Not long ago I was introduced to the concept of Strategic Renewal, which focuses on optimizing our energy (which is a renewable resource) rather than our time (which is not a renewable resource). Our culture tends to focus on time — spending time, wasting time, optimizing time, scheduling time, etc. We often think that the more time we spend on something the more efficient and productive we will be. The idea of strategic renewal suggests that is the wrong perspective. Our time is not a renewal resource. Every minute spent on something is a minute that can never be recovered. It’s gone. Additionally, when  we approach our work with the perspective that more time equals more productivity, we begin to burn out, lose focus, and ultimately accomplish less.

However, our energy is something that is renewable and if we maximize our energy during any given moment, we’ll actually get more accomplished. The idea of strategic renewal suggests that we are most productive when we approach tasks in 90 minute increments, with significant breaks in between. In each 90 minute block we focus in and work hard, and then we take a break - exercise, read, nap - to renew our energy so that we can be productive in the next 90 minute block of time. Additionally, taking more vacations and getting solid nights of sleep also contribute to renewed energy and better productivity in our tasks. 

I can appreciate this approach because my tendency has been to just put my head down and plow forward with work, forgetting to take breaks, and sometimes even forgetting to eat lunch, drink water, etc. I’ve found that when I do that my stress level increases, my focus decreases, and by day’s end I accomplished much less than one might expect considering how long I was working. So, I decided to adopt some of the principals of Strategic Renewal, especially the aspect of breaking my work day into 90 minute chunks, and taking longer breaks away from my computer. An example day for me breaks down as follows:

• 6-7am - wake up and exercise, shower

• 7-8am - eat breakfast and spend time with my family

• 8-9am - commute and respond to emails (or read)

• 9-10:30am (90 min) - Write, Read

• 10:30-11am (30 min break) - Take a break, go for a walk, do street photography (any combo as long as its away from the computer)

• 11-12:30pm (90 min) - Work (scheduled task(s) for clients)

• 12:30-1:30pm (60 min break) - Lunch

• 1:30-3pm (90 min) - Work (scheduled task(s) for clients)

• 3-3:30pm (30 min break) - Take a break, go for a walk, read

• 3:30-5pm (90 min) - Work (scheduled task(s) for clients)

• 5-5:30pm (30 min break) - Take a break, go for a walk, read, do street photography (any combo as long as its away from the computer)

• 5:30-6:30pm (60 min) - Misc work

• 6:30-8pm (90 min) - Dinner, time with family

• 8-8:30pm (30 min) - Downtime

• 8:30-10pm (90 min) - time with family OR misc work

• 10-10:30pm (30 min) - Read, bed

As you can see, the day doesn’t break down perfectly into 90 minute chunks with breaks in between. However, especially during “business hours” I am trying to keep a 90/30 minute work/break schedule. I’m still early in the process, but so far I’m finding that I am focusing much better during my 90 minute work periods, and at the end of my day having accomplished much more than I was when I was working straight through with no breaks. 

This is an in-progress experiment for me, but so far I’m very happy with the results and plan to continue working the idea of Strategic Renewal into my daily schedule. How about you? Have you worked the idea of Strategic Renewal into your schedule? How do you find balance in your day to maximize your energy and productivity?

Like many artists, I like my freedom. I value the freedom to do what I want, when I want. And there are certainly perks to that kind of freedom. However, in reality that “freedom”, which was really just a lack of structure and direction, wasn’t all that freeing, as I’ve talked about the past few weeks. The “freedom”, combined with a lack of clarity about my values and priorities, left me in a position in which I wasn’t accomplishing all that much. That defeated the purpose.

It’s often said, and it’s true, that parameters and constraints in any creative project is helpful because it provides greater clarity, direction, and encourages problem-solving within the constraints. If someone hands you a blank canvas and says, “paint me a masterpiece”, you would correctly start asking questions. It just doesn’t work as well when there are no constraints. The same is true for one’s schedule and productivity. If you look at your daily (or weekly or monthly) schedule as a blank canvas and someone says, “Create, or work, or accomplish something,” it would understandably be hard to know where to begin. 

So I decided to flip things upside down and, rather than keeping my schedule wide open in the name of “freedom”, I decided to schedule each day of the week in blocks of time dependent on the activity. Every Sunday evening I revisit my values and priorities, along with my daily checklist of items to accomplish (see last week’s post), I open my Calendar app (on Mac), and for the next Monday through Friday I enter every activity that I’ll be doing between 6am and 10:30am. See the example below.

Is the schedule fixed? No, the reality is that meetings or photo shoots, or other necessary “distractions” come up during the week that I didn’t anticipate on Sunday evening. I do actually still have my “freedom” to adjust my schedule as needed. In fact, I feel greater freedom since I’ve eliminated the paralysis felt when trying to decide what to do next. At any given time I know what I should be doing, and I focus on that. But if something comes up that fits the list of higher values or priorities, I make a conscious decision whether or not to shift my schedule. 

