Lights, Camera, Action!

Hello everybody and welcome to The V Spot. I'm your host, Andrea Mancuso, founder and CEO of Intentional Healing and Wellness. I created this podcast because I believe vulnerability is our true superpower, and I want to promote a safe space where we can come together and engage in conscious and courageous conversations to encourage individual and collective healing. In the V Spot, we will choose courage over comfort as we speak our truth and pave the way for others to do the same. For each episode, we will unite in empathy and embrace our superpower as we spend quality time together here in the V Spot. Thank you for tuning in. Hello, everybody. I'm super psyched for our guest today. Joining us from Alexandria, Virginia, and the DC area, Julie Sacher is the photographer extraordinaire behind Julie Sacher Boudoir. Julie, thank you for joining me in the V Spot.

Great to be here.

You know, I'm super excited to have you with me today, and I was thinking last night about the last time we were together on Zoom. It was for my reveal, which was the first time I saw my photos from the boudoir shoot that I did with you back in June. Does anything stand out to you, Julie, from the photo shoot back in June?

It does. So what stands out to me the most is how nervous you were when you walked in. Probably so nervous when you walked away. But what I love the most is when you saw your photos, how surprised and how, um, I guess in shock you were of like, I can't believe I could look that way. So, which is what I really love because that's what I want for my clients is to see themselves in a way that they haven't before and love the way they see themselves, not see the photo and immediately start picking themselves apart, which is what we're used to doing. So, but that's what stand— stood out the most to me was how nervous you were, but and also how much you saw that transformation in yourself when you saw the photos.

Yeah, you know, totally nervous when I walked in and absolutely nervous when I left. And spot on, great memory. You know, and I remember when Dina first recommended that I do this shoot with you and I was absolutely terrified. And so I knew that it was something that I needed to do. You know, and when I think about it, for as long as I can remember, I've held so much shame around my body. So the idea of taking off my clothes and allowing myself to be photographed was one of the most insane things that I ever decided to do. But after seeing your work and meeting you on Zoom for our info session, I knew that if I was going to do a boudoir shoot, it would absolutely be with you. So yeah, so first and foremost, I want to say thank you. You have an incredible way of establishing trust with your clients prior to even photographing them. So why is that essential to your artistic process?

It's— well, the nature of a boudoir shoot is, like your podcast title, is getting vulnerable. And, you know, it's kind of the same as like telling somebody your most embarrassing secret. Maybe you don't want to tell everybody those things unless you're super comfortable with them, maybe your best friend. And with your best friend, you have that trust and you have that, um, comfortability to reveal those things. And with my clients, I want them to have that trust in me so that this shoot is a success, because I believe that when your clients are super trusting and comfortable they're gonna look comfortable and natural in their photos, which is one of the things that they always say they want to look like when they see their photos is, you know, I'm gonna be in lingerie. I don't want to look like I'm scared to death or nervous the whole time. Getting my clients really comfortable and having them trust me is paramount to how they're gonna be in their, their experience for their photo shoot. That way their photos are gonna look amazing. So But it is, this type of photography is a very, you know, intimate, very personal type of photography. So it's not like, you know, a family shoot or headshots where you just kind of show up, get your photos done, and that's it. This is a little bit more of digging into, you know, the reasons of why you're doing the shoot, the things that you want to really, how you want to show up in your photos, and, and that requires a little bit more like an in-depth and digging into the soul, I guess you could say, of what this means for you. And so it's important to have that trust in your photographer.

Yeah, I love that. And I love how, you know, it's very much established during that first information session, which really translates to the actual shoot. Um, would you say in this moment, is there, is there a theme, or is there common grounds between the women who come to you to have photo shoots as to why they're doing it?

