Have you ever set a goal and failed to achieve it? I have. More times than I’d like to admit. Here’s a little tip that’s been working for me. Set smaller goals and work on perfecting the little things. It doesn’t sound as impressive and it won’t win you any cool points, but it will get you where you want to go.
by Jason Lam
One thing I can’t help but notice is the level of appreciation I always have for everything when I’m about to board a plane in the next 24 hours.
Within those 24 hours, it’s like I have a new pair of eyes, a new set of ears, and a fresh new nose and taste buds to go with it so I can truly appreciate what is around me.
It’s like life’s way of telling you. This is about to end. Remember this moment.
And it’s funny because I try to do this all the time in my everyday life. You know… this thing called, “Being in the moment,” but it doesn’t really ever work quite as well as I want it to. If I try really hard. Sure. Maybe I am a little more focused. A little more patient. And a little more accepting of subtle annoyances around me. But nothing quite jumps my appreciation levels to 1000 quite like knowing that this is all going to end.
Marcel Proust was a big advocate of this in his book, “In Search of Lost Time”. He advised all of us to think of death often. In fact, maybe you should even keep a skull on your table to remind you that your life will eventually end, so as to make us a little more resilient in the face of adversity and a little more appreciative for the sweet little nothings in life.
But then that could also be a bit too somber for my tastes. I went so far as going on Amazon, searching for a replica of a human skull and even added it to my cart. But I never pushed the “Buy Now” button.
Instead, I think it is a good idea to take trips abroad often just for this very effect: Appreciation for what we already have.
There’s another saying that goes: "You don’t know what you have until it’s gone"
Therefore, we must be proactive about ridding ourselves of what we have every so often for the sole purpose of being able to RE-see everything we have in a new light. In order to bring our sense of appreciation back, we must take away all the things we've grown accustomed to due to prolonged exposure. The Golden Gate Bridge, the fact that we have hot running water, or even something as simple as having a cafe down the block from our house with that one barista who knows us by name and knows exactly we what we want every time.
I think travel has been too strongly associated with luxury. The fancy vacation packages. 5-star hotels. Cruises to exotic places with palm trees and foods you can’t pronounce. It’s all fine in its own way but this strong correlation overshadows the other really true and essential benefits of travel…
Ridding yourself of your comfort so as to be able to come back and say wow! The Golden Gate Bridge! Hot running water! A cafe down the block!
To date, nothing has been able to do this quite as effectively as simply leaving for a little while, and then coming back.
So, for those who’ve been wanting to travel, perhaps this could be a reason to do so. No, not for the fancy stuff. Not for the epic selfies. But for your own sake, and as contradictory as it may sound, maybe even a happier healthier life.
by Jason Lam
If there’s something you want to do… do it now. Great big changes in your life don’t always have to be accompanied with big announcements and fireworks.
If you are going to make a big change in your life, you probably shouldn’t tell anyone either, because when you do, your brain does this little Jedi mind flip where it tricks you into thinking you already did it when all you really did was make a decision.
Whatever it is that you want to do. Don’t wait until the new year. Don’t tell anyone. Do it now. And let the results speak for themselves.
by Jason Lam
“First forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you're inspired or not. Habit will help you finish and polish your stories. Inspiration won't. Habit is persistence in practice.”
—Octavia E. Butler
I spent the better part of the weekend looking over my daily schedule and reviewing my progress throughout the year. (2017 is almost coming to an end! Yikes!) Much of it involved building good habits and ditching the ones that don’t serve me. Suffice to say, nowhere in my schedule says, “Do (activity) only when inspired.”
I like inspiration, but I don’t depend on it anymore. Now I see it more like a lucky star I just happen to find (like in Mario Kart ). I’ll use it for as long as it stays with me, but I won’t stop working just because it’s gone.
The thing about building good habits is it can also become a bit robotic. So to counterbalance my obsession with productivity, I’ve also built a habit of not letting myself work on Sundays, aka “cheat days” for literally everything. I get to sleep in, eat a ton of waffles with extra maple syrup, and watch Netflix all day. Can not working be considered a productivity habit? Not sure, but hey, it works for me.
by Jason Lam
We all have them. When I have an off day I always try to pinpoint why. Is it because I slept too late? Did I not eat a proper breakfast? Did I forget to do my morning routine?
One thing I don’t do, or at least, try not to do is to be too hard on myself. Instead, I identify it for what it is, an off DAY. And to remember that despite it all, I still showed up. It works (most of the time).
