all first time moms who also work fear. That they won’t be the same. That they won’t be wanted or needed the same. But it’s never what others think of you. It’s how you think of you. It’s not competence, it’s confidence. The problem is, we can never just settle in one of our seasons and not fear another won’t come, or come back. Contrary to the popular belief, we actually can have it all, just not all at once. Being a mom has helped me be more patient, more loving, and be a logistical genius (mom-mathing is no joke and they would make the best producers). My job makes me fierce and creative. My friends help me be more empathetic, more compassionate, more silly. All our seasons has its time (and time again), and all of it makes us who we are.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.amandawestcott.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisisamandaw/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/westcottamanda/

Image Credits

Amanda Westcott