"Hi, I'm Christopher. I'm an artist." Exhale, run my fingers through my hair. "What do I do? Oh, I paint. I'm a painter. Yeah, I'm an artist."

I tried it out every now and then, in front of the bathroom mirror. It sounded all right. But when I introduced myself as an artist outside my bathroom world of make-believe, I always felt false. I was like Magritte labeling a pipe. If I said I was an artist, I was an artist, right?
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Whatever your personal goal as a photographer (to earn a living, to develop a reputation, to share your passion with friends and family—or all of the above), you need to manage your photographic practice.

What that means, simply, is organizing your work so that you are both efficient (giving minimum effort) and effective (getting maximum results).

Most of us are very efficient. We’re getting alot of stuff done. The question is: Is it the right stuff? Are we actually being effective with our energy, accomplishing the most important things?
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