What do you do when you have an off day?
by Jason Lam
Jamie Foxx said it best in his podcast with Tim Ferriss:
“Because in a blink of an eye, it’ll all be gone. 100 years compared to infinity is nothing… [so] you better start having some fun. We gon’ be gone in a minute! You gonna look back and be like, ‘Shit i shoulda been laughing, and now I’m dead’”
Lol. Funny, but sad, but true.
by Jason Lam
Especially when things get tough and thoughts about quitting start creeping into your head. This was a hard lesson I had to learn from having lost motivation doing many things I thought I was “committed” to. Like my definition for love, the meaning of commitment has evolved a lot throughout the years.
One thing I’ve learned is you must have a strong reason as to WHY you are doing something. Because if your WHY is flimsy, you’ll give up soon as things get difficult. So you need a damn good reason WHY, and when you feel like giving up, you need to remind yourself of that WHY.
Your WHY is the backbone of your journey. Your WHY will also evolve as you continue to grow. Quitting in the early stages and finding out something wasn’t meant for you, is in fact, part of the process of refining your WHY. So, find your WHY, strengthen your WHY, and then use your WHY to your advantage when times get tough. (I just used the word “why” way too many times).
by Jason Lam
“The master has failed more times than the beginner has even tried” - Stephen McCranie
I often judge myself against the successes of others, clearly forgetting that they, too, must’ve failed over a hundred thousand million times before they got it right. (So, just a quick little reminder for myself.)
This makes me think of Thomas Edison with a pile full of broken light bulbs, Da Vinci with thousands of shitty first drafts of the Mona Lisa, and Elon Musk with maybe a ton of spaceships that couldn’t quite make it to Mars. No idea if these are true. But it makes me feel a little better and it keeps me motivated. Oh, and it also reminds me of another great idea. Celebrate your failures! Because every time you fail, you learn something.
by Jason Lam
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started” - Mark Twain
This one resonates with me because everything I’ve ever done that matters to me was really hard to start. Photography. Writing. Dancing. Video. There’s usually so much fear around pursuing the things that matter to you most. All these thoughts come up like: Am I good enough? Do I deserve this? Who do I think I am? Or the classic fear that your dreams might not be as great as you think they are. So you keep them dreams.
Damn.
But now I take those feelings as a sign that I must start. Because if it didn’t matter to me I wouldn’t be feeling those feelings. Weird, huh? The one thing you care about the most also freaks you out the most. Does anybody else ever feel that way?
The little act of starting puts you ahead of everybody else who didn’t. And I think that matters, regardless of how good you are. Because at least you’re doing it. And if you just do that enough times in a row, who knows where it’ll take you? Definitely further than here.
Anyways, here’s to getting started. Again and again.
by Jason Lam
You are what you think about. Or maybe not. There’s also the school of thought that says you are not your thoughts, instead, you are the observer of your thoughts. So you are sort of like the stage where your thoughts play out.
But then where do our thoughts come from? I don’t know the exact answer. I swear they just seem to magically appear out of nowhere a lot of the times, then again, I think a big part of it comes from our environments. Movies, television, radio, friends, conversations, activities, even the way our living spaces are furnished - they all affect our thoughts, which then affect our behavior, which then affects our life and so on and so forth.
So, maybe you are not your thoughts. They can be a bit random after all. But maybe you are what you focus on. And whatever you focus on, that’s the direction your life moves towards. If you focus on how you never have enough, you might really end up feeling like you never have enough. If you focus on abundance in life, as crazy as it may sound, maybe your life might really start to feel quite abundant and full of wonderful things. Anyways, I guess what I’m saying is, what are you focusing on? And, is that where you want to go?
by Jason Lam
I once wrote a piece titled "50 Important Things You Need To Know As An Aspiring Photographer". It's been a while, but here are 50 more tips to help you along you photographic journey.
It's better to have a deep understanding of how lighting works than to know about the latest lighting gadgets
Lighting is very simple, it usually comes down to these five aspects: Intensity, Size, Direction, Quality, and Color.
Put your work where the eyes go. Nowadays, that means you should probably be putting your work on Instagram. The printed portfolio is being phased out, and in a way, even the good old website portfolio is turning into just a "nice to have."
That said, not putting your work where the eyes go is like putting out a fancy billboard in the middle of nowhere.
If you want your main source of income to be from taking photos, you should probably know a thing or two about marketing. It's much simpler than you think. See: Stock and flow
If you're discouraged about being a photographer because you're not getting as many likes, comments, and followers as you'd like. You probably shouldn't be a photographer.