Scheduling out my week has been one of the most helpful actions I’ve taken for my maximizing my capacity and productivity. The Sunday evening planning time has provided a birds-eye view of my upcoming week, and the daily schedule has provided a helpful reference point for any specific time of day.

How about you? Do you find it helpful to schedule out your day with greater specificity, or do you find yourself more productive when you keep your schedule more open? What other tips do you have for maximizing your capacity and productivity on a day to day basis?

It wasn’t that long ago that I would wake up every day feeling a bit overwhelmed by the all the tasks that needed to be done, or at least that I thought needed to be done. I wasn’t even immune to it during the weekends. I would wake up Saturday and Sundays wondering how I could accomplish work in between “down” time with my family. Every day I would start tackling items on my to-do list, never really sure what was most important to accomplish, and what was ultimately a distraction. Also, as I mentioned last week, when moving from one task to the next, I often felt paralyzed by the decision of what I should do next. I would end up stalling the decision by checking my email or social media, and when I would make a decision it was often a task that was “low hanging fruit”, I.e. It was an easy, mindless task that allowed me to avoid the bigger, more important tasks. At the end of every day I was tired, frustrated by what I didn’t accomplish, and distracted by other unfinished tasks. I was paying a heavy price for the ways in which I was approaching my schedule. Not only that, but my family was paying a price as well since I was often distracted by what felt like important, unfinished work.

It took some valuable conversations with trusted friends, and helpful online resources, to begin making significant adjustments to my approach. One step that I took to get a handle on my life and daily schedule was to step back and begin considering what was really important to me. Seems obvious I know, but I didn’t always have a strong sense of if/how my activities aligned with my core values.

My wife and I collaborated together to compile a list of values that we desired to inhabit, both individually and as a family.

• Be lifelong learners

• Intentional Living

• Investing in others

• Community

• Commitment/Discipline

• Meaningful work

• Diversity

I also compiled a list of “professional” values that would guide my work.

• Risk (Courage)

• Innovation

• Generosity

• Collaboration

• Integrity

• Communication (Listening)

• Relationship (Community)

• Remarkability (Excellence)

There is certainly some overlap between the two, as there should be, and with some additional effort I could probably combine them into a single list. But those two lists are where I stand right now.

Building on the two lists of values, I developed a list of seven activities (in no particular order) that if accomplished each day would define a successful day for me. 

• Spiritual growth

• Time with my wife

• Time with my children

• Create

• Write

• Read

• Exercise

Yep, I like my lists, and these are three that I regularly revisit to help guide my schedule and activities. When I schedule out my days and weeks, I try to make sure that all of my specific activities fit within the seven general activities listed above. Sure, there are mundane tasks that simply have to be done, and don’t explicitly fit within the general activities. But I try to make sure that even my mundane tasks contribute to allowing me to do the general tasks, in turn living out my values.

Explicitly writing down my core values, and creating a list of general activities that aligned with those values, has been very helpful to me in working more efficiently and productively, and quite frankly with a greater sense of vision and purpose. As a result I am able to come to the end of each day with a greater sense of peace that I am “on point” with the life and work to which I’m called.

How about you? Have you identified your core values in life, and how do you make sure you are daily living out those values?

Last fall I had the opportunity to reconnect with Roderick, an old friend who was just a little kid when I saw him over ten years ago, and go to Mile Rock Beach in San Francisco for a photo shoot. Check out the photos below, then connect with Roderick on Instagram. 

In the Fong family we value experiences and adventure, and we seek out ways to live out, and instill in our children, those values. In a culture often consumed with materialism and consumerism, we try to live differently. One way we attempt to do that is by going on family adventures that allow us to experience the world, other cultures, and and other communities. In 2013-14 we did that by moving to Thailand, living there for a year, and engaging the people and culture. But you don't have to go to the other side of the world for new experiences and adventures. There are many experiences to be had, and people to meet, right outside your back door. A couple of weeks ago for us it was the adventure of hiking up Mount Davidson, the highest natural point in San Francisco. The photo essay below shares our experience.

Lately I've been learning a lot about my personal capacity, or lack thereof, in my daily life. My life is busy. I have a family. I work as a photographer to help with the bills. I work as a web developer to help with more bills (I do live in San Francisco after all). I am building a new organization/community called ASH that invites companies and individuals to come together around shared stories and experiences. I have personal creative projects I am working on. I regularly meet with and mentor artists around the Bay Area. I have a lot on my plate.

I don't say that to complain. I love what I'm doing and am extremely blessed to have the family, profession, and life that I have. Not only that, but I'm not the only one who is busy and who struggles with limited capacity. So far be it from me to complain or make excuses.

No, I say that to admit that in the midst of my busy life and limited capacity, I have much to learn about how to order my life, schedule my days, maintain proper priorities and values, and simply to live well. I suspect I’m not alone in this.

