Mar 29

What You Can’t See Matters

A talented photographer I know recently shared with me a blow-by-blow account of how tough he was with a client who was over-noodling his vision for an advertising shoot. “In the middle of the shoot I told them where to put it,” he said, proudly. “I’m an artist and they hired me for my vision, so that’s what I was giving them. Period.” Period? He was bragging. I didn’t get it. Seemed like he’d been... read more ›
Jan 03

Startup to $15 Billion: Finding Your Life’s Work with Shopify’s Harley Finkelstein

Harley Finkelstein bounced from DJ gigs to a t-shirt business to law school before joining a small internet startup in 2009 dedicated to helping creators and entrepreneurs make money doing what they loved. Today, he's the Chief Operating Officer of that same “startup" called Shopify now serving more than 600,000 businesses - and worth more than $15 billion. In this episode we cover a lot of ground - from his early gigs, through struggle, failure, rejection... read more ›
Mar 14

Persevering through Failure with Melissa Arnot Reid

Melissa Arnot Reid is a mountain guide, speaker, and founder of the nonprofit organization, The Juniper Fund. She was the first American woman to summit and descent Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen and also holds the record for summiting the tallest peak in the world more times than any other western woman with a total of 6 ascents. She’s a certifiable bone crushing badass with a lot of life experience to share from her years... read more ›
Mar 07

Go Against the Grain with David Heinemeier Hansson

David Heinemeier Hansson is a programmer, writer, and entrepreneur. He changed the future of technology with Ruby on Rails, has influenced the way businesses are being built and run with his books; Getting Real, Rework, and Remote; Office Not Required, and has helped many businesses (including my own photo studio) stay organized and productive with the integrated project management solution, Basecamp. David is passionate about exploring alternative approaches to problem-solving. He thrives on examining the... read more ›
Oct 12

Real Artists Don’t Starve /w Jeff Goins

Jeff, like many of us, has had a winding path to his art. He’s a best-selling author of FIVE books including The Art of Work and his latest, Real Artists Don’t Starve. As a youth, he never claimed being a writer, but it was always something that lingered in the back of his mind. From joining a band to lingering at a comfortable job, he was just waiting for his mid-life crisis to push him... read more ›
Jan 11

How to Find Mentor (and what to do when you get one)

As I've said countless times before, there are no magical, hidden secrets that will catapult you to success. By almost any measure, sustained success is a ton of work. And when the going gets tough, we can get sucked into spinning our wheels looking for direction or help. That's where a mentor comes in. It's the ONE PLACE YOU CAN MAKE USE OF A SHORTCUT...one that will make the path to your goals much straighter... read more ›
Nov 28

How to Capture Creative Gold When You’re at the End of Your Rope — Literally. [Interview with Jimmy Chin]

There are two types of photographers who impress the hell out of me. One is the wartime photojournalist, who puts his or her life on line to document real stories and images behind the world's most dangerous conflicts. [I've written about it before -- Would You Die for a Photo?]. Without their work, truths get lost, and the stakes are as high as they can get. The other is the extreme photographer. I'm not talking... read more ›
Nov 17

Sophia Amoruso: Intuition, Grit, & Working with What You Have

Sophia Amoruso is a creative visionary, pioneering entrepreneur, and fashion doyenne. As founder of Nasty Gal, she has forged an unprecedented path in building a brand in the teenage years of the Internet. Amoruso released the paperback edition of her New York Times 18-week best-seller #GIRLBOSS in 2015. It was recently announced that Amoruso has teamed up with Charlize Theron to Executive Produce the #GIRLBOSS comedy series on Netflix. Amoruso recently launched her first podcast,... read more ›
Oct 24

How to Charge What You’re Worth — Which is 3 to 10x More Than You’re Getting Today [with Ramit Sethi]

When I saw this recent post strike a nerve, it motivated me to share this post from my man Ramit Sethi on charging what you're worth. Today he's back by popular demand to share a simple one-two approach to setting your prices and upping your earning potential. Pencils ready? Okay, take it away Ramit. Thanks, Chase. I recently asked a photographer how she came up with her pricing. She said, “Well... I researched my competition and found... read more ›
May 19

Hack Your Learning — Photography, Spanish, or Anything Else — with Help from Tim Ferriss

In one of my most popular #cjRAW episodes, I talked about How I Learn. In the era where we're all a bunch of hyphens -- as in we've all gotta learn not one job but 3, 4, or 5... We're photographers, designers, entrepreneurs, marketers, and more -- all at the same time... How in the hell do we navigate it all? If it sometimes seems overwhelming, then this post if for you. In short - becoming a master... read more ›