So the reasons are— there's a lot of different reasons. Some women share and really get vulnerable with me and share those stories with me. Some women, they just keep a little bit more— and I can tell they keep a little bit more to themselves, but I know they're getting the most out of the shoot. But I would say the main reasons or a lot of the reasons that I I see are women who are on a self-love, self-accepting journey for themselves. And at some point in that journey, they want to see themselves in the way that, you know, that they haven't before, or they want to see themselves and really appreciate what others see of them. Or it could be something as simple as celebrating milestones, birthdays, 40th birthdays are really popular. 40 is a big milestone for a lot of us women. Some women are scared to death to go into their 40s. Women are just embracing it. But I think a lot of times too, the older us women get, we say it's like a fine wine. We just get better with age. A little bit more wiser. We're a little bit more secure in ourselves. So milestones, of course, these types of shoots make great wedding gifts, anniversary gifts for their significant others. And even though it's, you know, they say they're doing it as a gift for their significant other, it's always the mask behind the real reason, which is for themselves. But sometimes us women, we just have a hard time justifying doing something like this for ourselves, which could be a whole different podcast, you know, talking about that. Totally. But hiding behind the occasion occasion or, you know, the, uh, the, um, the, the big celebration. Um, but it is like a great way to, to, you know, gift your significant other a set of photos of yourself, but also have them for yourself to, you know, remember back in, um, you know, 20, 30 years from now.

Um, yeah, I love that.

Yeah, yeah.

Um, I, I absolutely love that, and I love the surprise factor is what I'm picking up on. That a woman may choose into this for their significant other. And then knowing, having gone through the experience myself, what comes out of it, yeah, is such a sweet surprise where it's like, oh, I thought I was doing this for you, but look at what I get out of it. That's powerful, right?

I've— I had a story from one of my clients where she wanted to do this for herself and getting it as a surprise for her husband and And she said this is so outside of her character, even her husband would be really surprised because she's not vulnerable like this with him and, or even with herself, and, or intimate in this way. And so she said gifting it to him, like, he was super surprised, but she was, he was more surprised at what it had done for her because she was able to have the confidence in herself to just express herself in that way. So, um, so yeah, it's, it's a real powerful way to— I think just a great way to express yourself as well. Um, yeah, yeah, there's lots of reasons that, you know, we do this type of thing. Um, I always say there doesn't need to be a reason though. Investing in yourself is the most important reason.

Yeah, I love that. And I remember seeing your website, and, and what stood out to me is, you know, you don't need a special occasion. This is the special occasion, you know? And I love that. I think that that's, that, that's a great way to frame this. Um, yeah, amazing. Well, I've heard that we often create the business that we need, which is absolutely true for me with intentional healing and wellness. And so what about for you? What about boudoir photography, called to you?

So boudoir photography was actually— I had no idea what it was when I stumbled upon it. It wasn't something that I was seeking out. I kind of fell into it in a way. But when I decided to specialize in it, it made me realize the profound effect that it has on a woman's self-worth, their self-image, body positivity, and all of that stuff.

Stuff.

Um, but just gaining the confidence to be themselves and see themselves in a way that they just never thought they could trickles down into everything else. Not just how you view yourself, but how you perform at your job maybe, or your relationships with others, your relationship with your kids maybe, because you have that confidence to really see yourself, and that way you're able to show up for others in that way too. But it made me realize that, and it's funny because I, I do believe we all have special gifts and things, and I sometimes think those struggles turn into those gifts. The struggle that I had growing up was, you know, body image, comparing myself to others. I'm sure a lot of women can say the same things. And we're still, still going through this today with social media. You know, mine was with magazines and seeing perfect skin or perfect hair. And it just does a real— it does a damaging effect to our own self-perception. So growing up with those own— with my own, I guess, insecurities, Discovering this genre of photography made me realize, wow, this is really something way more than just creating pretty photos for women. This is actually healing in a way for them.

Absolutely, absolutely. Yeah, this is a huge healing experience. Yeah, absolutely.

And so being able to see themselves and be confident about who they are, but Also just being, I think being a better person, I think, because when you feel good about yourself, I feel like you're putting your best self forward. Um, and I always think about, um, the, a simple quote where, you know, if you want to change the world, you have to be the change first or something like that.

Yeah.

And so I always think I'm out here, you know, helping women see themselves differently and hopefully changing their perspective on themselves, to, you know, do my little part of changing, changing the way us women show up for each other.

Yeah.

And just for the world too, because I just, I believe just, you know, doing amazing things not only for yourself, you're able to do amazing things for others. And that's just, I think that's really powerful in itself.

