KT Merry’s Daily Routine

Running a photography business of any size, shape or form is challenging. Most wedding photographers will tell you that there’s no other job like it! And I have to agree. The physical, mental and emotional stakes placed on a photographer, especially a luxury wedding photographer, can get to the best of us, IF you don’t have a sustainable routine and reliable systems in place to balance it all out. 

Here is a peek inside my day-to-day life and how all the magic (read: work) happens. (With some definite magic sprinkled in.) After all, if it isn’t a little bit magical—then something’s missing…

5:30 – 6:30am Rise + shine!

I have a very established morning routine that includes meditation, reading, journaling and exercise—all things I must do first thing in the day to ‘get my mind right.’ If I had to attribute my business success as a photographer to ONE THING it would be this: mindset. Your thoughts create feelings and your feelings trigger behavior. When you’re intentional with your thoughts, and taking care of your mind, the possibilities in your life expand ten-fold. 

For my complete morning routine—including:

> what I do the night before
> my trick for waking up quickly + with energy
> and my 5 journal prompts…

…check out My Morning Routine here.

7am Sweat!

For me, this usually means running 5+ miles (especially if I’m on the road and I want to explore the terrain a bit). Sometimes I’ll use a workout guide, like Heather Robertson on YouTube, but the most important thing is to GET MOVING! I’m a firm believer in the idea that energy creates energy. In fact, when I’m flying across the country or even across the world, and I feel tired or jet-lagged, my no-fail #1 solution is to break a sweat. It works every time and gets my energy back into rhythm and clears my foggy mind.

I’m so dedicated to my morning routine, and the difference it makes in my business—and my life!—that I schedule all my travel around it if at all possible. And trust me, that’s a lot of travel. 

If you don’t have a daily or weekly routine to care for your mind + body, you will burn out very quickly in the wedding photography business—and life, for that matter! That’s why developing sustainable practices is one of the most important pillars of my holistic approach to business.

7:30-8:30am Get ready for the day

After sweating for at least 30 minutes a day (I’m going on a 2-year record, I haven’t missed a day yet!), I shower and dress for the day. 

Chad and I don’t eat much breakfast. Instead, we opt for either hot water with half a lemon and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, or juiced celery. If I’m feeling really ambitious, I’ll make Reese Witherspoon’s Green Smoothie:

2 heads romaine lettuce
1/2 cup spinach
1/2 cup coconut water
1 whole banana
1 whole apple (core removed)
1 whole pear (core removed)
1 whole lemon (rind removed)
Celery (optional)
Almond butter (optional)

It’s delicious and fuels my mind until lunch time when we gorge ourselves on vegetables (more on that below).

9am Clock in!

I typically sit down at my desk to work around 8:30 or 9am, unless of course I’m on location for a photo shoot. In that case, if there are no scheduled events in the morning, I’m usually location scouting for the next event. Chad and I visit event sites once or twice before shooting the location to make sure we’re fully prepared with a plan and ready to pivot if there are any surprises. 

I can’t tell you the number of times this simple practice has saved me during a session! Preparation is everything and a vital part of my pre-shoot routine.

If I’m not on the road and I’m working from home, the morning is when I do my deepest thinking and work. I reserve these hours for any projects that require me to write, teach or develop strategy. Whether I’m drafting this week’s Journal post, or writing an updated lesson for The Abundance Plan program, it’s important to block off undistracted stretches of time. When I need to focus, I utilize time-blocking to help me do that. I put it in my calendar, alert my team and off I go! 

I can get so much more done in two hours of focused time than I can in four hours of scattered energy. Time-blocking is just ONE of the tools I teach inside The Abundance Plan, my signature program for photographers looking to grow their businesses. To find out more about what I teach inside the program, join my waitlist here.

12:00pm Lunch break!

Chad is our resident chef (no seriously, he’s really good), so on a typical work day at home, I’ll whip up a delicious vegetarian or vegan lunch for us and he’ll cook dinner. My specialty is amazing salads or buddha bowls. We love to enjoy lunch outside on our balcony. Whether it’s a tofu-packed salad or Taco Tuesday, lunchtime is a needed break from the deep work of the morning. 

We also use the break to walk our resident foster animal (we usually have one or two at a time if we aren’t on a crazy travel schedule, like we are at the moment!). I’m a big believer in fostering over adopting. When we can, we’ll take in a litter of kittens or a loveable mutt to be our housemate until it finds its forever home. It’s just one of the ways I integrate my values, and the importance of making an impact, into my life and photography business. Read more about the print shops I created to ‘do good’ with my business here.

1:00 – 5:00pm Clients, Calls and Appointments, oh my!

