Why Be Negative?
What is ‘negativity’?

A philosophical inquiry:
There are some people who are “negative”— people who are generally disagreeable to be around.
But what does it really mean if an individual is “negative”? Is being negative a bad thing?
Negativity

Technically if we think about physics, we need BOTH the positive and the negative (they are antipodes, polar opposites).
In real life, whenever we call something “positive” or “negative”, it is always a value judgement.
For example, a lot of people judge that being hungry is a “negative”, but that is just an interpretation. We NEED hunger in order to motivate ourselves to move and be alive. A human being who never felt hungry would probably die off. The faculty of hunger is what helped humans survive and thrive throughout history. Furthermore, food tastes 100x better when you eat when you’re super hungry. Fasting is essential if we truly want to appreciate food.
Everyone has different value judgements

As individuals, we are constantly creating value judgements. We classify things as “good” or “bad” in accordance with our own personal needs. Thus what is “good” for someone else isn’t necessarily good for you. Furthermore, what is “bad” for someone else isn’t necessarily bad for you.
It works the other way. What is good for you isn’t necessarily good for someone else. What is “bad” or “negative” to you isn’t necessarily bad to another.
Thus it seems the logical conclusion is this:
We shouldn’t assume that what we consider as “good” as “good” for another.
Focus on yourself

Generally this means:
Leave others alone, and don’t try to superimpose your own virtues onto others.
Furthermore, we shouldn’t criticize others when we perceive they are “sinning” or doing things which are “bad/evil”. Because we are superimposing our own value judgements to their actions — but this is totally false because the reasons why they do what they do is totally different from our own personal motives and thinking.
Our desires, motives, and personal ethics are totally different from anyone else.

Thus, we don’t really have an accurate way to judge the behavior of others, because we are totally blind to their own personal motivations or thinking.
Other people are generally a black box— no matter how intelligent we are, we will never be able to truly understand other people.
Thus it seems to be a waste of time or effort trying to understand others. Instead, we should focus our personal efforts to understand ourselves, our own personal desires, our own personal motivations, and our own personal needs.
We are grey boxes

This is also the tricky thing about the road to self-knowledge or wisdom:
No matter what, we will never be able to 100% understand our own personal motivations.
If I act and do something, I might fool myself in coming up with an explanation on why I did that thing. But in reality, we often make us explanations on our actions post-ex-facto (after the fact).
When I say that we are grey boxes, what I mean is:
With tremendous effort, we can gain MORE self-wisdom and understanding. But there will always be a limit to self-wisdom– we will never become “white boxes” (100% understanding of ourselves).
Don’t worry about yourself too much

Furthermore, I don’t believe that the purpose of philosophy is to only gain self-wisdom. Instead, this is my thought:
We are instruments of knowledge, which means we need SOME self-understanding if we want to be more effective in seeking more knowledge.
Thus, seeking self-wisdom is another road or a means to seeking knowledge.
Ethics vs Philosophy

Another thought:
There is a difference between studying ethics/morals and philosophy.
I see philosophy as a pure pursuit of knowledge and wisdom.
I see ethics/morals more as sociology– trying to determine how should we treat and interact with others.
Negative people as energy black holes

Sorry for the slight de-tour, but this is how I define a ‘negative’ person:
Someone who saps your energy in a disempowering way.
For example, when you interact with other people (friends, family members, strangers, acquaintances) ask yourself:
After interacting with that person, do I have MORE energy and power, or do I have LESS energy and power?
A person who GIVES you power is a “positive” person. A person who TAKES AWAY your power is a “negative” person.
How to classify other people

To use a better terminology, I would say:
- A ‘positive’ person who gives you energy is an empowering individual.
- A ‘negative’ person who takes away your energy is a TOXIC individual.
Thus the secret is to excise (subtract) all toxic individuals from your life.
Or another analogy:
If you have cancer in your body (toxic people), you must destroy the cancer at all costs, even though it might (almost) kill you.
Are you positive or negative?

Before we even criticize other people, we must ask ourselves:
Are we ourselves negative or positive?
Which means,
Do we nay-say other people? Do we encourage others, or discourage others?
I have determined that in my life, I will only be a YEA-sayer! Life is too short to be a NAY-sayer.
I only want to encourage, motivate, and inspire others. No negative energy from me.
When others give you ideas, are you ENCOURAGING them, or DISCOURAGING them? Do you give people ideas on how they can succeed? Or do you give others reasons why they will fail?
Life is too short to be ‘realistic’.