Yeah, absolutely. I love that. And I, you know, it's funny that you say that because I was thinking about this particular piece last night. When I was preparing, you know, to be with you today. And I was thinking about the fact that a lot of what I was able to gain access to after the photo shoot, you know, well after my time at the studio and after my reveal, I continued to have aha moments as a result of, you know, having this experience with you. And so it got me thinking last night, You know, in one particular example, like, I remember thinking to myself, well, if I really love one particular photo, right? That was like my, I was hoping to love one. I was like, if I really, because that's the nature of me, you know, super critical, judgmental of myself. So I really was in this conversation prior to the reveal, excuse me, that if I really loved one photo, I would choose it. To get a piece of wall art and hang it on my wall, right? And so, as you know, I ended up with two pieces for, you know, for my wall, which was shocking. But one of my biggest aha moments occurred to me days after I hung the wall art on my wall. And I was in my room and I was actually looking at specifically the picture of me laying across the bed with the black lace crisscross dress on. And I was thinking, wow, like, it just— it literally just hit me. And I was thinking, you know, you've always held the men in your life to be the prize, but it was you all along. And I remember having this, like, you know, major, like, all of a sudden, waterworks. It was a breakthrough moment where I was looking at myself, you know, on the wall thinking, it's been you all along. And it was profound. And it is something that has absolutely stayed with me and my insight around myself and how I interact, you know, in relationship, specifically, you know, romantic partnership. And that is directly connected to what you just said, you know, talk about being able to support along a healing journey. And what does that mean for how women then go out and interact in the world? You know, it's not just about a photograph. It's really about how we hold ourselves, how we experience ourselves, give our self permission to be experienced, you know, to be seen. And, you know, that's just one example. There are so many others, but I think that your work is absolutely, you know, aside from it being an art, it's absolutely a form of healing. Absolutely. You know, and I love that about it.

Yes, I think boudoir photographers commonly get lumped into the same categories as therapists. Sometimes they call them photographer therapists because in a way it is kind of like you get those aha moments. Even sometimes prepping for the shoot, a lot of women realize, man, I really don't take the time for myself to get my nails done, to just pamper myself. And just the pampering of yourself is, um, can be healing in a way because we're so used to putting ourselves on the back burner. Um, but yeah, that's exactly it. It's, uh, the validation you need is only from yourself, not from others.

Absolutely, absolutely. You know, and yeah, and I love the process of preparing to work with you because it really is a call to action around self-care. And, you know, if you are someone who takes it serious, right, and wants to go into this adventure, I'll call it, prepared, there is a lot of self-care and self-love that's involved. So it's real— the process is really beginning way before you enter the studio. So I think that that's amazing. Julie, what would you say you've learned about yourself as a result of photographing so many other women?

Oh my gosh, it's a good question. What have I realized about what I will say? I had a breakthrough moment with my own self throughout my journey of being a boudoir photographer. Like I mentioned in the beginning, it was all about, you know, me just doing photography as a creative outlet for myself and jumping into, you know, taking— I love taking photos, I love the styling of it. So me, it was more about the creative aspect. And then it wasn't until, I want to say, about 3 or 4 years in of doing this, I had my own— so I remember when I was chatting with Dena, I called it an identity crisis, and she was like, no, it was a— I forget what she called it— a discovery. And because me at that time, I was— I had just been married. And just like women, I think a lot of women go through some type of thing where they, you know, go down a path and they didn't realize that they were going to— I didn't realize, I didn't, I never pictured myself as a married person or a wife or any of those things. And for me, getting married, um, uh, I didn't know what a wife was supposed to be like. I, I just held on to the idea of what a wife is supposed to be like, and it didn't fit anything that I identified with. And so for me, I was like having this really hard time of being this wife role that I just remember I was in a really deep, dark place, had no idea what I was even going through and started to do a lot of soul digging, a lot of understanding what this all meant for me. And I mean, I'm still trying to figure it out, but going through it and finally realizing that it's really more about how I identify it as a wife or as a partner to somebody. It's not tied to what I think it's supposed to be. And so the supposed to be, like that phrase is something I needed to let go of. And I think realizing that I could be anything I wanted to be. I, the wife role could be any role that I wanted to be. So I remember doing my, coming through all of that, I decided to celebrate that with a boudoir shoot myself. And it made me, because I was doing a lot of journaling, and it made me realize that I basically taking my clients through the same thing that I was going through. And it made me realize the connection that I had to my business and why I was doing what I was doing. And so it made me realize that, gosh, women, we need to let go of the supposed to be's and the things that we're inundated with to feel or look a certain way and to perform a certain a certain way, to show up a certain way. Um, and the most important thing is just being your best self, loving who you are, and that all of us women go through the same type of issues. The women that you see that you think are confident, that you think are amazing, that, oh, that person over there has no body image issues— we all do. We all have the same— we're all on the same level. We're all going through our own stuff. And so, um, I think what I've, what I've learned the most about doing this is that we all have our vulnerabilities. It's just, um, are we willing to recognize them and face them on and, um, show up for them? And so, um, just being— I think just understanding that we're all like, there's nobody better than anybody else. We're all going through the same and just realizing our own power is important.

