Originally Published August 21sth, 2019

Hey Gang,

It’s me—your boy Tim——firing up the ol’ blog like a yard sale lawnmower that hasn’t had its oil changed in 3 years.

It’s cheap
It still runs (miraculously—barely) 
But it ain’t pretty

I’ve had this idea to weave in a little life advice with some tips on photography composition. Psychology meets photography? Self help meets selfie?

Boy this is going swell.

“What Are You Aiming At?” A Photographic Analogy For Goal Setting

Have you ever wondered why people love to take photos on train tracks?

It’s the cliche photo destination for high school seniors and brooding post grunge flannel clad hipsters.

But why?

It’s because train tracks create a quite obvious Leading Line.

Leading Lines are a compositional technique where the viewer’s eyes are lead by lines within the frame—generally leading the viewer to the subject of the photo, painting, or drawing. 

Once you know about leading lines—you start seeing them everywhere. They point your eyes towards something interesting, a subject, an idea——a goal.

So what do leading lines have to do with goal setting?

If you aim at nothing—you’ll hit it every time. —Zig Ziggler

Good o’l Ziggy. I need to frame this and hang it above my desk.

What are you aiming at? What are your leading lines pointing towards?

Chaos?
Resentment?
Failure?

Or.

Opportunities.
Gratitude.
Hope.

Bow—Arrow—Apple?

If you don’t have an aim, how are you going to hit your target?

How are we supposed to orient ourselves in life if we don’t know which direction to face?

Having an aim in life gives us a starting point—something to move towards. Along the way we’ll start developing the skills we need to reach our target. But if we aren’t specific about what we want—we’ll miss.

The reason it’s easy to take portraits on a track or a trail is because the focus is obvious. The viewer’s eyes are naturally lead to the subject.

Know what you’re aiming at—be razor sharp in your definition of what you want.

The more specific you are about your target—the easier it will be to find the leading lines that point towards that goal.

Think about the apple first—not the bow. 

Think about your target first—everything else is just a means to an end.

The Apple Is Everything. 

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Hey gang, thanks for reading my blog. If you like this and found value in it—like, subscribe, and share.

As for my comedy routine, I’ll be performing that somewhere deep in the back of my mind this evening. Thanks for your patience.

-Yo Boy Tim