One way I have been learning to increase my capacity is through rethinking how I approach my daily schedule. My tendency is to value freedom and flexibility of schedule, keeping everything open so I can make adjustments as things come up. However, I've found that when I approach my schedule in this way, I spend ridiculous amounts of time just debating in my mind what I should do next. And instead of making a decision, I stall by checking my Twitter and Instagram feed. Then I open my email to see if I have any new messages, as if I would have gotten something important since I checked ten minutes ago. Then I stall further, even while I try to convince myself that I’m not, by doing a few mindless tasks that, while may be important, shouldn't be anywhere near the top of my list of priorities. And just like that, I've wasted a bunch of my day before I even start something that actually needs to be done. It’s often left me frustrated and overwhelmed.

No more! In an effort to take control of my daily schedule, I’ve been making a few changes to how I approach my day. I'll summarize them below, and expand on them in upcoming blog posts.

1. I have created a list of high level priorities and values, adjusted every Sunday, that guide the creation of my weekly schedule.
2. Every Sunday I survey my upcoming week and create a daily schedule broken out into blocks of time.
3. I am experimenting with organizing my day around the idea of Strategic Renewal, based on this NY Times article and this Chase Jarvis blog post.
4. Rather than setting lofty 1-month, 6-month, or even 1 year goals, I am approaching my schedule, priorities, and goals one week at a time. 

In addition to making the changes listed above, I recently read an article by James Clear, called The Difference Between Professionals and Amateurs, which has been a needed kick in the ass to stop waiting for inspiration, the perfect idea, or the ideal scenario before I do my high priority work, in my case photography/film, writing, and exercising. His main point is the real professionals just show every day and get to work. His point, which I needed to be reminded of, has made a significant impact on how I approach my daily schedule…I’ll write more about that soon, but I would encourage you to go give it a read.

On a side note, as a part of my weekly schedule and with writing as one of my high priorities, I am carving out an hour every morning to write, with the commitment to publish a written blog post every Tuesday (no matter how good or bad the post might be) and a photography/video-related blog post every Thursday. More to come on Thursday…

California is in the midst of a severe drought. The water is running out, the rain is absent, and the lawns are brown. Looking for lush, green grass? You’ll have to look elsewhere. Does your life ever feel this way? Your current life situation—community, relationships, art, culture—does it feel like it’s drying up? Perhaps you should look on the other side of the fence because, you know, the grass is always greener over there. Just look. It’s so inviting, so beautiful. It has everything that this old, dry side doesn’t have. Find a gate, climb over the fence, or just knock down that fence. Whatever it takes to get to the other side, where you can roll around in the grass, giggle like a little schoolgirl and experience the best that life has to offer. 

Or don’t. In fact, please don’t. The green grass over there could be a mirage.

I’m the kind of individual who loves adventure, new challenges, and change. Throughout my 20’s my tendency was to tiptoe over to the fence and stare longingly at the other side, believing the green grass over there would finally provide contentment. But it didn’t and I learned it never would. Because as soon as I would get there, and the newness of the place would wear off or things would get difficult, I would tiptoe to the next fence and peek over, thinking, “Oooh, look how green the grass is over there. I need to go there.” And the cycle would continue. And not only would I feel discontent, but I would also miss opportunities to invest more effectively in my community, my relationships, and my art.

But, back to Northern California. I lived in San Francisco post-college during the first dot-com boom. It was an amazing time with many adventures, and I developed relationships I still enjoy today. My heart never fully left San Francisco, and I always sensed that I would return. During the first months of this year, as my wife and I explored the possibility of returning to the US (we lived in Thailand the past year) to pursue new business opportunities and put down deeper roots in a community, San Francisco kept jumping to the forefront of the conversation. Honestly, it didn’t make a lot of sense. Most of my work up to this point had focused on serving NGO’s, which didn’t exactly lend itself toward living in the most expensive city in the country. And even though I lived in the city twelve years ago, neither my wife nor I had a significant history with the area, and we didn’t have a lot of family here. Why settle here? Despite the seeming impracticality of life in San Francisco, I had been creatively and professionally transitioning toward new pursuits that pointed to settling in a larger urban center. I had also been having conversations with friends in San Francisco about the need, and opportunities, for building greater community and collaboration amongst artists in the city. In addition, I was having conversations about new collaborative projects with friends with whom I shared similar vision and values (see http://ashco.co). I was sensing it was time to return to San Francisco, and to commit to investing long-term in the community. 

So, here I am in San Francisco. It’s my home, and I’m excited about the possibilities for life, work, and relationships. And though there might be seasons of drought when I’m tempted to wander, I’m committed to doing my part to faithfully water my own grass.

Do you sometimes feel tempted to pursue greener grass elsewhere? I won’t tell you not to, but do consider the possibility that your side of the fence—your community, your relationships, your work—needs you to stick around and figure out how to responsibly water the grass right where you’re at.

Nine years ago, while living in Bangkok, I was invited by a few of my students (I was an English teacher) to celebrate Loy Krathong at a special dinner event by the Chao Phraya river. Enjoying good food and entertainment, I received my first introduction to the Thai holiday celebrating the rise of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. This year, from November 16-18, I learned that Chiang Mai does its Loy Krathong celebration in a much more elaborate and raucous fashion.