I say life is too short to be ‘realistic’.
A lot of people who tell you to be ‘realistic’ don’t want to see you succeed. Why? When others see you pursue your dreams in life, they feel belittled, because they are comparing their self-ego with you. When they see YOU rising and flying higher, and they are on the ground, they will want to PREVENT you from flying higher, because they see the distance between you and them widening. And they don’t like that.
Ignore others

Ignore others. Ignore the feedback of others. Ignore the ideas of others.
Just focus on yourself, and take massive risks. Have fun with it; life is too short to be meek, focus your efforts on achieving your personal peak!
GO HARD!
ERIC
Photography Entrepreneurship 101

Self-Empowerment

- Why You Must Follow Your Passion in Life
- How to Conquer Shyness
- Don’t Ask for Permission
- Onto the Next One
- Why You Must Self-Promote Yourself
- Why You Must Conquer Your Fears in Life
Marketing and Branding

- Why Blog?
- Why You Must Self-Promote Yourself
- Create Substance, Not Content
- Photography Marketing and Branding 101
- How to Master Marketing in Photography
- 10 Tips How to Become a More Famous Photographer
Entrepreneurship Lifestyle

- Why Hustle?
- Why Save Money?
- Ascetic is Sexy
- Why You Must Become Self-Employed
- How to Push Yourself Beyond the Limit
- Is Location Independence Overrated?
Entrepreneurship Mindset

- How to Get Discovered
- Financial Independence
- Disregard Success or Failure; Always Attempt More!
- In Praise of Stubbornness
- Success is Personal Bravery
- Why You Must Become an Entrepreneur
- How to Brand and Market Yourself as a Photographer
- How to Conquer Haters
- How to Accumulate Capital
- Why Be Different?
- How to Master Marketing in Photography
- Don’t Play it Safe
- Why Blog?
- How to Be a More Productive Photographer
- How to Hustle
- True Productivity
- What Can Only You Do?
- Love Risk
- What is Success?
- Fill a Vacuum
- Think Big
- What is Your Dream in Life?
- 8 Blogging Productivity Tips
- Why Be Normal?
- How Much Suffering Are You Willing to Endure to Achieve Your Dreams?
Photography Entrepreneurship 101

- Don’t Sit Still!
- Bitcoin for Photographers
- Don’t Be Timid
- Why Start Your Own Photography Blog?
- Fill a Void
- 1,000 True Followers: How to Build Your Own Niche in Photography
- Photography Entrepreneurship 101: Why You Must Start Your Own Email Newsletter
- TURBO CREATION: Why a Maxed-Out MacBook Laptop is the Best Investment You Can Make for Photography Entrepreneurship
Life and Productivity Hacks

- My Ultimate Productivity and Life Hacks
- Life/Productivity Hack: Write (Type on a phone) While Walking on a Dynamic Treadmill
- ERIC KIM Life, Creativity, and Productivity Hacks
How to Make a Living from Your Passion

- Digital Nomad Photographer
- Build Your Own Instagram!
- How to Be More Ambitious
- Do It Your Way
- How to Measure Your Progress as a Photography Entrepreneur + Come Up With New Ideas
- How to Make a Living From Your Passion in Photography
Put a Dent in the Universe.

- Fear Disguised as Reason
- Distraction is the Enemy
- Innovate for the Sake of Innovating!
- Reality is Malleable!
- Stoic Entrepreneurship
- Against Self-Preservation
- The Purpose of Life is to Make New Stuff!
How to Succeed as an Entrepreneur

- You Have No Limits.
- Calculated Risk-Taking
- Invest in Yourself
- The Secret of Happiness: Shoot for the Moon!
- Moonshot Thinking
- Why We Should all Be Photography Entrepreneurs
- Memento Mori Entrepreneurship
- Why it is Better to Beg For Forgiveness than Ask For Permission
- How to Become a Digital Nomad
- Why You Must Own Your Own Platform
- First Principle Thinking for Photography Entrepreneurs
- How I Became a Digital Nomad
- Better to Beg For Forgiveness than Ask For Permission!
- Spurn Pleasing Others!
- Create Your Own Niche
- How to Gain More Exposure For Your Photography
- Intense Focus
- How to Conquer Your Fears as an Entrepreneur
- Define Yourself
- Let Dissatisfaction Drive You Forward!
- It Doesn’t Matter if Someone Else Has Done it Before!
- How to Succeed as a Photography Entrepreneur: Be Extremely Resourceful
- Open Source Business Model in Photography Entrepreneurship
- Entrepreneurship 101: Growth and Innovation Over Self-Preservation
- How to Create Value as a Photography Entrepreneur
- Why Become a Photography Entrepreneur?
- Why You Must Ignore Nay-Sayers to Succeed in Entrepreneurship, Business, and Life
The Modern Photographer: Tips, Strategies, and Tactics to Thrive as a Visual Artist in the Digital Age

Business Mental Models

- How to Succeed as a Photography Entrepreneur: Be Extremely Resourceful
- Open Source Business Model in Photography Entrepreneurship
- Entrepreneurship 101: Growth and Innovation Over Self-Preservation
How to Monetize Your Photography

- Photography Entrepreneurship 101: INFLUENCE
- Should I Monetize My Passion for Photography?
- 10 Practical Photography Monetization Strategies: Pricing, Google SEO, & Entrepreneurship
- How to Make Money From Street Photography
Why Become a Photography Entrepreneur?

