Podcast Summary: The Difference Maker Revolution – "The Secret Sauce So You Can Define Your Success"

Date: October 13, 2025
Host and Guests: The Difference Maker Revolution team (Ronan Ryle, Jonathan Ryle, Janine McLeod, Steve Saporito)
Theme: Defining your own success as a photography business owner and the mindset, planning, and motivation behind it.

Episode Overview

In this episode, the team dives deep into what it truly means to define your own success, especially within the photography industry. Rather than defaulting to comparison with others—whether by financial averages or social media “success” stories—they advocate for a personal, holistic and meaningful vision, aligned with individual values, lifestyle aspirations, and a deeper “why.” The hosts break down practical steps to clarify this vision, plan for it, and execute on a weekly basis, emphasizing the vital role of purpose and community support.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Trap of Comparison

• Most photographers are hesitant or insecure about naming what success looks like for them, often due to constant comparison.

• Success is frequently misrepresented through selective sharing of only positive numbers and highlights, much like on social media.

  “People only tell the good things on social media. No one tells the bad things usually. And so it's the same thing when people are sharing their averages, their sales, they only share the good.” – Janine [01:52]

• Defining your own success isn’t about the sales average or vanity metrics, but about lasting satisfaction and personal happiness.

2. The Many Faces of Success

• Lifestyle goals are as valid as (or more valid than) raw financial targets—e.g., working less and having more time with family versus scaling to millions.

  “Some people just don't want to scale and make millions. They're happy serving X number of clients per week and paying themselves, you know, 30, 40, 50 grand a year and spending the rest of time with family.” – Jonathan [03:55]

• There’s no hierarchy; diverse visions are equally legitimate.

3. Developing a Personal Five-Year Vision

• The team’s mentorship process begins by prompting members to envision their life five years in the future—not just financially, but holistically.

• The business should be shaped as a vehicle to deliver the desired lifestyle, not the other way around.

  “What is your vision for your life, and then what business do you need to create to deliver on that desire for your life?” – Ronan [05:20]

• Few people in the industry take time to define a concrete, personal five-year plan.

4. Anchoring Vision with Purpose (“Your Why”)

• Vision provides the “what” and “where,” but a strong “why” keeps you persistent and fulfilled.

• Defining “who you want to serve and why” is essential—without a meaningful why, the risk of burnout or failure increases.

  “Unless you've got a true purpose and a why behind who you want to serve and why… you are more likely to fail if you don't know that and far more likely to succeed if you do know it.” – Ronan [10:11]

• Discovering your “why” is hard to do alone; outside coaching helps dig much deeper than surface-level answers.

• Caution against copying others’ whys or business models—success isn’t transferable without authentic alignment.

  “They see someone having success in a certain genre and they're like, oh well, they're getting success there. I'm going to do that… They fail miserably because it's not them, it's not what they're supposed to be doing.” – Janine [12:42]

5. Distinguishing Between What, How, and Why

• Confusing “what you do” (e.g., photographing robins) with “why you do it” is a common pitfall.

• Hobbies and casual interests don’t always translate into sustainable businesses; knowing your true why can clarify what business can support it.

  “Photographing robins… that’s not a why. That’s what you do. Right? And often people mix those up.” – Ronan [15:58]

• Reference to Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle model for understanding and discovering your why.

6. Why Your “Why” Matters

• Purpose provides deep satisfaction and resilience, beyond just monetary gains.

  “Your why gives you… a purpose beyond the absolute basic human desire… We all as humans crave to have a greater purpose… we actually feel that we're making a difference. We're leaving the world a better place than we entered it.” – Ronan [18:45]

• When your business reflects your passion and purpose, clients are drawn to the difference you make.

7. Bridging Vision to Execution—Planning and Accountability

• Big visions need to be broken down into actionable, incremental steps—a large “elephant” is eaten “one small piece at a time.”

• Utilization of the “12 Week Year” framework: splitting annual targets into focused 12-week “sprints,” and further into weekly projects and daily tasks.

  “We operate it in our business, we encourage photographers to do it in their business. And that idea is that you just break the year target into a 12 week year.” – Ronan [22:19]

• Distinguishing “projects” (large goals like “book Christmas sessions”) from discrete, assignable “tasks.”

  “If I just had Christmas bookings on my list… that is a huge project that involves many small little tasks.” – Janine [23:34]

8. The Power of Community and Accountability

• Consistent self-accountability is hard—community support, such as the podcast’s “Inner Circle” and Accountability Edge calls, gives members a nonjudgmental environment to share goals, track wins, and stay motivated.

• This sharing accelerates success through support, feedback, and friendly encouragement.

  “There’s no judgment on the wins, big or small. There’s no judgment on the goals. And I think it helps our members to have their level of success quicker than anything else out there.” – Jonathan [25:52]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Comparison:
  “The first step is not comparing yourself to others.” – Ronan [00:06, 04:39]

• On Numbers and Ego:
  “People don't think about it. Like if you have a business that's doing 300k a year and your average is 1500, that business has served, like, over three times the number of clients… So I think that factors into it too.” – Jonathan [07:49]

• On Discovering Your Why:
  “Money is a lousy motivator. So… we've seen this, guys. You don't do something because it's successful for someone else. It's got to be something you want to do.” – Ronan [13:18]

• On Planning:
  “You're not constantly running behind the eight ball… You need to break down, all right, what does that actually involve?” – Janine [23:34]

• On Accountability:
  “The accountability edge call… allows you to network with a community of people who want to see you succeed… And there's no judgment on that.” – Jonathan [25:52]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Dangers of Comparison & Defining Success: 00:06–03:55
• Lifestyles & Business Models: 03:55–05:20
• Personal Vision Process & Implementation: 05:20–08:39
• The Importance of “Why”: 08:54–18:00
• Discovering & Clarifying Your Why: 15:58–18:00
• Value of Purpose for Business and Clients: 18:45–20:50
• Practical Planning (12 Week Year Framework): 21:16–23:34
• Task vs. Project & Organizing Execution: 23:34–25:20
• Community, Accountability, and Support: 25:20–27:13

Conclusion

This high-energy, honest discussion challenges photographers and creative entrepreneurs to move beyond industry noise, vanity metrics, and external comparison. Instead, the team calls for a deeper personal alignment—finding vision, purpose, and sustainable joy in how you define and pursue your own version of success. By breaking big dreams into small, manageable steps and finding community accountability, you can build the business (and life) that truly fits you.