The Loy Krathong and Yi Peng festivals are different festivals, but celebrated concurrently. The Loy Krathong festival is commonly celebrated by releasing krathong, which are elaborately decorated lotus shaped containers, onto a river. It is commonly understood that releasing the krathong is symbolic of letting go of one's anger and negativity. Some Thai also use the krathong to thank the Goddess of Water, Phra Mae Khongha.

The Yi Peng is a Lanna (northern Thai) festival celebrated by launching into the sky khom loy, large lanterns made from a thin fabric such as rice paper. A candle burning inside the lantern fills the lantern with hot air, providing the necessary lift to carry the lantern into the sky. One purpose of the Yi Peng festival is for adherents of Buddhism to make merit.

While my experience of Loy Krathong in Bangkok was relatively laid back, Chiang Mai puts on an elaborate three day festival full of entertainment, fireworks and firecrackers, and launching of krathong and khom loy. Celebrated throughout Chiang Mai, but with the majority of people gathering along the banks of the Ping River, each night of the festival is full of energy and khom loy as thousands of lanterns are released into the night sky. It is an exhilarating and beautiful, albeit noisy, festival. I must say that the Loy Krathong and Yi Peng celebrations are among the best I have experienced in a long time. Below are some images I created while celebrating along the banks of the Ping River.

Source: Wikipedia

A couple of years ago I decided to pursue a video series that highlighted artists who are not only great at their craft, but also view their creative pursuits as part of their responsibility to make a positive difference in their world. Enter Cameron Moberg, also known as Camer1. A gifted graffiti/urban artist and rapper, Camer1 and I met up in San Francisco to spend a couple of days hanging out, working on a wall, and talking life, art, and ministry to youth in the 6th Street corridor of SF. Here's his story.

Every week I come across people, organizations, websites, and other resources that inspire me. Below are a few I thought you might enjoy.

Start a project without worrying about the end product.

The quote above come from The Art of Weekend Rest, linked below.

• Kinfolk — The Art of Weekend Rest
• The Great Discontent
• Jason Grube — Design & Illustration
• StoryCorps — Celebrating 10 Years of Listening to America
• StoryDesk — Create interactive iPad presentations

Every week I come across people, organizations, websites, and other resources that inspire me. Below are a few I thought you might enjoy.

The image and quote above come from a Guinness commercial featuring artist Ainsley Burrows. I never get tired of this commercial, linked below.

• Guinness — Spoken Word
• Phil Borges — Social documentary photographer and filmmaker
• Faded and Blurred (thanks to David duChemin for the heads up on this site)
• Pixars 22 Rules of Storytelling Visualized
• Book, from FiftyThree and Moleskin

I am in the process of exploring new ways to share my work with a larger audience, and I figured posting a monthly wallpaper would be a fun way to do that. So, I present to you my inaugural wallpaper for October, 2011.

I'll share the story behind the image after the jump.

A couple of weeks ago I took my family on a much needed vacation to the Western Slope of the Colorado. After a long, busy summer spent largely in the studio/office, it was time to get outside and enjoy the mountains and beautiful fall colors. We decided to live it up by staying for two nights in a hotel near Glenwood Springs. With a large balcony overlooking the Colorado River, comfortable beds, warm shower, and free breakfast and evening appetizers, we relaxed a little in preparation for two nights of "roughing" it at Lost Lake Campground in Gunnison National Forest. Lost Lake Campground is an intersection of beautiful views, altitude (9600 ft), mountains, lakes, trails, and at this time of year, gorgeous fall colors. Our camp site was right next to Lost Lake Slough and provided us with some of the most beautiful views I have seen in Colorado.

During our second day at the campground I walked down to the shore of the lake and started taking some photos. Along the shore there were patches of reeds poking up out of the water, and I saw a dragonfly flitting in and out of the reeds. Putting the camera to my eye, I tried, mostly in vain, to track the dragonfly. It's no easy task to follow those little guys. I snapped a few shots, but wasn't having much success getting good images. Just before I was about to pack it in, the dragonfly flew to within a few feet of me and just hovered in the air. I snapped off two quick shots, and knew I had captured what I was after.

I hope you enjoy my first wallpaper. Check back each month for a new one. Also, if you know anyone who would enjoy this wallpaper please do send them here to download it.

• Free October 2011 desktop wallpaper — 2600x1734
• Free October 2011 desktop wallpaper — 1440x960
• Free October 2011 desktop wallpaper — 1024x683
• Free October 2011 desktop wallpaper — iPad
• Free October 2011 desktop wallpaper — iPhone

Eight months ago, I was doing the same thing many people do when a new year rolls in. I was casting vision for the new year and creating a number of  goals for myself. I had rather grand aspirations. I was going to read one book per week. I was going to shoot (and post to my Tumblr account) one iPhone photo a day. I was going to do more personal projects. I was going to write at least one blog post per week. I was going to learn Spanish. I was going to exercise more.

Then life happened.

Fast.

and Furious.

