We recently connected with Samir Ammari and have shared our conversation below.

Samir, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Consistency! Drive and determination! Says every motivational speaker ever. This is true, these qualities are needed to succeed in any endeavor we pursue. But here’s what most of these entrepreneur influencers and speakers miss.

About 6 months into my journey as a freelance photographer, I felt on top of the world. All of my studying, practicing and determination was paying off. I was booking clients, testing with a new agency, and offered opportunities to photograph in niches I never imagined, but knew would enhance my skillset and knowledge. Life was good. I was living on the dopamine rush and felt so confident that I began to let loose and get too comfortable a little too soon. One day I received negative feedback on something I thought was a misunderstanding. Then the next day, I lost a client to someone else. And a few days later I learned some photos I worked long and hard on were not going to be used on a platform that would help expand my network.

Before I knew it, two months had passed and I hadn’t updated my portfolio from my last shoot. My camera had dust on it. I made a crucial mistake that most beginners make in any entrepreneurship. I rode the high of that dopamine spike so much, that my first few hiccups came with a major crash. Conditioning yourself to stay balanced and not get overly excited or too confident is truly a skill needed to continue pushing forward. It keeps the “let down” less of a downer.

So determination and consistency are at least by now, the obvious response to what it takes to be successful. But I truly believe it goes deeper than that. I believe at its core, the fundamental quality behind one’s success is to be self-aware. To be able to learn from your mistakes and understand why we do or don’t take actions needed. To better understand our flaws and where they stem from. Then go down that rabbit hole of self-discovery and face things you might not want to admit about yourself. If I didn’t sit and dissect why I reacted the way I did I would not have taken responsibility and gotten my butt back out there. I would have played the blame game with a victim mentality. A lot of the time we are faced with the same obstacles over and over again, there’s a good chance we aren’t acknowledging something about ourselves.

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’m an islander. Barbados is where I was born to a local mother and a Syrian father. We moved to the US when I was 11 and I’ve had the privilege of living in multiple states. Growing up in a multicultural environment is something I will forever be grateful for. Not having one town or tribe so to speak, to form the basis of an identity made the process of finding myself and molding who I am a bit harder. And that for me, was and still is the ultimate blessing.

Creation of art and music have always been my passions. As I got older and more consumed with “adulting” I think I lost some of the visions I had as a child. But then one day I was offered the trip of a lifetime. A two-week journey through southeast Asia. I had a camera with me and without realizing it, I was immediately consumed by the discovery that photography is in itself, a deeply profound and meaningful art form. After all, the word photography literally means ‘drawing with light’.

I grew up with stacks of National Geographic magazines on our coffee table. As an only child then, I spent much of my downtime reading them over and over. David Attenborough nature shows were a Sunday afternoon staple in our routine. That trip to Asia, along with a few other countries in the following years, reignited my love for worldly adventures I used to read about. I decided that I wanted to travel and photograph my journeys. I have a few ideas for publications along with a docuseries in the near future involving these two passions.

As this is my first year as a freelance photographer, I am engulfing myself in a variety of photography niches. Professionally I work with models, real estate, and event photography. Every weekend I am out in nature or downtown photographing for fun and practice. My first photojournalist piece will be out by the end of this year on the most magical Buddhist monastery in Austin, TX. Keep an eye out!

I love to work with people and capture their essence. I value it so much that I tend to over-deliver with final edits for clients. I don’t care if it takes up more hours in my day. If you love the process, your work will never feel like a job.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

There are definitely a few goals driving my journey. I think one that I can share is to connect people with the stories portrayed in my images. To spread awareness and education of life around the planet. To showcase the very humanity that we all share no matter what race, culture, or beliefs seem to separate us. The ultimate goal is to share that connection through the art of photography.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Making it an integrated part of my everyday life. To me, nothing is more rewarding than doing something I love as my livelihood, You mean I get to have fun and get paid for it? Sign me up! I know it’s not all fun and games, there’s definitely a level of stress, hard work, and many, many hours that comes with the life of a creative. But I’m sure other artists will agree, at the end of the day we wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: samirammari.com
• Instagram: samir.j.ammari