You’ll never get anywhere sitting around being afraid.

You’ll never meet anyone or get that “in” that you need if you are sitting around being afraid.

If you wait until you are ready to get started… you’ll never start because you’ll never be ready.

Get your book together. Get your site finished. Shine your shoes. Brush your teeth. Pick up the phone. Get out on the streets and start showing your work. Phone calls. Emails. Meetings. It’s how you get yourself out there. Smile. Have a firm handshake. Look people in the eye when you talk to them.

Get the #$*% over yourself and your insecurities. Put your big person pants on. If you want this. If you really want this. If being a photographer is the thing that you want. That you need. That you have to have. Then show your effing work to people.

Go fail. Go get rejected. Go get some doors slammed in your face. Go have some awesome meetings that turn into nothing. Then shoot some new work. Then do it again. Then do it again. Then do it again. Then again. You’re going to keep doing this until one day you look back and realize…

“OMG. I’m doing it."

Stop being afraid or stop being a photographer. One or the other. You will deal with these insecurities for the rest of your life. Each level you want to reach will scare you. There are FAR better photographers ahead of you. There will always be better photographers ahead of you. And next to you. And behind you.

Keep your damn head down. Shoot new work always. Brush your teeth. Have a good handshake. Look ‘em in the eyes when you talk.

Seriously. It’s what you have to do.

"Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.” - Chuck Close

That’s the quote a lot say. Here’s full quote…

“I always thought that inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work. You sign onto a process and see where it takes you. You don’t have to invent the wheel every day. Today you’ll do what you did yesterday and tomorrow you’ll do what you did today. Eventually you’ll get somewhere. Every great idea I ever had grew out of work itself. If you’re going to wait a around for the clouds to open up and lightning to strike you in the brain you’re not going to make an awful lot of work.” - Chuck Close

This goes for your photography and your business and your life.

For everyone else listening. For those of you with photography in your heart and stars in your eyes. For everyone with a camera in your hand who is chasing this dream of becoming a pro. Of making it as a photographer….

You’re trudging along in the mud with the masses. All heading to the same place. All going in the same direction. You’ve been born out of the mud. You are going to find yourself at a precipice. You will find yourself staring into the void. Out in front of you will see people flying to the distant horizon. Beside you and behind you are the masses. You want to fly. You want to be one of those out there in front of you with no ground to stand on.

Know how they fly? They jumped. See all the bodies at the bottom of the canyon? They jumped too. Those bodies at the bottom aren’t dead though. They just didn’t fly the first time. Look closely. The strong ones are climbing back up to try again.

Maybe you hit the bottom. Maybe you learn how not to fly. Lick your wounds for a minute and get back up. Or don’t. Decide it’s too hard and go do something else with your life.

Or…

Jump.

Let’s see if you can fly.

Whatever you do… stop standing around the edge of the cliff.

Cheers,

Zack

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And…. scene.

This Q&A blog is now in retirement mode. I’m starting a new project. A new platform. A new station with some new signal. It’s called DEDPXL and it launches at the end of November (ummm) January 1st. Technique. Critique. Reviews. Q&A. Challenges. Culture. New Voices.

I want to thank all of you for your support with this Q&A project. I could not have done this without all of you sending in some amazing questions. Thank you for sharing your life with me. Thanks for letting me share mine with you.

This site will remain for some time to come but isn’t guaranteed to be up forever.

On to the next one.