Apparently completing work for clients needs to take priority over personal goals. Having a second child just weeks prior to the beginning of the new year takes up a lot of time. Keeping up with a 1 going on 2-year old boy is no easy task (you can ask my wife about that). All that to say, around March I got really busy and most of my goals fell by the side of the road. I've hardly touched a book, aside from a few photography/video related books, since earlier this year. One look at my Tumblr account and my blog will tell you all you need to know about how much I have been shooting with my iPhone and writing. Exercise? Ahem, moving on.

To be honest, I wasn't really frustrated by my failure to maintain my goals. I was thankful for the work I was receiving and felt mostly justified for setting aside my goals for the sake of work and time with my family. However, I came to realize that losing sight of my goals was probably unnecessary. Had I thought through my goals more carefully, and how to balance them with the rest of life, I would like to think I could have maintained them. Instead, I went big and bit off more than I was able to chew. And I paid the price.

A few weeks ago, as things were finally starting to slow down for me, I figured it was time to hit the reset button and rethink my goals. But how to do it without setting myself up for failure? How to set some goals that would challenge me, but also be achievable and sustainable? Thanks to a TED talk, I think I found my solution: try something new for 30 days. Check out the TED video below to find out what I'm talking about, and I'll catch up with you after.

Try something new for 30 days. Makes sense, and seems much more realistic and sustainable than trying to tackle a large set of goals for an entire year. Sure, there is a place for setting goals for an entire year, and I'll probably do it again on a smaller scale when 2012 comes around. But breaking it down into fewer, more manageable goals on a month to month basis, that makes much more sense for me. So, I'm trying something "new" beginning today, September 1 and going through Sept 30. Actually, I am trying two "new" things.

1. Take two, 15-minute breaks during the day. During those two breaks I have to leave the studio and go for a walk, sit outside, or do something that gets me out and moving. I have the tendency to zero in on a task at my desk and not move for hours. Not only is that hard on my body, I'm sure it also diminishes my productivity. After hours of sitting & actually standing now that I have a standup desk & and working, I find I feel like crap. It's time to eliminate that bad habit and start working a bit more healthily. Two 15-minute walks during the day should make a big difference for my overall productivity and health.

2. Write for 20 minutes a day. I really want to write more, but I have to admit it doesn't come easily for me. I have the bad habit of writing a sentence and then editing and re-editing that sentence. In a span of 20 minutes I'm lucky if I get a paragraph written. It's time to break that habit as well. I do want to think and write well, but right now I think I need to simply shoot for more of a stream of consciousness and get my thoughts out there. I can always edit afterward. In fact, today is September 1, and this blog entry was written in about 20 minutes. Off to a great start! (Full disclosure: I did do some editing afterward since I planned to post this to the blog).

So there you have it. The reset button has been hit, and I am writing again and working toward a healthier balance in my work day. And next month, who knows what new things I will try.

Have you ever tried something new for 30 days? If not, I would encourage you to do it. You may just find that you pick up some new habits or eliminate some bad ones. If you have done it or plan to, I would love to hear about it. Share your experiences and tips for success in the comments below.

As a quick aside, the photo attached to this post actually is relevant. It is the view from studio where I spent so much of time this past summer...time spent working on things other than the goals I set at the beginning of the year.

As another quick aside, one byproduct that I hope writing for 20 minutes a day will generate is a blog post here and there. I definitely want to get back to sharing the lessons I am learning as a photographer, videographer, artist, business owner, visionary, etc., and hopefully out of my writing exercises will come some content worth sharing with you. No guarantees, but keep an eye out here for some new posts. Or better yet, subscribe to my RSS feed or subscribe to receive emails (you can do that by scrolling toward the top of this page, right below my Twitter feed) whenever I post a new blog entry. You should also follow me on Twitter or Facebook as I will be regularly posting content there as well.

I was especially impressed by a typographic mural found at the headquarters of Wieden+Kennedy in Portland. Created by students at W+K 12, the mural uses over 100,000 clear plastic push pins to spell out the word, "Fail Harder." Underscoring the importance of failure in the creative process, the mural took over 351 hours to create. It also falls in line with the words of Dan Wieden, "You're only good to me after you've made three tremendous mistakes." I'm constantly reminding myself and others to embrace failure instead of fearing it. Failure is an important part of the creative process, and it's by pushing through your failures that you find your great successes. It is far too easy to play it safe, to do what has already been done, to embrace the status quo. Push through your fears, step out of your comfort zone, fail harder, and you'll succeed easier.</p>

Check out the Fail Harder video below. It was a really cool project.

I recently attended, at a local church, a gathering of artists that come together monthly to encourage one another and discuss art. The topic for this particular gathering was "Sacred Space." I am interested in the intersection of art and religion, and I looked forward to hearing the speaker and engaging the topic. It was a valuable discussion and encouraged me to continue thinking about what sacred space looks like in my life.

