What are your goals as a photographer?
“Goals provide the energy source that powers our lives. One of the best ways we can get the most from the energy we have is to focus it. That is what goals can do for us; concentrate our energy. The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, learn about them, or even seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will”- Denis Waitley
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“I am always doing things I can’t do, that’s how I get to do them. Action is the foundational key to all success.”- Pablo Picasso
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We all know from our professional careers that without specific goals and proper planing it is difficult to achieve effective progress. If you are a professional photographer it seems obvious that you need to have well defined goals and milestones to guide your business. But for the majority of photographers, the craft is a hobby, and so it is very uncommon to find a photographer that can describe his/her near term goals less their objectives as a photographer.
No matter who you are as a photographer it is certain that defining – and achieving- specific goals will lead to better work, more fulfillment, and higher motivation to create new work. There is something energizing when you accomplish specific and tangible goals and see your photography evolve.
After reading a nice essay on this topic by Thom Hogan, a Nikon guru and photographer, I took the time to clarify my artistic goals for the near future. I went from having undefined wishes to write down the goals I like to achieve in the next 12 months. I hope this will help focus my energy to drive my work to the next level.
What are your photography goals? Why do you photograph? What is the intent of your photography? What are your artistic strengths and weaknesses? What motivates your creativity? Which field of photography you like more to explore? Do you aspire to become a professional photographer?
Answers to these questions will help to set a list of priorities and goals to guide your progression as photographer.
I will write in a future post about some examples of goals that can facilitate our progression in photography.
This is an excellent suggestion. I just wrote in my journal under ‘complete by December 1′ to set up 5 one year goals. Now comes the hard part. Actually decidiing what I want to accomplish. I’ve never really thought in these terms before. Thanks.