Yeah, I love that. And I think that, you know what, I heard you say a couple of things that are just so powerful. And so, you know, vulnerability is very individualized, right? And it's about us choosing to show up despite of the discomfort that comes with it. And so I think that that's significant and profound to highlight. And I love what you said about, you know, you having your own breakthrough pertaining to like what it's supposed to look like, right? My hands are up when I quote "supposed to look like," and being willing and courageous enough to let go of that and redefine, you know, and have your own vision of what it means to be a wife as opposed to what does society hold, what does family hold, what do other women hold as the way it should look, right? So should, you know, One of my mentors once said, don't should all over yourself, because I think that it's really—

oh, I love that, right?

Like, don't should all over yourself, because it's really about, you know, letting go of how it's supposed to be, what it's supposed to look like, and being willing and bold enough, you know, to, um, to find that for ourselves. So I think that that's, that's so epic, you know, and I'm so happy that you Perfect. You know, it's like you have insight into where I was going, but I'm so happy that you brought up your own photo shoot because I was thinking about the fact that, you know, you've photographed hundreds or likely thousands of women by now. And as someone who regularly creates opportunities for other women to be seen and experienced so vulnerably, you know, talk to us about what it was like to be on the other side of the camera when you were photographed. For your own shoot.

Yeah, what was that like? So I remember, and it's funny because as the photographer, uh, like, I knew the process, I knew what to expect, but I still felt the same things all of my clients feel— nervous, um, afraid that I wasn't gonna do anything right. I think that's the most common thing I hear is that a lot of my clients were saying, you know, I, I hope I know how to pose, or I hope that I know how to do what you're telling me to do. And, um, cause that's something I do with my clients. I tell them like, you just show up and I'm going to show you how to do everything. And I knew my photographer was going to do the same, but you go into it. And I remember, uh, when I booked my shoot, I went out and went shopping and I was overwhelmed with all of the choices out there. And it, cause it was really hard for me to just narrow down what I wanted for my shoot. And I remember I spent a lot of money on the outfits that I thought I was going to wear. And then I want to say about a week or two before my shoot, I brought some of my old stuff, you know, I'm just going to bring it just because it's, you know, I'm gonna let my photographer help me. And that was the point where I was like, Julie, just let go, just let my photographer help me. Because I think, you know, when we go into something like this, you know, with that control takes in and you're like, well, I want to do I want to do that, which is fine, but when you're in there in the process, it's also important to just, you know, let your photographer guide you. And so I remember when I went in, I brought in all my outfits and I told her, I was like, well, these are great, these are great, these are some old pieces that I know are like, you know, tried and true. Like, I know I'm gonna look— I'm gonna feel amazing in those, but wearing these certain outfits are really outside of my comfort zone. Comfort zone. And so I remember she picked out, um, two of the outfits. One of them was really outside my comfort zone, which is the reason I was doing the shoot. I was wanting to really feel uncomfortable going into it because I wanted to see myself in the photos in that way that I thought I never could. And so she picked out the two outfits for me, and I remember during the process and during the actual shoot, I was, I guess I was, I had my photographer brain on. I was just, you know, like, oh gosh, I hope that angle was okay. Oh gosh, I hope that one was, I hope she didn't see that part of my body, you know. And seeing my photos though really negated everything that I was feeling throughout the shoot. Because all you're feeling is, you know, the nerves and the what-ifs and the oh noes. And so when you see your photos, you go, oh, that's what it looked like. Oh, I remember how hard that pose was to get, and it looked like that. Oh, and then you're just like, wow, I, I, I look damn amazing. Why was I worried about this? But I do remember, um, seeing a photo of myself— my thighs are something that I've always just you know, hated. So I've always, I never wore shorts, never, you know, wore anything to show off my legs. And so, um, one of the photos that she showed me, and it was this little sneak peek that she showed me, and right away I looked at it and at first I was like, oh my gosh, like, holy cow, that's a beautiful photo. And then what did I do? I just, like what most women will probably do, we zoomed in right on the things that we hate about ourselves.