It's beneficial to know a thing or two about casting.
And make up, wardrobe, hair, and set design.
That said, photography is more about the art of setting up and preparing for the shot. Taking the picture is the easy part. It's everything else that comes beforehand that's hard. (pre-production - training yourself, your eye)
Great photographers are also great at seeing. In fact, seeing is way more important as it is the core of where photography comes from. The camera is merely a tool to capture what we already see.
When you don't have a camera, don't fret, just enjoy seeing.
Great photographs have something to say.
Everybody should have a personal project. This is what defines who you are after all. That said, personal projects usually aren't the most popular, but if done right, it will be popular among the right people. Not to mention, it will keep you grounded in your values and what truly matters to you. It will also keep you sane.
If you want to "make it" in this industry, you need to be much more than just a photographer. You need to be a marketer, a leader, and a fun person to be around! Whatever you do, just try not to be a snob. People tend to do that a lot in this industry... unfortunately.
It helps to know a thing or two about post-processing. Photography is like harvesting crops from the field. Post-processing is putting it all together and cooking up a delicious meal. If you don't know how to post-process, you'll just be left with a bunch of raw ingredients without your personal spin on it.
You can't manage what you don't understand. Being a photographer often means working with many different people from all different stages of photography. It helps to know a thing or two about the daily obstacles your team has to face. Know what it’s like to produce, to assist, to style, even to run and grab coffee - it will keep you humble.
There's a difference between photo-editing and photo-retouching. Most people say photo-editing when they really mean photo-retouching.
Photo-retouching is a fine art. Don't knock it. Some of the greatest photographers in history don't even know how to print their own photographs.
There's nothing wrong with using on-camera flash. Somehow, I feel like this whole notion about on-camera flash being bad is a gimmick lighting companies popularized to get you to buy their lights instead.
Admit that being a photographer means having to step pass boundaries and be a little annoying at times. I find it is best to avoid any troubles by plainly acknowledging this fact, explaining your intentions, telling people why you do what you do, and what the photos will ultimately be used for.
If you're scared, you should probably take the photo. It will probably be the best photo you'll take.
Most people love being photographed. Then again, most people are not used to receiving so much attention. It helps to take the time and make sure your subjects feel comfortable around you.
Much of the photographs we take are taken before we even pick up our cameras.
There is usually only one way to take a photo that is true to who you are.
You should probably triple back up your hard drives. Two copies in-studio in case something fails and you need it immediately. One copy off-site.
If you're ever stuck, ask yourself, "What would ______ do?" Insert name of favorite photographer there.
Gear is great and you should get the best gear that you can, but once that is set, you really should set your eyes back on photography. Remember, some of the greatest photographers used cameras much less advanced than yours.
There are so many photographers nowadays. It can be a bit discouraging in terms of "making it" but consider it a blessing in disguise as it forces you to be your true self. Any other option is useless.
Nobody wants to hear your excuses. If you took a bad shot, then you took a bad shot. Yeah, it sucks, but that's just how it goes. Deal with it and move on.
Just because you worked really hard on a photo doesn't mean it's good.
Get a second pair of eyes. We're terrible judges of our own work. It's very useful to have someone you trust help you identify your masterpieces and utter failures.
I've noticed there has been a trend towards bright and colorful images. It's almost as if there's something wrong with darker images. I don't think there is. They can be quite beautiful, actually.
Disposable cameras are fun. You should always keep one around you somewhere.
Your portfolio should be like a menu that showcases the different recipes you're capable of putting together.
Proudly exclude people from your work. You are defined as a photographer not just by who you let into your frame, but also by who you choose to leave out.
Photography is great but more and more I realize that what I cherish the most is not the photographs I've taken but the relationships and the memories I've created because of photography. Something to think about as we continue our work.
Keep a reference file. This is a folder of images you've taken that could work as jump-off points or inspiration for future projects. Most importantly, these reference files are pictures that you created yourself so they are uniquely yours, versus just a knock-off of somebody else's idea.
Build strong relationships. Photography is a bit of a lonely endeavor. Make sure you prioritize your time with friends and family.
Be incredibly clear about being compensated for your work. Because there are so many photographers and people with photographer friends who are willing to do things free of charge, there is a culture of people asking for photos without pay. Nothing wrong with that. But never sell yourself short. Because when you do, we all suffer.