A few years ago I worked at a theater company/coffee shop ministry in a college town in northeast Iowa. The directors of the organization, a husband and wife team, daily challenged me to think more deeply about the arts. One topic on which they regularly challenged me was the pursuit of sacred moments, which for me became synonymous with sacred space. They taught me that every moment can and should be a sacred moment with God and those around me. Whether in the theater acting, in the coffee shop pulling shots of espresso, outside mowing the lawn, or inside doing my laundry, I had the opportunity to make every moment a sacred one. It was the realization that God is always with me, his Spirit lives within me, and every task can be an act of worship and co-creation with him. When I view every moment and task as a time of worship and co-creation, those moments becomes sacred moments. The spaces in which I am become sacred spaces.

Last year I traveled to Haiti to visually capture the stories of the people who had been so deeply impacted by the earthquake earlier in the year. All around me I saw devastation and need. People were struggling to survive. It was hot, the air quality was terrible, and things were uncomfortable. And to top it off for me personally, I was as sick as a dog. It was hardly a location that most people would view as sacred. Many people, when thinking of sacred space, envision a quiet, peaceful place in which to create their art. They envision a place of "beauty" that stimulates all of their creativity. They don't picture Port-au-Prince, Haiti. However, Haiti was a sacred space for me because I knew that God was with me. His Spirit was inside of me. And despite the surface-level difficulties of working in Haiti, I was able to work with an attitude of worship and co-creation with God as I captured, through photography, the stories of the people with whom I came into contact.

There is something to be said for having a quiet, peaceful spot in which to create, think, reflect, and find refreshment. I love finding those places. They are healing to me in the midst of an oftentimes hectic and stressful world. However, far more important than the physical environment in which I find myself, is the heart and attitude that I bring to any situation or environment. My external environment can be difficult and stressful, but internally I find a place of quiet and peace as I co-create with God. That is my sacred space. That drives every moment to become sacred, regardless of what my environment looks like on the surface. Am I always successful at allowing every moment and space to become sacred? Hardly. I often fail miserably at bringing the right heart and attitude to my life. I'm working at it, however. And I'm thankful that I am not alone in the process. God is continuing to shape my heart and attitude toward the varied aspects of my life. He is helping me to approach every moment and space as sacred. Also, I have wonderful people in my life who challenge and encourage me to keep the right heart and attitude toward my life and my art. A sacred space isn't merely the physical location. It isn't merely what can be seen on the surface. It begins in the heart, the attitude, the realization that every moment can be a sacred moment and space of co-creation with God.

At the end of 2010, after further considering some of my goals for 2011, I realized that I had developed a number of action items without having a strong sense of the values and motivations behind them. It was easy to say I wanted to read one book per week, write one blog post per week, complete one photo shoot per month for my personal portfolio, etc. Why? Why do I want to accomplish these tasks/projects? What is my motivation? I decided to take a step back and consider some of my values that were driving my goals for the new year. In that process I developed a number of themes that will guide my goals, tasks, projects, and the kind of jobs that I am willing to take on. Here is the quick list: Generosity, Collaboration, Relationship, Courage, Remarkability, Non-Conformance.

Generosity

Last year, as I was getting my business started, I worried a lot about generating enough income to support my family and pay the bills. I began to view ideas and opportunities through the lens of financial profitability. I began to view my time as money. My vision began to succumb to economic demands. There is no doubt I need to give due consideration to my finances. I need to earn income in order to stay in business. However, I got my priorities flipped around. I was beginning to lose sight of the reason I decided to pursue photography as my vocation in the first place.

I have a vision for my work, and part of my vision is to give the gift of story through photography (and other forms of media such as video, audio, web). I desire my art to bless people, challenge people, and produce positive change in the world. I desire to serve people; both my clients, as well as the people who view my work. As my vision was developing, never did I think to myself, "I want to bless people, challenge people, and produce positive change in the world...but only if I make loads of money while I'm at it!" So why was I approaching my art through the filter of financial gain? Why was I rejecting some creative pursuits if I didn't anticipate that they would earn me income? Why was I accepting some creative pursuits that would earn income but fell out of line with my vision? Again, my priorities got flipped around. It was time to refocus my vision and my values.

I love people. I love the world in which I live. I believe that love is a prerequisite to truly being generous (thanks to David Sacks for reminding me of this). I'm slowly learning to love people better. Financial concerns often get in the way of truly loving people, and thus truly being generous. So this coming year and beyond, I have refocused my heart and mind to consider my art through the filter of generosity (and love). My business and financial sustainability will be taken care of in the process.

Collaboration

I don't create art in a vacuum. I can't create art in a vacuum. When I do, my art suffers. Collaboration is one way in which I can spur growth in my work and in the work of others. This value/theme, along with every other one that I listed above, relates back to generosity. Through collaboration, I have the opportunity to give generously to those with whom I am working. Each of us working in collaboration have the opportunity to give generously to one another. My work will be better. My friends' work will be better. The people who view our art will be better off. And we'll all have a lot more fun! Additionally, through collaboration I will be able to develop deeper relationships and foster a more vibrant community.