THE MODERN PHOTOGRAPHER

- CREATIVE CAPITALISM
- How to Monetize Your Photography
- 5 Practical Photography Career Tips and Advice
- 10x Thinking
- How to Hustle as a Photographer
- How to Become Your Own Master Marketer
- The ‘T’ Technique of Success
- Go Ahead and Sell Out
- What is Your Unique Voice?
- Why You Must Self-Promote Yourself
- What is Your Unique Angle as a Photographer?
- Photography Content Marketing 101
- Why You Must Become Your Own Publisher
- The Art of Cross-Pollination in Photography
Photography Entrepreneurship Articles

- Why You Shouldn’t Trust Your Pictures to Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Flickr
- How to Make Money From Your Photography
- Photography SEO and Blogging: How to Become Number One on Google
- Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Motivation
- Now is the Best Time to Be a Photographer
- PRODUCERISM
- What Is The Value of a Picture?
- Your Photographic Labor is Not Free
PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS 101

- Chapter 1. How to Make a Photography Blog
- Chapter 2. How to Price Yourself
- Chapter 3. How to Find Your Market
- Chapter 4. Why Teach Workshops?
- Chapter 5. How to Build Trust
- Chapter 6. How to Market Yourself
- Chapter 7: Why Should Someone Attend Your Workshop?
KEYS TO SUCCESS

- Why You Must Be a “Personality” in Order to Succeed
- THRIVE OR DIE.
- Impatience is a Virtue
- Create Your Own Category
- HOW TO DREAM BIG.
- Will Not or Cannot?
- Why Not?
- How to Think BIG
- How to Stay Ahead of the Curve
- How to Invest in Yourself
- The Two Camera Rule
- MEANINGFUL DIFFERENTIATION
- Advice For College Students
- How to Thrive in Uncertain Times
- CANNIBALIZE YOURSELF.
- DO AND GROW RICH
- Does Fear of Punishment Hold You Back?
- HOW TO GET MORE FOLLOWERS
- How to Innovate
- How to Build Your Own Empire
- YOU ARE ENTITLED TO HARD WORK.
- PICK YOURSELF.
- OWN YOUR PLATFORM
- 10 KEYS TO SUCCESS
Table of Contents

- Preface. BRAVE NEW WORLD OF PHOTOGRAPHY
- Chapter 1. How to Create Value
- Chapter 2. ZEN CAPITALISM
- Chapter 3. Scarcity
- Chapter 4. How to Brand Yourself
- Chapter 5. How to Build a True Following
- Chapter 6. The Blueprint to Success in Photography
- Chapter 7. HOW TO BE BOLD
- Chapter 8. How to Sell Out
- Chapter 9. GO AGAINST THE GRAIN
- Chapter 10. EXTREME ABUNDANCE
- Chapter 11. Photography Experience Economy
- Chapter 12. Why You Should Make Money for Your Photography
- Chapter 13. How to Become a Famous Photographer
Photography Business 101
How to Make Money with Photography

- How to Charge More Money in Your Photography
- Why You Should Not Pursue Photography as Career
- Can Photography Make You Rich?
- How I Earn $200,000+ a Year From Photography
- How to earn $10,000 a month as a photographer
- Why you must be an expensive photographer
Photography Marketing 101
- Why Have More Followers?
- Why You Should Do Photography Work For Free
- How I Became an Internet Famous Photographer
- Photography Blogging Ideas
- Why You Should Promote Your Own Name
- How to Build a Following
- How to Stand Out as a Photographer.
- HOW TO GO VIRAL AS A PHOTOGRAPHER.
- How to Master Marketing
- How to Sell Yourself

How to Hustle.
- Entrepreneurial Advice to My 18 Year Old Self
- How to Become Insanely Productive.
- 5 Lessons From Hesiod on Hustling
Entrepreneurial Principles
- It is Better to Beg For Forgiveness Than Ask For Permission
- The Free Way to Become Rich
- JUST DO IT.
- 7 Steps: How to Make a Living From Your Passion
- How to Do What You Love for a Living
- How to Create an MVP (Minimum Viable Product)
- How to Fail Big
- How to Invest in Yourself
- How to Be Bold in Photography and Life
- Mission: Cover Your Rent and Food
- 1,000 True Fans
- The “10x Principle”: The Only Difference Between “Success” and “Failure”
- Make More Value Not Money
- We Live in a Photo Utopia
How to be a Full-time Photographer
- How to Make a Living From Photography
- The 3 Principles of Making Money With Photography
- Advice for Aspiring Full-Time Photographers
- Don’t Go Into Debt For Your Photography
- How to Brand Yourself as a Photographer
- Trust: The Most Important Thing You Need to Succeed as a Photographer
Photography Blogging

- How to become rich from photography blogging
- How to Make a Living with Blogging
- 50 Blogging Tips For Beginners
- How to Start Your Own Photography Blog
- A Photographer’s Guide to SEO, Blogging, and Social Media
How to Teach Photography
- How to Become a Photography Teacher
- How to Teach a Street Photography Class
- Why I Teach Street Photography Workshops
Social Media
- Why I Deleted My Instagram
- The Social Media Blackbook for Photographers
- Why Do You Need More Likes or Followers?
- Instagram is Going to Be the Next Facebook
- Don’t Trust “Free” Photography Social Networks