Got a note the other day from an aspiring photographer. He wanted to know what it takes to become a pro. I thought–very pragmatically–that it’s really not complicated. HARD maybe, but complicated, no. And this applies to so many FILL-IN-THE-BLANK things you aspire to be:
1. Declare yourself as that thing. That’s what you ARE in life. You’re not a student, not a finance-guy-slash-part-time-photographer, not a part time anything. You’re a photographer, or entrepreneur, or chef, or fill-in-the-blank. Let it be known.
2. Be in business. Make it real. Get a business bank account, business license (city + county), business cards. Business. Otherwise it’s a hobby.
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3. Read every book you can find at the library or online about the thing you want to do. Understand the rules. Because if you fail at the business part, if you can’t SUSTAIN this business, you’re not a pro. You’re unemployed, or back to part-time this or that. And back to step 1 you go again…wanting to be a pro. NOW then, if read these books and they make sense, and they teach you how to run the books and land the gigs…you gotta then break some of the rules you read in these books. And YOU choose which are the right ones to break. You’ll be right 50% of the time, you just won’t know which 50% until after you’ve taken the leap. Action is the only thing that matters.
4. In order to be the noun, do the verb. Do that thing everyday and share your work, hustle, and promote it like mad. For clients and for yourself. Get creative as all hell. Find YOUR voice through creating more than you thought was possible. Aim to be different, not better than everybody else. Be brutal in judging your own work. Put forward only your best work around the the things you actually want to to do. Break all the rules here too. And again, you’ll be mistaken 50% of the time, but you gotta take your swings to hit anything at all. Don’t forget, the DOING is the only thing that matters here too. What you THINK is nice, but it counts for zilch, zero, nada. Action wins.
5. Repeat.
Now, if you got this far and you’re thinking – Chase, it is a bunch of fluff…. Well, of course. Here’s the truth: This isn’t really about how to become a pro. It’s about how to commit to something.
There are a zillion steps to becoming a pro. Days, weeks, years of work on the craft. But the #1 thing I see absent in people who SAY they want it….it a lack of commitment – a lack of those few last steps to get them over the line, get them off their asses, off the couch, off the internet where people hide behind fake names where they pretend they’ve DONE it, that they are a pro, or have even begun to commit… This is usually because of fear.
Fear that you won’t be able to support yourself and MAKE A LIVING – WHICH IS WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A PROFESSIONAL. The reality is that you probably either want to become a pro and still need to do the following things; or you don’t want it.
In the former case – that you DO want to become a pro and – then this episode is a ‘you can do this / get off your ass’ message to you. In the latter case – the case of not actually wanting it — then there’s no need to pretend. Maybe it’s just a hobby or an side-interest and that’s okay too.
But if you’re serious, start with one of the hardest things — and that’s point #1: Start by calling yourself a pro in front of your friends and your parents or whomever you come across. Then start. One foot in front of the other.
YAY! Now we can all be pro-photographers!!
Some great advice, and I think it’s important to enjoy the work you do, and do the work you were born to do. It makes it so much easier!
“What you THINK is nice, but it counts for zilch, zero, nada. Action wins.” DAMN RIGHT. It’s what separates the pro’s from the flakes who will never be pro’s.
Great article! Straight to the point, no BS. Thanks Chase for your words of wisdom.
I think Chase has told which book: “Read every book you can find at the library” – so oder at amazon, in the book shop at the corner or goto the library instead of waisting your time in front of the monitor and remember to leave your business cards at the counter
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A sentence is a sentence be it on a monitor or a in a book. The internet is full of useful information to help anyone develop at a certain skill. I’d actually insist that in many ways sitting in front of a monitor learning (reading articles, watching demonstration video and researching in general) is a better use of one’s time than finding a book to learn from. Although a book does help lesson the blow to one’s eyesight, but I stand by my point. Specific people learn best in a vast variety of specific ways though.