Yeah.

Um, I looked at my photos and I looked at that particular photo and was like, my thighs. Oh gosh, this photo would be amazing if my thighs didn't look like that. But I remember I kept looking at the photo. I put it down and I'd look at it again. And then I was like, you know what, I'm missing the rest of the photo here. This is a confident woman or a confident version of me that I've never seen before. Why can't I see that? Why am I not seeing her right away? Why am I so focused on my physical, my thighs? You know why? Now it's my favorite photo. So, but, and I think it's like overcoming those things that you normally don't love about yourself is really important because it helps you see the parts of you that you're used to hating and maybe starting to love, or not so much love because I think that word self-love is thrown out. It's a buzzword. It's, I believe it's thrown out there so nonchalantly. I think it's— I think there's— there has to be an acceptance of who you are. You have to accept those parts of yourself that you hate or the parts that you think are flaws before that self-love really— before you understand really what self-love is.

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, wow, there's so many things that I want to comment on here, you know. First, I want to say, um, I remember looking at your work and seeing one of your photos that— I don't know if this is the same photo where you are looking out the window, and it was one of my— I loved the, the photo. I think it was like one of the most epic pictures, and I loved seeing you knowing that I would be working with you. I loved seeing that you had your own shoot, you know, and thinking about like, oh wow, she walked through the same process. I think that's so profound and beautiful, epic photo, you know, of you. And I remember also one of the things like you saying about, you know, women tend to think like, I hope I know what to do. And I remember like laughing but saying to you like, I hope you're going to tell me exactly what to do because if I'm told to like, you know, put my sexy face on. I don't even know what that means.

I don't know what that means either. Right?

Like, I don't know what that means. But your direction and the way in which you, you know, really support us through the process brings it out in such a way that I remember seeing my photographs for the first time and then getting the photo album here at the house and being like, wow. Like, yeah. Who knew that I had that in me? You know, like, I never experienced myself in that way. And, you know, you talked about getting out of the comfort zone and the reason that, you know, you wanted to do the shoot, your own shoot, was to purposefully get outside of the comfort zone. And, you know, I just think about what a way to do this, you know, to do that for women. And I remember when I was with you in the studio and you wanted to shoot one of the shots and one of the outfits that I chose was, you know, a black blazer. I want that to be in my boss zone. And black blazer, red bra, and, you know, black underwear. And, you know, I was— you actually commented like, oh, you seem really comfortable. And, you know, I had a blazer on, so I was covered. I was comfortable until you told me, I don't know if I should tell you this, but I am going to have you take the blazer off. And I remember— the adrenaline surge that went through my body. Like, you know, because thinking— you highlighted your thighs. I was thinking about my stomach, my arms, you know. And I don't— I'm not somebody who wears tank tops, you know, because of the self-conscious, like, feelings that I have around it. And so when you said, oh, the blazer is coming off, I was like, Julie. I was terrified. But then I think about, you know, one of my favorite photos is the photo of me in the bed, um, with the sheet, you know, and, and the red bra. And it's just, it's something that I think, like, that moment would have never been created if I didn't allow you to take the, you know, to steer the ship, um, and for me to really surrender and, and commit in the moment to being outside of the comfort zone. So I think that it's like now I'm able to see that photo and experience myself in a way where I'm just like, wow, you know, what happens when you are able to surrender and trust, you know?

