Fresh out of STREET NOTES is the 5 Yes, 5 No challenge.
The concept is simple. You spend a whole day, preferably on a weekend, to approach a bunch of strangers to “make their portrait” and you keep asking until you get 5 people to say yes, and 5 people to say no.
It is easy to get five people to say yes. It is harder to get five people to say no.
Therefore, the off shoot of this assignment is the “10 No” challenge — you try to get ten people to reject you as quick as possible.
I. Overcoming the fear of rejection
The purpose of this assignment is for your overcome your fear of rejection. Because we are more afraid of the fear of rejection, rather than the rejection itself.
When we get rejected, it isn’t actually that big of a deal. Just say thank you for your time, and move on.
To be honest to be an entrepreneur is only to overcome your fear of rejection. If anything a true entrepreneur is someone who loves to get rejected.
The typical entrepreneur has ten failed businesses before one successful one.
If you’re trying to get a client, you will probably have to make at least a thousand cold emails before getting one answer.
In street photography, and life, you will get rejected a lot. But steel your spine to the point where you are no longer afraid of rejection, but love it.
II. Fake confidence
Fake it till you make it.
If you are not confident, pretend to be confident. Play role play. Pretend to be an actor, and imitate the most confident person you know, like Arnold S, or Bruce Wayne, or Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark, aka Iron Man.
Pretend to shoot like Eric Kim. Shoot with a smile, and give fist bumps liberally. Give lots of high fives, ask a lot of questions, and just look like a stupid Asian tourist. I give you permission to just blame this all on me.
But real talk, we are all insecure. I am, you are. We all are faking.
The best way to build your self confidence is to pretend you are, and to really falsely believe in your fake self confidence long enough until you believe it.
III. Lose body fat, build muscle.
Also practical way to build confidence, lose body fat and build muscle. Stop drinking soda, fruit juices, and consuming anything with high fructose corn syrup or sugar. Stop eating desserts, pastries, bread, pasta, and cupcakes. Drink your coffee black, without sugar or cream.
For strength, do yoga and power lift. I love deadlifts. Or just do chin ups on a local playground, or tree. Do push-ups in your living room. Do dips at home in between two chairs. Buy a chin up bar that you can put in between your door frame. Do body weight squats, or one legged squats.
IV. How to build confidence in your mind.
And to have more confidence in your mind, read Stoic philosophy, aka Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and Diogenes.
Train your body like your mind, and vice versa.
Anyone with confidence in street photography, in themselves, and art is just a modern day Stoic with a camera.
Conclusion
Buy STREET NOTES as inspiration. Read it on the go on the subway, on the bus, when you are bored, or on the weekends. Keep it in your camera bag, and open it whenever you need a shot of inspiration (pun intended).
Buy STREET NOTES it as a present for your friends, and use the principles of street photography to make you not only a better photographer, but a more confident human being.
Also if you want to build your confidence in real life, attend an ERIC KIM WORKSHOP.
Never forget; the more risks you take in life, the more grand you will be. Life a life of heroism and grandeur. Like Jay Z said:
I’d rather die enormous, than lie dormant.
Be strong,
Eric