I always reserve (if possible) all my calls, meetings and appointments for the afternoons. Putting this structure around meetings allows me to reserve those valuable morning hours for deep thinking and working ON my business. 

The afternoons are geared more toward working IN my business: client calls, team meetings, appointments with outside contractors. For a luxury wedding photographer, my client calls are often calls with wedding planners and coordinators. This is also the time when I might schedule a mastermind coaching session with one of my mentors.

Educating myself has been a #1 priority since the day I entered photography school and knew I wouldn’t attend the ivy league college of my dreams. I make it a point to set aside time for learning and education nearly every single day. And I don’t hold back on investing in that education. 

Because what I’ve learned in the 15 years of business is that, most likely, someone has already been where you are. Someone else has already figured out the problem you’re having. There’s so much to learn from those who have gone before and done ‘the thing.’ 

So WHY would I waste precious time trying to figure it out on my own???

Chad and I buy the courses and programs we need to get to the next level in our business. We join masterminds to get valuable feedback and insight from other professionals facing the same challenges. We invest in producing personal photography projects, to continue to learn and grow as artists and stay at the top of our game. 

And it’s been worth every penny. 

My first bit of advice to every photographer or creative entrepreneur is always: invest in education. You don’t have to know how to run a business, as long as you’re willing to learn how to run a business.

6:00pm Clock out + Unwind!

I try and finish up work by 6pm each day. The last hour is usually spent wrapping up emails or delivering images to clients. It’s so important to put boundaries around work when you do it from home! For a full rundown of my evening routine, including how I manage my to-do list and track my #dailybig3, check out these work from home habits.

Once I leave my desk at the end of the day, I don’t return until the next morning. Mentally, I’m closed for business. My evenings are about relaxing and enjoying some time with my husband, Chad. A few years ago, we established a ‘reading happy hour’ that’s become a favorite evening activity. Chad pours the wine (usually a crisp white Sauvignon Blanc or Muscadet) and we read for a minimum of 30 minutes. There is something about pulling out a long stem wine glass and pulling that cork that lets me step away from the stress of the day. We enjoy the balmy Miami air out on the patio and let our minds unwind. 

PRO TIP: 

At the end of a long shooting day, I love a good foot soak. I mix a combination of epsom salts, dried chamomile, Bentonite clay powder and an essential oil (usually thyme). Shop my foot soak ingredients here.

7:00-8:30pm Dinner

After catching up on daily reading, we head into the kitchen to prepare dinner. We are both vegetarians and at home cook mostly vegan. I love experimenting with recipes (I keep my favorites on Pinterest), cooking with others and truly appreciate a home cooked meal. Especially since we spend so many days traveling. I love to put on some classical music, French jazz or reruns of Friends (if I need some comic relief) for background noise. I also always light a candle, as it signals that it’s time to unwind. With the wine poured, music on, and candle lit, I catch up with Chad on his day and talk our way through preparing dinner.

We live on the bay in Miami and have a great view of the water. Our place is tiny but we have an outdoor dining table and when the weather allows I love to eat dinner on the porch. I am a terribly fast eater so I love an ambiance that encourages us to linger and continue the conversation and have another glass of wine. After dinner, if we both cooked, we clean up together. If one of us cooks, the other cleans; a house rule we live by.

9:00pm Entertainment or Bed!

I like to crawl in bed early (gotta be ready for that 5:30 alarm), but if I need a little more window we might opt for some more entertainment. I’m not a huge fan of TV in general but I will watch Netflix. Lately, we enjoyed the Bob Ross documentary, Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal and Greed. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a must for all artists and creators!  When we are truly just looking to veg and laugh, our go-to is reruns of Friends. I think I’ve seen them all 5 times. 

But my favorite evenings are when I have a virtual session with my mastermind group. I said it above, but I’ll say it again: there’s nothing like getting the support and guidance you need in your business from someone who’s been there.

My mastermind coaching sessions leave me invigorated, bubbling with ideas and reeling from ‘ah-ha moments.’

When it’s time to turn in, I blow out the lit candles and always make a wish, or just put something out into the universe. It all comes back to mindset in my book. 

After a full, productive and fulfilling day of doing what I love with the person I love—I fall asleep content. And tired! 

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Not everyday is a straight-forward as others, but no matter where I find myself—in a hotel, on location or at home—my sustainable routines and daily structures follow me everywhere. They allow me to have a successful business AND a fulfilling life as a luxury wedding photographer.

If you’re needing more balance between your life and business…

If you’re looking for structure and guidance that will free you to enjoy your work more…

Check out my signature program for photographers: The Abundance Plan. It’s all about building a life and a business you love. 

When you join the waitlist, you’ll be the first to know about opening enrollment and exclusive offers for my VIP.