Exactly. Yeah, exactly. The surrendering, um, and also just when you're doing a shoot like this, you are stepping out of your comfort zone, even just sending that inquiry. That's really stepping out of that comfort zone. And so I, that's one thing I always want to know from my clients. Is this something where you're really trying to see yourself and get uncomfortable with some of the things that your own self-perceptions and the things that you're so used to, even like when we're, when I coach you on how to find outfits, my, my biggest thing I tell everybody is, you know, go out there and try things on that you normally wouldn't pick out for yourself. Even if it looks like you're going to hate it, just put it on. Just put it on. See how you like it. 'Cause you might realize that you actually really love it. And especially if you have expert help, you know, one of the boutiques that I have you go to, she's really great at helping you step out of your comfort zone. But when you do a shoot like this, I wholeheartedly think, you know, obviously I want to do everything that you're comfortable with, but like as far as, you know, showing the skin that you want to show or how covered or nude you want to be, obviously we're going to do what you're comfortable with, but when you're, when you have a piece like a blazer, like that to me is more like an accessory. Like we're going to use it and we're also going to not use it.

Yeah.

And so, yeah. And I remember for you that was, that was like your security blanket in a way.

Totally.

And so I remember when we took the blazer off, it was a little bit of like the panic in your face. But yeah, we use the sheet. So the sheet was also a replacement for that. But, um, uh, so it, it's definitely one of those, uh, things that I think when you're doing a shoot like this, it's important to step out of— and it doesn't have to be where you go fully nude, like that's not what I'm talking about. It could be something as, you know, taking off the blazer, or, um, if you're used to— like I had a client once, she never wore her hair down, so taking her hair down was something that was very nerve-wracking. And, you know, she's nervous. She was nervous about that. But, um, so yeah, I think just stepping out of that comfort zone is really important because powerful things happen when you—

yeah, listen, there's powerful things happens. I certainly have, you know, many, um, photographs to prove it. And yeah, I know that if it was up to me, many of those images would not be, you know, and they are my favorite, you know. So it's to be able to look back and really see, wow, you know, yes, the adrenaline, yes, the panic.

Yeah.

Yes, the panic at a certain point. Yes, the request for Julie, I'm ready for some champagne. But still nonetheless, like persisting. And I think that's the part that I want to emphasize to everybody who's listening. It's okay to feel the panic. It's okay to feel the, you know, fear, the nervousness. And the call to action here is do it anyway, whatever it is, right? So in this moment, it's about a boudoir shoot. Feel the panic, feel the insecurity, the overwhelm. Do it anyway. It's the very reason why when Dina, you know, and shout out to Dina, um, founder of Enough Labs, for recommending this Uh, it's the very reason that when she recommended it and I felt that panic come over my body, I was like, this is the thing to do, because I knew that there was breakthrough. I knew that there was something on the other side that I wouldn't have access to unless I went through the process, you know. So, so I love that. That's so powerful. Well, I tip my hat to any photographer that you choose to photograph you, because as someone who experienced the brilliance of your work and details. I can only imagine that the photographer you choose and trust enough to photograph you is incredible. So, so shout out to them in this particular moment. Yeah. And Julie, what would you say to ladies who are listening to the podcast right now and might be thinking, well, maybe I'll do a boudoir shoot when I lose 20, 30, or however many pounds?

Well, that I'll do a boudoir shoot when Just stop saying that altogether. Because it's really, when you do lose the 30 pounds, are you still gonna do it? Probably not. I remember saying that to myself when I booked my shoot. Oh, I'm gonna lose the 15 pounds because then I'm gonna feel good. And it's, you think that. I think sometimes we need those goals in air quotes to, um, do something like this, and it's really not. My philosophy on, um, my boudoir photography is you are ready in this moment right now on— in your— for your shoot. You don't need to lose the weight, you don't need to get the plastic surgery, you don't need any of that stuff. You don't even need the occasion. You just need to do this for yourself. It's a thing to invest in yourself for. So, but yeah, the when, it's, it's, it's their excuses. They're really not anything that's gonna make you feel more confident in doing something like this. So, and anybody else that is thinking about a shoot, I always like, I have friends who are always telling their friends about, you know, my work, and I don't want, it's nothing that she should be pressured either. This is really a shoot that should be done on your own terms, not when somebody tells you to do it, or if somebody's convincing you to do something like this. It should be done on your own terms and for your own reasons why.