Relationship

One of my passions is to see stronger communities of artists developed locally, regionally, and internationally. Stronger community is built through stronger relationships, one person at a time. This also relates back to generosity and my love for people, and by developing more meaningful relationships with people, (clients, collaborators, photography subjects, the people who view my art) I will hopefully be a blessing to them, and ultimately encourage more positive change in the world. I don't want my art to be an impersonal communication to other people. Hopefully my art, both the process and the finished works, will bring me into deeper relationship with people, and bring people into deeper, healthier relationship with those around them. Whether humanitarian/travel work on the other side of the world, or portrait work in my studio, I love the opportunity to engage people, to get to know them, to learn from them, and to hear their stories. Building relationships with others is a fundamental part of my creative process.

Courage

Courage takes many forms, and it is a process for me to develop greater courage in all situations. What are some ways I need my courage to grow? I need to have the courage to succeed. I need to have the courage to fail. I need to have the courage to try new things. I need to have the courage to step out of my comfort zone. I need to have the courage to go against the flow (see non-conformance below). I need to have the courage to engage my subjects on a deeper level rather than simply capturing an image. I need to have the courage refrain from taking an image when it does not affirm the dignity and honor of an individual or culture. I need to have the courage to persevere through hard times (business, creative, relational, spiritual). I need to have the courage to do the hard things. I need to have the courage to love well and truly be generous.

Remarkability

Our culture celebrates mediocrity. Our schools train us to follow the rules, to fit in, to go with the flow. Many of our jobs reward conformity. Many photographers are happy simply to create an average image or be inspired by (i.e. copy) great photographers' work. Those who strive to be remarkable are in the minority. I want to be in the minority. I want to defy mediocrity. I want to always pursue excellence and remarkability. On a related note, I'm not interested in perfection. Perfection is for the machines and trained monkeys. Those who are remarkable are too busy creating, failing, experimenting, challenging the status quo, and creating their own map. People who create their own map aren't perfect, but they are often remarkable.

Non-Conformance

I'm not interested in rocking the boat just for the sake of doing it. I'm also not interested in rejecting the status quo simply to stand out. Non-conformance is important to me because I don't want to simply follow the crowd. I don't want to jump off the cliff because everyone else is doing it. I don't want to follow the same map that everyone else is. I want to chart my own course. I want to create my own map. I want to be myself.

Along with just about everyone else in our culture, I have been trained to conform. I have been taught the same recipe for success. I have been told what the American dream looks like and that I am supposed to pursue it. I say that's bull. What kind of life is that? There has to be more than simply the formula that someone else came up with. There has to be more than doing what everyone else is already doing. Non-conformance is important to me because my life will look differently than everyone else's. I'm out to find it, discover it, create it. I would encourage you to do the same.

Thus endeth the short list of some of my values that will guide me in 2011 and beyond. I have other values, some that are even more fundamental than the ones listed above. Perhaps I will write about some of them at some point. However, I think this is a good list to get me started and help me pursue, and remain faithful to, my vision as a photographer...well, simply as a human. Thoughts? Reactions? Values that guide you as a photographer, artist, human? I would love to hear about them.

2011 is off to a great start, and I am off and running with new (renewed) vision, goals, and projects for the upcoming year! I'm not normally one to pursue new years resolutions, but I do appreciate the changing of the years as opportunities to refocus and grow on the previous year's work, both personal and professional. 2010 brought significant change as I made the decision to pursue photography as my primary vocation (as opposed to web design). While in 2011 I will continue to focus on my still photography work, I will continue to do some web design work, and I will also be pursuing more video and multimedia projects. I am finding that I can provide my clients better service and value when I combine various forms of media into cohesive packages. I'm getting away from the point of this post, however. In December I took some time to reflect on 2010 and consider some goals and projects that I would like to accomplish in 2011. I have listed them below, both for the purpose of sharing some of what 2011 holds, and as a form of accountability. Knowing that all of you (perhaps all 1 of you who bothers reading this blog) know what my goals are, I will hopefully be that much more motivated to follow them through!

Read 1 book per week

I have known various people who have, at one time or another, pursued a schedule of reading 1 book per week. I stood in amazement, wondered how in the world they were able to maintain such a schedule, and dismissed it as something I wouldn't be able to do until later in life. I have a business, a wife, 2 young children, and many responsibilities that take up my time. There is no way I could read one book a week, right? Then I read a post by Julien Smith about reading 1 book a week that challenged me to actually give it a shot. I was motivated. I was inspired. But I decided to hedge my bets and make it a goal to read 1 book every 2 weeks. Book #1: The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Guillebeau. In chapter one Chris makes a comment about radical goal-setting...umm, I guess I could argue that 1 book every 2 weeks was a radical goal, but the reality was that I was setting the bar low in order to set myself up for success. In a sense I was failing already. So with both excitement and trepidation I adjusted my goal to read 1 book a week. I know it can be done. I may have to get up earlier or stay up later at night, but it can be done. And as I write this, I am off to a good start! Only 7 days into the year and I am over halfway through book #2, The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald.

