Emerging From the Wreckage January 2025 Aiken, SC

Wins & Losses and the Full-Time Job

Hello,

In a strange way, having a full-time, non-photo job, actually helps me not get too down when don’t get into a show or place in a contest. And, it also keeps me from getting too full of myself when I do get into the show or place well in a contest. As is often quoted, “Don’t believe your own press.”

After entering one of these contests/shows, I wait, like you all, to get that email back on how you did. It could be, “Congratulations, your work has been selected by the juror(s).” (Yea!!) Or more likely, “We regret to inform you that your work was not selected.” (Drag) Or the truly rare ones, “You are invited to the NLPA Winners Meeting.” (What??)

And this is where a demanding job helps – especially after my Natural Landscape Photography Awards (NLPA) showing this year in the “In Your Backyard” category. I had four days between the email and the Zoom call to wonder what photo won and for what category. (And to even doubt if they sent the notice to the right person.) But since I could not tell people yet, I just got on with my days as a pricing analyst. When I need to work on the ton of quotes that range from a few thousand to a few million dollars, I don’t have a lot of space to think about the bad or the good.

Yes, my company and coworkers are very supportive and encouraging. Though, you can’t bask in it too long before the next deadline hits. These demands help me see the bigger picture that these wins are great and the losses stink, but they are just small stops on the path of life. Other, every-day things come up that push this news to the side.

We often go after things in our life – new job, new relationship, contests, shows – thinking that “Once I get (fill in the blank for yourself), my life will be so much better.” But getting it often only gives us that great feeling for a bit. Then we feel like we have to find the next “goal”, and the next one, and the next one… Until we are exhausted. Though, I would hope we come to the realization sooner rather than later, that most of these are just moments in all the moments of our lives. Some good, some bad, a few that are awesome, and hopefully very few that are outright terrible. And really the vast majority of our lives are “just plain moments.” Doing the shopping, answering the emails, driving to and from work… No matter what end of this spectrum I am in at any moment, I sometimes remind myself, “This, too, shall pass.”

Yes, celebrate those wins and accomplishments when you can with the people that matter. Though, also understand they will pass. Just as those disappointments may hit – and hit hard – they too will pass at some point. Especially if you share them with those same people that matter to you. So, I hope we can see the wins as something wonderful, but not a goal in themselves. Because the next moment will be arriving…right…now.

Thank you, and keep creating what you do.

Patrick J. Krohn

November 2025