Every once in a while, go to the rental shop and spend a few days shooting with a camera you normally wouldn't shoot with. I love doing this, that was how I discovered the Contax 645. Such a great camera!
Instagram is a great place to showcase your work, but Instagram isn't a really good place for inspiration. Most popular accounts are skewed towards photos that have perfectly centered compositions. Often of food or landscapes. Photography is much more than that.
Having said that, your phone is a great tool for photography. Lately, I've been obsessed with these add-on lenses for the iPhone made my Moment. This sounds like an ad, but it's not. I just really love these lenses, it literally turns my phone into a dSLR.
Never equate the quality of your work with the dollar amount people are willing to pay for it. The market is saturated, so more likely than not, your work won't be worth much (unless you shoot weddings, headshots, corporate gigs, or on the rare occassion, land a huge commercial project). Thinking yourself as less of a photographer due to a lack of high paying gigs is a terrible standard to measure your art by. Basic supply and demand simply drives the price of photography services down. It's been doing so for years, and it will keep doing so.
Find your muses and take as many photos of them as you can. Muses don't come often, but when they do, I try my best to develop a relationship with them. I love photographing these people. And I'll continue photographing them for the rest of my life.
The most common question you will be faced with when photographing in the public is, "What are you doing?". Whenever you're given the chance, answer this question as soon as possible, in fact, answer it before they even ask, this is beneficial for alleviating any unnecessary tension.
Make people look good. I know this might be stating the obvious but nobody likes to look bad. I know the more "artsy" photographers might not necessarily care for this, and you don't have to, really, but it goes a long way.
Learning how to curate your own work is probably one of the greatest skills you can learn. It's incredibly difficult. I just figured it out this past year.
Take selfies. No, not the kind where you use your front facing camera. Take it a little more seriously. I don't say this to be narcissistic, but I do find it a little sad that so many incredible photographers have so little photographs of themselves. In fact, I think one of the best ways of learning how to photograph people is to be photographed.
Make prints. I spent A LOT of time making physical prints of my work during my early years. It's funny because I feel most people don't even notice the subtleties and maybe I'm just wasting my time, but I like knowing I have that ability, and I think all photographers will benefit from making and analyzing physical prints of their photographs rather than staring at digital screens all the time.
Don't take it too seriously. I mean, take it seriously so you can create great work, but I notice when I take photography way too seriously, it's not fun anymore, and I like to have fun =)
by Jason Lam
There will never be a right time for you to start your dream business. Nor will there ever be the right time for you to finally meet the person of your dreams. There will never be the right time for you to travel the world. Nor will there ever be the right time for you to finally drop everything and take a few months to learn how to sing, to dance, hek, even how to make pasta in the south of Italy. Most often, the right time for most of us is when there’s no more time left. And at that time it’s too late. But here I say. Don’t wait. There’s never a right time. If anything, there are plenty of mediocre times. And more often than not, that’s more than enough.
by Jason Lam
When you take a photo I think you should strive to capture the essence of the person. Not necessarily what they are known for, and not even what you think they would want to be known for. Instead, to capture the fundamental core of what makes this person human. Sure this often means capturing certain emotions like smiles, laughter, tears, etc.
For most people, this would be enough, but I think we can go deeper.
We can capture the fact that this person, which is all people, really, have thoughts, doubts, a past, and a future. They have lived. They will continue to live. And they are just like you. But in their own unique way that could manifest itself in a drooped shoulder, manicured eyebrows, a subtle smirk on the corner of the face, or a deep sigh.
Our work as photographers is to acknowledge this human presence as they are at that very moment. Because in the next moment they will have changed. Just as much as they've changed in all the moments before you crossed paths.
It is for this reason that I rather enjoy photographing the same person throughout a lifetime. People can change so much. I find it so interesting to try and capture the different manifestations of one’s essence.
When you do this long enough you will find that you are taking a picture of yourself just as much as you are taking a picture of others. That your search to capture the essence of someone is very much the search of the essence of who you are and what you represent as a human as well. Your trials and tribulations. Your hopes and aspirations. Failures. Heartbreaks. And everything else in between.
So one must then ask: Who am I? What do I represent? Why do I take these pictures? What makes me human?
And in asking these questions we look back out into the world in search for answers, which then manifests itself in the photography that we create and share with the world.
This is what I see in you. This is what I see in me. This is what I see in us.
by Jason Lam
First of all, what is jiu-jitsu? It’s a bit like wrestling. You’re grappling with an opponent and trying to get the better of them. But on top of that, you’re trying to choke each other out and break each other's arms. It’s terrifying, and that’s why I did it.