A quick note about why I am pursuing this project. Sure, it will be fun to be able to say I read 1 book a week in 2011, but the main reason I am pursuing this project is to learn, grow (intellectually, creatively, spiritually, etc), and expand my horizons. Also, by increasing my creative and intellectual inputs I know that my creative vision as a photographer will be expanded.

Write 1 blog post per week

I guess I can count this as my blog post for week 1, so I'm off to a good start! I also have a number of started, but never finished, posts that need to be published. Writing is hard for me, although I derive great satisfaction from it. The "hard" part often wins out though, and my blog usually sits idle. I'm determined to change that this year. I am starting off by scheduling writing time a few days a week, and out of that hopefully I will have some blog posts that will be of value to someone besides myself. One of my goals for my blog was to share my learning process as a photographer and business owner. I certainly learned a lot in 2010, and anticipate many new lessons in 2011. I plan to share more of these lessons on my blog in 2011.

365 iPhoneography project

I have already started my 365 project, along with an explanation of the project, on my Tumblr blog. Check it out at http://shunluoifong.tumblr.com. I hope you follow along, and please feel free to leave comments/feedback from time to time.

One (at least) photo shoot per month for my personal portfolio

In addition to my paid client work, I plan to be more intentional about pursuing personal projects this year. More blog posts to come as I plan and complete each project.

Learn Spanish

I have always wanted to learn multiple languages. While living in Thailand I picked up some of the language. And I took some Spanish in high school, but promptly forgot most of it. Since I am planning a return trip to Peru this year, I figured Spanish would be a good place to start to finally learn my second language.

Drink 2-3 bottles of water daily (64-96 ounces)

Staying hydrated is important, especially here at altitude in Colorado. However, much to the chagrin of my wife, my water bottle usually stays full throughout the day as I down my coffee. It's time to change that. The plan: 1 bottle in the morning, 1 bottle in the afternoon, and 1 bottle in the evening.

Exercise

I'm still working on some of the specifics, but I do have a couple of projects already started:

• Hike The Incline in Manitou Springs 1 time a week.
• Complete the 100 pushups program

I have a few other goals and projects on the list, but I will wait to share more about them at a later time.

Have you set some goals for 2011? If not, I would encourage you to set some goals for the upcoming year. Write them down, and share them in the comments below. We can hold each other accountable!

If you are a photographer, and you have a heart for giving back to the community and people in need, then you have probably already heard of the Help Portrait movement. If you haven't heard about this amazing event, make the jump to learn more about it.

"A shift in thinking...Help-Portrait is a global movement of photographers using their time, gear and expertise to give back to those in need." This introduction from the Help-Portrait website provides a great summary of what Help-Portrait is about. Founded by photographer Jeremy Cowart, this movement challenges photographers (and anyone with a passion for reaching out to those in need) to find people in need and bless them by creating their portrait. As a global event, it is held annually in December...this year it will be held on or around December 4. I could tell you more about this movement, but I'm going to let the Help-Portrait video do it. Watch the video, check out the Help-Portrait website, and then read on to learn more about the Colorado Springs event and how you can get involved.

If you live in the Colorado Springs area there are two Help-Portrait events taking place on December 4. A number of photographers from the area will be partnering with Northern Churches Care to give portraits to the families to whom NCC ministers. Another group of photographers will be partnering with the Marian House to give portraits to the people who walk through their doors. Whether or not you are a photographer, if you have a desire to minister to people who are walking through difficult seasons in life, I encourage you to jump on board with either of these events.

If you would like to participate in the Northern Churches Care event, contact me and I will get you more information. If you would like to participate in the Marian House event, visit the Help-Portrait community site and join the Colorado Springs group. There you will find more information about the Marian House event.

If you don't live in Colorado Springs but would like to join Help-Portrait, visit the community site and search for your town. If one doesn't exist, this is your opportunity to get one started! Get off the couch, grab your camera, and go bless the people in your community!

This morning we visited the landfills of Trujillo, home and workplace for a number of Peruvians. It was heartbreaking to see families, including children, living and working in the midst of so much trash. This young boy spends his days sifting through and organizing trash piles such as this one.

This morning we traveled about an hour east of Trujillo to the Andean city of Otuzco, home of the Virgen de la Puerta (Virgin of the Door). However, our purpose was not to visit the Virgin, but rather to visit the poor living on the outskirts of the city.

We arrived in Otuzco only to find that the pastor we had thought would guide us had moved away from the city. However, we befriended a local who agreed to take us to one of the poor areas of the town. After twisting and turning through the narrow streets, we encountered some families who were living in very difficult conditions. This elderly lady had recently been living in a tiny "home" that was about 3 feet by 6 feet and only a few feet high, just enough room to crawl in and sleep. A quiet, gentle woman, she did not tell us much about herself, but agreed to pose for some portraits. Her face, lined with wrinkles of time, tells the story of a long, difficult life. Unfortunately we did not get to learn more about this woman, but it my hope that through this image, and others like it, you will get to know the Peruvian people on a deeper level and be a part of ministering to them.