We recently connected with Madi Clark and have shared our conversation below.

Madi, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Back in 2019 I had the opportunity to quit my corporate job to start down a career path in being a freelance photographer and content creator. It was incredibly tough to leave the familiar comfort that I’d known for the past 8.5 years in the corporate world to leaping into the unknown of finding a way to create my own income. I felt an incredible pull to leave and pursue my own dreams and I just remember thinking “If not now, then when?” I had never felt so much peace in leaving right alongside with feeling fearful emotions of not knowing exactly what I was going to do next. Now, going on almost 4 years, I can say it was the best risk I’ve ever taken on myself.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

This journey started when I got Ember, my Australian Shepherd back in 2018. We had an instant bond and I knew right away that she brought something special to the table. Her fiery attitude, her unique looks, and facial expressions plus the joy she brought to me were something I wanted to share with others. Being a photographer and having a love for writing I found myself creating a journal type of Instagram account where I could share photos and small victories about her with family and friends.

This was the beginning of something much bigger that I didn’t even know about at the time. Her account took off and we found ourselves going viral with over a quarter million views on the Internet on an account with less than 3,000 followers. People were simply drawn to her. I found myself opening up more and more to our audience about different things that I was interested in. What started as photography turned into my love for hiking and exploring with a dog. People were interested in our training as she got older, which soon led to me opening up about my mental health and how Ember has been such a big part of that journey.

From there I have been able to work with many brands curating and creating story like images though my photography or on my own page highlighting these amazing companies who share the same values and interests that I do.

I feel like my audience on social media is full of our friends from all over the world.
Not only do they trust me but I talk with them all the time in my messages about things we have in common, being a dog mom, mental health, questions about photography or being a solo female traveler- It’s been quite the journey, I’m happy to have made positive impacts on people’s lives in one way or another.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Photography and writing are things that I love, I became really good at capturing Ember and her personality, the internet loved the way I portrayed her. People are drawn to her, which slowly over time turned in to people being drawn to our relationship and our lifestyle. Quick messy action is where I got to where I am. Nothing was remotely perfect but it was my outlet. I posted for ME instead of what I thought people would want. I wrote, hiked, took photos, loved animals because even before instagram it’s what I did. Do what you love and those people will find you.
I would tell anyone who is wanting to start to do the same. Comparison is so defeating it stops us from even trying, post as if you already had a million followers.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Yes, I have a big library of books that I absolutely love. Here are a few that I can name for memory:

Eye opening books on changing your perspective of your own life:
You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer
The War of Art by Steven Crossfield
Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter

Books more specific to being an entrepreneur:
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Profit First by Mike Michaolowicz
The 4-hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss
You are a Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero

Contact Info:

• Website: www.embarkwithember.com
• Instagram: @embark.with.ember
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/madi-clark-081301230

Image Credits
Image of me taking a photo on the rocks by: Alyssa Bowen