I spent the last several weeks trying to learn jiu-jitsu. This is what I learned from getting my ass kicked:
Don’t be afraid to tap out. Nobody likes to be a quitter. You look weak. It’s lame. You want to win! But a lot of the times, progress means knowing when to quit. And when your arm is on the brink of getting snapped in half, it’s ten times better to just tap. Quit. Give your partner a handshake and say, “Damn, that was good”. You “lost,” but you get to go another round and you still learned something. Which is the point of life anyway right? Progress! There’s nothing wrong with admitting defeat. In other words, “Tap early, tap often”.
Define your own success. When you enter the dojo, you will for sure get your ass kicked. There will never be a time when you will defeat every single person. Because there will always be someone better than you. In that sense, it can be easy to be disappointed. I’ve been snuffed more times than I’d like to admit, but I made it a point to define my terms of success every time I began my training. Today, I’m learning arm guards, or today, I’m practicing chokes, or today, I’m practicing how to shrimp out of side control. And if I can just do that. Then I’m happy. I’ve succeeded. Success doesn’t always have to be about getting to the very top. It can be something as simple as not get arm barred.
Bigger problems = Bigger incentives. When we start training, the most terrifying thing is when we have to start “rolling”. Basically, rolling is when you go at it with another person and try to get the other person to submit. Choke them out, put them in an arm bar, crush their chest until they can’t breathe. Whatever it is, it’s terrifying, and I’m normally not a violent person, so I always found it very difficult to just get started. So what would usually happen is I’d often be the first one to be thrown to the ground. But that is when I’d fling into action. Because all of the sudden, there’s a 200-pound guy trying to choke the shit out of me. Sometimes in life, pain is good. It is precisely because we have a giant problem breathing down our necks that spurs us into taking action and making real moves to making lasting changes in our lives.
Learn by doing. The one thing I love the most about jiu-jitsu is that we started the very first day learning how to choke each other out. It was terrifying. We even played a game to see who can choke each other out faster. I saw a 6-foot tall man collapse right beside me. In an age full of youtube videos it’s become easier and easier to just be lazy and watch for hours on end and THINK that you know how to do something. But you never know until you get thrown into the deep end and you have to fight for your life. Experience is the ultimate teacher.
Keep your brain in check. We always end our classes by retying our belts and adjusting our uniforms. Then lining up in a straight line, putting our feet together, hands to our sides, and bowing at the waist. Why? Part of it is tradition, but the other part is to keep our brains in check. Jiu-jitsu can be a very physical sport, and strength plays a large role, but none of that matters if you can’t control your mind. Throughout the weeks I realized how much jiu-jitsu is more of a mental game than it is a physical one. Though, I admit there have been times when I got too physical and immediately got pinned to the ground. Your brain controls all your actions which leads to real changes in your life. Keep your brain in check by doing little things like “tying your belt”. AKA brushing your teeth, making your bed, washing the dishes. Because when you don’t, you can get hurt, and possibly in worse ways than just getting choked out.
Prove yourself wrong and do what you can’t. Every time I stepped into the dojo I was terrified. In fact, every morning I woke up knowing I’d have to put on my uniform and go to jiu-jitsu class, I was terrified. I never wanted to go. Though, I always went because I wanted to prove myself wrong. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do what I can’t. That I was stronger than I believe. And I can choke someone out if I needed to! (Not that I ever would - totally not my style - can we just hug it out?). But after every practice, as I’m dripping with sweat and limping back home, I always felt great. Because I proved to myself that I am capable. And that means I must also be capable of doing a ton of other things I may have never thought possible. It’s incredibly powerful. If there’s ever been anything you thought you can’t do, it’s more likely that you are more than capable. Prove it to yourself by doing what you “can’t” and prove yourself wrong.
Seek out challengers. Purposely train with those you know will kick your ass. When I first started class, I admit, I would choose the people I knew were also newbies like me. But then I realized, it wasn’t much of a challenge. And more importantly, I never learned anything. So towards the second half, I welcomed those who were better than me. I sought them out. Because I knew they were going to go hard on me, and by doing so, they would also bring out the best in me. I normally had to tap out, but I never thought myself a failure. Instead, I succeeded, because I put myself in a situation where I had to rise up to the highest version of myself. That’s a part of myself that I rarely ever see. In fact, it is a gift when better people challenge you. Because technically, they don’t need to waste their time. You suck. I sucked. I still sucked. But they honored me with their time and energy to show me what they got. The more I got choked out, the more I learned, and the better I got. If you’ve been trying to get better at something and you feel like you’ve been plateauing, it might be because you haven’t had a real challenger come out to bring out the best in you. Seek them out. They’re probably looking for a challenger as well.
