Early in my career, there was one job I knew I never wanted:
Business owner.
That probably sounds strange coming from someone who has been self-employed for nearly a decade, but at the time, I was absolutely certain.
For some perspective, one of my first professional jobs was with Rainbow Communications. From the outside, it looked amazing. The owner was fantastic, the directors were incredibly talented, and the company operated with remarkable precision.
The work itself was exciting. Rainbow specialized in corporate video and live event production, and many of our clients were global organizations. At one point, a third of our team was in Reno, Nevada producing an event while another crew was filming in England.
For a young producer, it felt like the dream.
The reality, however, was exhausting.
A typical trip might involve eight straight days of 12- to 14-hour workdays. Then you'd return home and be greeted by a mountain of footage waiting to be captured and edited. The projects never stopped. The pace was relentless.
Eventually, I was offered an opportunity with another company called Magnetic. Leaving Rainbow was difficult because the people there were some of the most talented and supportive professionals I've ever worked with. But Magnetic offered something I desperately wanted: the opportunity to create original programming.
I spent twelve years there.
There were incredible highs and some difficult lows. I was the first employee hired after the three owners, and at our peak, the company grew to twelve employees.
By the time I left, there were only five.
I watched talented people get hired, build careers, and eventually lose their jobs because budgets changed or business slowed. Those experiences stuck with me.
In fact, they convinced me that I never wanted to own a business.
Not because I was afraid of the work.
Because I didn't think I could handle letting someone go.
The idea of having that responsibility weighed heavily on me. I told myself repeatedly that entrepreneurship wasn't for me.
After Magnetic, I moved in-house and built an internal production department from the ground up. Our team produced more than 300 commercials annually for a large group of companies.
The operation was efficient, productive, and successful.
And for the first time, I realized something important:
I had built that.
My systems. My leadership. My ideas. My work.
After six years, a thought appeared that I never expected to have.
"I think I can do this for myself."
That thought eventually became Vaupel Video.
This year marks nine years in business.
There have been some incredible years. I've worked with amazing clients, built relationships I never anticipated, and had opportunities that would have sounded impossible when I was first hauling camera gear around parking lots and convention centers.
There have also been difficult years.
The pandemic hit our industry hard. Many businesses reduced marketing budgets, canceled events, or postponed projects indefinitely. Now we're navigating another major shift as artificial intelligence changes how companies create content.
I understand why businesses are looking for ways to do more themselves. As a small business owner, I'm constantly looking for ways to control costs. I built my own website. I manage my own marketing. I handle my own finances.
But despite all the challenges, Vaupel Video is still here.
And that's something I'm proud of.
Oddly enough, though, the professional accomplishment I'm most proud of isn't connected to my business at all.
It's our church livestream.
During the pandemic, our church was closed for more than a year. Rather than simply wait for normal to return, I spent that year producing a virtual worship service every week.
Fifty-six consecutive weeks.
It was challenging, frustrating at times, and incredibly meaningful.
When we returned to in-person worship in April of 2021, I had already installed the equipment necessary to livestream services. Since that first Sunday back, I've been running the production every week.
Like any production project, it continues to evolve. We're always experimenting, improving, and finding better ways to serve our audience.
The impact has been remarkable.
Members can participate when they're traveling or when weather keeps them home. People watch on phones, tablets, and televisions.
Most importantly, people have discovered our church online and become part of our congregation because of that ministry.
It's living proof that something created with a camera, a computer, and a little determination can have a lasting impact.
Reading this back, I realize it sounds a little self-congratulatory.
Maybe it is.
But that's not really the point.
The point is that life has a funny way of leading us toward things we never planned to do.
I never wanted to own a business.
I never thought I'd teach at a university.
I never imagined I'd build and operate a church livestream ministry.
Yet every one of those opportunities grew from the previous one.
Rainbow led to Magnetic.
Magnetic led to my in-house role.
That role gave me the confidence to launch Vaupel Video.
Vaupel Video opened the door to teaching.
Teaching introduced me to new ideas, new people, and new opportunities.
Each step created the next step.
That's why I've learned to be careful about saying "never."
The opportunity sitting in front of you today may not be the destination. It may simply be the doorway.
My wife has a saying whenever life throws us a curveball:
"Give it a year and see where it leads."
She's usually right.
So if you're facing a new opportunity, a career change, a challenge, or even something that seems completely outside your comfort zone, don't dismiss it too quickly.
You never know where it might lead.
And if you've been putting off that project you've been thinking about for months, maybe this is your sign to stop waiting.
Reach out.
Let's see where it leads.