Let us take back the means of production and publishing, by owning our own photo publishing platform (our website/blog), instead of just depending on Facebook-Instagram or other social media platforms.
Until you own your platform, you cannot be free

If you don’t own your own platform or the means of publishing, you don’t own anything. When you upload your photos to Facebook or Instagram, you technically don’t “own” your photos anymore. You’re just leasing your photo access from Facebook/Instagram, in exchange for for Facebookgram to put advertisements next to your beautiful artwork, as well as you to be advertised to.
Long-term thriving

If you want to thrive as a photographer and artist for a long time on the internet, don’t become trapped by the golden shackles of Facebook (who also owns Instagram). The more you build your platform on the land of another (digital share cropping), the more enslaved you will become to them, and more beholden to them.
Digital slaves

How is Facebook worth billions of dollars? Simple: they get you (and billions of other people around the planet) to work for free. We work for Facebook-gram all the time by uploading our photos, our lives, our opinions, thoughts, and through the information we produce by communicating with others. And Facebookgram uses all that data to sell more advertising; both to you and your friends/followers.

It isn’t quite 100% digital slavery in the sense that we have an option NOT to use Instabook. However once you’re trapped in the system (like the Matrix) it is very painful to leave.

Do you still want to be around 30 years from now?

The last decade I’ve seen so many social media and photography networks come and go. Flickr is pretty much dead, when it used to be king. And eventually Instagram and Facebook will lose its relevance too.
What will you do once nobody uses Instagram anymore?

But what will you do a decade, 20 years, 30 years from now, when all of your followers are trapped on those platforms? You’re going to lose all your social influence, clout, and power! All the past Flickr influences are no longer relevant, because nobody really uses the platform anymore. And the same thing will happen with people who are Instafamous, unless they’re smart enough to use Instagram to build their own platform, website blog, newsletter.
30 years from now

I’m personally playing for the long game. I want to be around 30, 40, 50, 60 years from now. I want to be around until I die. I want to follow in the footsteps of Jay Z, Dr. Dre and other artists who have been able to remain powerful and artistically prolific for 3 decades+.
Success is longevity

It seems this is the rule:
You can gauge your success by how long you’re relevant or influential. Preferably 30+ years.
Make your own blog

If you already upload your photos online, you’re technically already “blogging” (I like the notion of “plogging”— photography blogging— making an online log of your life activities via your photos).
So if you make your own website blog (they’re the same thing at this point), you will gain more power, control, and influence in the short and long game!

Why play the long game?

This is my thought:
The greatest glory we can achieve as mortal artists is to make artwork which lasts for a very long time. We want our artwork to benefit people who are alive, and also people into the future!
You want to make photos BEYOND yourself — to benefit future generations. Part of it is an ego thing (I think building your ego is good), and part of it is a humanity-empowering thing.

Build equity in yourself

When you start your own photography blog, you build equity in yourself. You build equity in your own name, your own personal brand/company, you get indexed by Google (SEO), and you are more likely to become more famous and influential.
How do I start my own photography blog?

To start your own blog, simple steps:
- Register a website/domain through bluehost.com
- Once you get everything setup, install wordpress.org through the console. If you need more direct instructions on how to set this up, signup for my Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Photography Entrepreneurship Online Course.
- Start writing blog posts, and sharing the blog posts on Facebook or directly to your friends on email or word-of-mouth.
- Use your social media networks to link to your blog, to build a larger following.
- Make an email newsletter (I recommend mailchimp.com) to keep contact with your fans and followers.
- Keep blogging
Conclusion

There are many keys to success— one of them is owning your own website/blog/platform.
Then continue to build your fame and influence through starting your own YouTube channel as a way to promote your own website/blog.
What should you post? Post your photos, post your thoughts, ideas, and share your own personal philosophies in photography and life.
MAKE ON!
ERIC
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The Digital NomadProduct on sale$ 30
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ZEN OF ERIC: Empower Yourself with Philosophy and Photography
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PHOTOLOSOPHY: Photography Philosophy Course$ 250
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STREET PHOTOGRAPHY STARTER KIT$ 999
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Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Photography Entrepreneurship Online Course
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MODERN PHOTOGRAPHER: Marketing, Branding, Entrepreneurship Principles For Success$ 50
Photography Entrepreneurship 101

Money

Self-Empowerment

- Life is Too Short to Be Negative
- 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