Sometimes progress doesn't look like progress. Our teacher reminded us of something pretty profound at about week 3 into our training. It was the end of class. Half the students have already dropped out and we were hunched over huffing and puffing after having to survive several weeks of beating. Morale was low. But he quickly reminded us that we are all learning really fast, “It just doesn’t seem that way because you’re all progressing together”. Light bulb moment. That was right. I forgot the analogy, but it goes something like how a fish moving along a fast flowing river doesn’t know how fast it’s going. So it’s the same with progress. Sometimes, progress looks like you’re standing still. It’s really all about perspective.
“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face” - Mike Tyson. Alright, the rules of jiu-jitsu do not allow striking, but I still think this is relevant. When I first started I always had to have some sort of plan of attack. After all, I was a newbie, I needed to prove myself! But my plans always got thrown out the window because people would come at me with things I’ve never encountered. Wait, did you just do a 360 spin on the ground?! In situations like these, the only thing I could do was to adapt to the current situation. I could not be too precious with my initial plans because they would no longer work. I think I may have held myself back more than I’ve liked due to an inability to let go of early drafts of what I wanted to do vs accepting the reality of what is. I mean, no point in trying to go for the classic behind the back choke hold if both your arms are tied. It’s probably better to reassess.
Just don’t get defeated. Instead of trying to win all the time, play not to lose. It's better to not do something stupid than to try and do something brilliant. The ego is the enemy. Our teacher always reminded us to not enter the dojo with the mindset that you will win. While I didn’t have this thought because I was new, this was still immensely helpful. When I entered a “roll” with someone with the mindset of “I’m going to win,” I realized I get burnt out much easier. It gets frustrating because I’m trying so damn hard to get results and I end up getting nothing. I realized how useless it is to try and win all the time and how it actually held me back more than it propelled me forward. Instead, I switched my mindset to “Don’t get defeated”. When I entered a roll with that mindset I was much calmer. My goal no longer was to choke someone out. My goal was simply to stay in the game. Most often I discovered that then the OTHER person will get tired. And surprisingly, opportunities will present itself to me where I can then get them into an arm bar or a choke. It is a very subtle shift in mindset, but more and more I’m realizing true success is sometimes the ability to just be the last one standing. Often times, that doesn’t mean having to win all the time.
by Jason Lam
Soon as you lift the camera up to your eye you must take the photo.
Why?
Because this won’t allow you to second guess yourself.
If you brought the camera up to your eye, that means you saw something that moved you, which then made you want to remember by taking a photo of it.
So take the photo.
Many photographers will raise the camera to their eye and then constantly shift around. Different angles. Levels. Horizontals. Verticals. While more may be better (for your editor if you are shooting an assignment), more is not necessarily truer to who you are and what you felt at that very moment.
I guess it’s a bit like when we say “I love you” to our significant others. We say it when we feel something deep in our gut. We don’t need to say it twice. Nor do we need to say it in 20 different ways. We just need to say it once. The moment we feel it is the exact moment we should say it.
So, go ahead with your camera and your gut feelings. Tell them "I love you". All within one second.
Don’t hold back.
by Jason Lam
Write as if you’re talking to your younger self. It’s funny, I think a lot of times when we’re giving words of advice, we’re really just giving ourselves advice. I admit much of what I write are in fact reminders to myself, things I wish I had known. When we write as if we’re talking to our younger selves, we come from a position of more experience, age, wisdom - somehow, this little shift in the mind makes it easier to put words on a page.
Draw out your ideas. Many of my pieces start out as drawings. Drawings help me understand my ideas better. Often times, they are necessary because I have yet to come up with the words to fully express my ideas.
Step away from the screen. The computer is where a lot of my greatest ideas die because it is too exact in its nature and I lose all the organic goodness of how a piece first began. I try to finish as much of my pieces by hand before I even think of touching the computer. Spend 90% out in the analog world, and the remaining 10% typing it up so you can share your work with the world.