Yeah, totally. And I'm thinking in this moment that having, you know, thinking about myself and my own choice and journey around it, I would say to the ladies who are right now thinking, "In 20 pounds, in 30 pounds, in 40 pounds, I will—" I would say that if that is something you are saying, right now is the perfect time. You know, it's all the more the reason to do it now because I think that what comes from working with you and what comes from experiencing yourself in the photographs is actually needed now, not 20, 30, 40 pounds from now. So I, you know, I think that the call to action, if you're listening and you are someone who is saying in 20 pounds, I will go on the website and we'll tell you that information shortly and, um, and commit to having this experience now. I think that that's, that's epic. All right, Julie, so for our final piece, we are going to do a speed round. I call it the Forwarding Four. So I will ask you 4 questions We have lots of horns in the background, good old Brooklyn. And you will answer with the first thing that comes to your mind, knowing that there's no right or wrong answer here. This could be trouble. No, no, no, it's good, it's good. It's, it's, um, just to get you thinking in a different way quickly. Um, so you ready?

I'm ready.

All right, number 1: if you could be photographed by any photographer Dead or alive, who would you want to take your photo?

Oh gosh, um, Peter Lindbergh. You don't know who he is? Google him.

Google, Google, you know, Google helps us out. Number 2, name one area of your life where you are intentionally healing.

Oh gosh, um, Uh, gosh, I would say it's my own self, uh, the way I present myself to the world. Um, it's the healing within to get rid of the supposed to be's. I love that.

All right, number 3: Based on your experience of being up close and really seeing so many women, what words of wisdom would you offer to the guys who are listening?

It's not about you.

It's not about you.

All right, simple as that.

Simple as that. Okay. And number 4, excuse me, what's your call to action about vulnerability to everyone listening?

It's okay to feel the panic, to feel the uncomfortableness of being vulnerable. Vulnerability is a strength. I think it's often seen as a weakness, and it is absolutely a strength. Because it really shows you as a person. And I personally connect better with people who are vulnerable. So getting uncomfortable is important. And if you're afraid to get uncomfortable, you've got work to do.

That's somewhere. I love it. I love it. Thank you. Yeah, you got some work to do. And I love it. That makes me think of, you know, Brené Brown speaks about the like the paradox of vulnerability. And she says that vulnerability is the first thing that I want to experience in you, but it's the last thing that I want to show you in me. And I think that that's so powerful. And so to— excuse me— to piggyback off of your call to action, I would also encourage folks to be willing to lead with vulnerability. As opposed to waiting to experience it in others. And, um, I think that, you know, amazing things could happen if we, if we are the brave hearts who are willing to, you know, show up and allow for ourselves to be seen. Um, well, Julie, on behalf of myself and all of the women who will work with you as a direct result of hearing the podcast today, I want to say thank you. You know, thank you for creating and holding safe space for us to experience ourselves as masterpieces, because that is absolutely the experience of, you know, witnessing the photographs. Yeah, for sure. You know, and we are in October 2021 and you are booked through spring of 2022. So ladies and gentlemen, that's how incredible Julie is. Um, but Julie, where can folks find you when they choose to work with you or see your work?

Yeah, my website is a good place to start. It's juliesockerboudoir.com. And then Instagram is another social media platform that I'm, I'm constantly there. So it's Boudoir by Julie Socker for the Instagram handle. But those two are the main places that you can find my work and get in touch.

Excellent, excellent. Yeah, so ladies, you want to contact Julie ASAP. And even the gentlemen, gentlemen, this is a gift to, uh, give your ladies and really allow for them to experience themselves. And you will reap the benefits as well, um, from working with Julie. So Julie, thanks a million for, to, you know, for being with me in this, in this way. And to everybody else, thank you for tuning in to this episode of the V The V Spot, to be continued. Thank you for spending quality time with me here in The V Spot. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, write a review, and tell a friend to tell a friend to meet us in The V Spot. To stay connected and in the loop about all special events, join the email list at www.intentionalhealingandwellness.com. You can also join the Intentional Healing and Wellness community on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. I'll catch you soon.