What advice would your 80-year-old self give to the current you? Look at yourself from an older / wiser / more experienced perspective. What useful information would you impart to yourself right now? Share that with us. (I know this one sounds very similar to #1, but it's slightly different)
Pretend like your readers just took a couple shots of whiskey. I forgot where I got this idea from. But to be fair, it’s not original. I love this idea though. Have you ever tried talking to a drunk person? It’s not easy! It’s even harder if you try to use fancy words and sentence structures. This is a fun way of double checking if I’m adding unnecessary fluff to my writing.
Talk to yourself. Literally. Open your mouth and talk to yourself. I do this all the time. Even in public. And I’ve gotten a lot of crazy stares from it. But when I do so I have something to bounce off of. It's like playing a game of handball or tennis by myself against a concrete wall. The harder I swing the harder it comes back at me. It’s a sort of challenge that often results in too many post-it notes splayed across my room, but it also brings out the best in me.
Write about what makes you angry. I don’t know about you, but whenever I’ve encountered an angry person, they have absolutely no problems communicating their ideas. It’s quite beautiful in a way. They are never at a loss for words, and there's quite a bit of style as well. A sort of no holds barred exercise in language and personal flair. This is not to say you need to turn everything you write into a rant, but maybe you can use the anger to your advantage.
Don't wait for inspiration. I love inspiration. It's like a wave that lifts you up and everything just flows right through my fingertips effortlessly. But sometimes you need to plow through nonetheless and build your own momentum in order to get to the good stuff. Be patient, but don't wait.
Always be taking notes. Be a collector of everything. Be a collector of great books, witty blurbs, quotes, conversations, and sayings from your friends. Restaurant menus and random words. Collect anything and everything that appeals to you. Then throw it into a pile and let it all marinate. I've been collecting for several years now and I've got a base that's quite rich in flavor (if I say so myself). Like a homemade bowl of bone broth that's been simmering for the past 72 hours. Throw some noodles in there and dinner is served.
Fold laundry. I know this sounds weird, but I think there’s even research that backs this up. I get so many ideas when I fold my laundry. I think it has something to do with how it’s a repetitive activity that isn’t TOO hard, so it keeps our frontal cortex occupied just enough to leave enough brain power to let our subconscious do all the creative connections we normally wouldn’t be able to make. Other activities include driving, going for a run, or washing the dishes. Who would've thought such mundane activities would be the birthplaces of your next great idea?
by Jason Lam
Build a following. The creative sector is filled with temp jobs and freelance gigs. There’s no such thing as getting hired at a huge company and being able to stay there for the rest of your life anymore. All things come to an end, even your high paying gigs, but that won't be an issue if you’ve built a following. When you have a following, every time you have time on your calendar, you can make an announcement on your social media accounts to let people know you are available. All it takes is one person to set you up with you next gig. I wish I knew this starting off. Instead, I was too focused on the work to go out and build relationships.
It’s okay to show incomplete work. In fact, it might even be better to show your failures and disasters. One thing I’ve learned from my many years of studying storytelling is that people love seeing the process. And what makes the process interesting is seeing all the hiccups and failures. People like to be included in the adventure. Give it to them. You have nothing to lose.
Your first few years as an artist should be focused on building relationships, not making money. I’ve turned down a lot of gigs because I felt they were too low-paying. But I realize now that that was very stupid. Because when it comes to trying to make a name for yourself as an artist, the best thing you can do for yourself is to create as much work as possible and that happens by doing as much work as possible with as many people as possible. But I did the opposite. Nobody ever paid me the rate I wanted. And when I did get a gig I'd just complain about how I'm not making enough. I think I could’ve handled this better if I knew this going into my creative career.
Your style will change drastically. Embrace it. What you were really into last year will be totally different from what you’re into this year. As a result, you will probably have to rebrand yourself multiple times throughout your career. This is normal. Every time I felt like I’ve hit on something that truly defined me, just a couple months down the line, I’d realize I had to change everything again. Some people find this a rather daunting task. I used to. But I realize now that it really doesn’t matter. Your fan-base won’t go away because they don’t like your new branding / logo / color way. What they care about is you, and if your work is good, you can transform as many times as you want.
If it’s a hit, keep at it. Once in a blue moon, you’ll hit on something that people really like. If you find this, keep at it. For example, people really liked the Chinese snacks that I photographed against a bright colored background. I didn’t keep at it though. I just moved to the next thing. What I could’ve done was continue riding that wave to build up my fan base. Another lesson learned. Now I know. Don't make the same mistake I made.
If it’s not a hit, switch. Insanity is constantly doing the same thing and expecting different results. I’m all for maintaining your artistic integrity, so if you’re dead set on sticking to just one style, so be it. However, I also believe that successful artists create art that can connect with their audiences. It’s a bit like music. Some of our favorite musicians, Prince, Michael Jackson, and the Beatles, sang from their heart and stayed true to themselves, but they also did so in a way that other people could connect with. So I guess when I say switch, I mean to find another way to connect with your audience and to not waste your time with the ones that don’t. Learn from each project and keep at it until something becomes a hit, then keep riding that wave for as long as it’s fun.
The most successful artists aren’t the best artists, they are the ones confident enough to put themselves out there. This was a tough lesson for me to learn. I constantly doubted myself thinking that because I haven’t been published in a big magazine, that I am not “good enough" yet. As a result, I didn't market myself. I stayed in my studio and kept working until I created a masterpiece I can feel proud about showcasing to the world. But you know what happens? These “masterpieces” just end up going unseen because I spent all my time working instead of building relationships (Refer back to Point #1). The most successful artists aren’t those who have the best work, it’s those who have the tenacity to go from door to door and show their work to others regardless of imperfections. The most successful artists go to the people while the rest stay locked up in their lairs waiting to be discovered. Newsflash. That’s never going to happen. So get out there.
Think about the 3rd sale. The reason why I say it’s absolutely okay to take free or low-paying jobs is because early on in your career what you want to do is to establish the relationship. By doing a good first job with a new client you are ensuring yourself a safety net that this person will come back again. But when you reject every new client, you’re immediately closing a door that will become immensely harder for you to open back up again in the future.
It’s not over till you say it’s over. The creative journey is much longer than I expected it to be. It’s definitely one of a lifetime. I’ve had so many more failures and rejections than I’d like to admit, and I’ve also had many times when I would’ve wanted to quit. But here’s the thing, it’s not over till you say it’s over. Nobody gets to decide when you quit. Only you have the authority to do that. You also have the authority to continue waking up every morning and creating. Nobody can ever stop you. No matter how many job rejections, failed negotiations, and disappointed clients, you get to decide whether or not you keep going. More often than not, that is what separates artists who just dabble and end up pursuing something else, and those who continue on to be at the top of the game.
Stay true to your voice. I’ve given a lot of advice about developing relationships and putting yourself out there. All of which actually sounds a lot like having to kiss up to people and do work that you might possibly not really enjoy doing. But that is also the road of a working artist. Sometimes you will be commissioned to do work you don’t want to do. But these are decisions you have to make. If it will truly make you miserable to take on that job, then don’t do it. The are tips I'm offering are things I feel could've been helpful to my younger self, but at the end of the day, it’s about staying true to who you are. And nobody can do that better than you. Often times, maybe having less money in the bank and a smaller following is worth it.
by Jason Lam
I’ve been starting to treat my writing like plants in a garden. Instead of forcing myself to finish a piece in one sitting, I write as much as I can, and then I put it to rest. I place the pieces of writing on a big wall and I wait for a couple days. Sometimes, for weeks, months, even years.
What I’m doing is creating a “Garden of Writing”. I have a space where each “flower” is easily accessible, and I can watch them over time, adding and rearranging ideas as I please.
I’ve noticed this works much better than having all my files crammed into the computer, because when my writing is all tucked away in a digital folder, it’s too easy to forget about them. And so they are left to wither and die like a flower left to grow in the darkest most loneliest part of the garden with no one to care for it.
Try it.
Treat your writing not like individual pieces, but like flowers in a garden.
Feed them over time. Care for them. Spend time with them every once in a while just as they are.
I’ve come to find that this approach is mutually beneficial to all my unfinished pieces. Though every individual “flower” is still a work in progress, by placing them together, they help one another grow taller and stronger. In effect, what you will have created is an entire ecosystem of written material that can almost write itself.
by Jason Lam
I like when things look a bit half done.
Like, I may have forgotten to adjust my aperture so the image is too bright.
Or I forgot to move a prop.
Or the model is facing the wrong way.
I also like shooting without looking at the viewfinder quite often.
It doesn’t let me be perfect.
Maybe it’s my way of balancing myself out.
Because I already try to be too perfect in so many other parts of my life.
I don’t know.
Whatever it is, I like when my work is not too refined.
It feels honest.
And I like authenticity.
by Jason Lam
I am so grateful to have my work, "Inside the Lion" featured in National Geographic! A very special thanks to Yen-Yin Chen for making this possible =)
