Doug Gordon Workshops

Random Thoughts on Attitude

A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with bricks that others throw at him. 
~ David Brinkley

The good news is that the bad news can be turned into good news when you change your attitude.
~ Robert Schuller

An optimist sees an opportunity in every calamity; a pessimist sees a calamity in every opportunity.
~ Sir Winston Churchill

Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you … as by the attitude you bring to life. 
~ John Home Mills

Two men looked out through prison bars; one saw mud, the other, stars.
~ James Allen

Life is 10% what you make it, and 90% how you take it. 
~ Irving Berlin

Every great and commanding movement in the annals of the world is the triumph of enthusiasm. Nothing great was ever achieved without it.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal: nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.
~ Thomas Jefferson

The greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions and not on our circumstances.
~ Martha Washington

There is no danger of developing eye strain from looking on the bright side of things.
~ Unknown

Some people look at the world and say “why?” Some people look at the world and say “why not?”
~ George Bernard Shaw

We are the only creatures on earth who can change our biology by what we think and feel.
~ Deepak Chopra

I can’t imagine a person becoming a success who doesn’t give this game of life everything’s he’s got.
~ Walter Cronkite

Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It’s perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we’ve learned something from yesterday.
~ John Wayne

Frank Sinatra once told his son, Frank, Jr.: “Don’t ever let me catch you singing like that again, without enthusiasm. You’re nothing, if you aren’t excited by what you are doing.”

Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure.
~ Norman Vincent Peale

Don’t give up. Keep going. There is always a chance that you stumble onto something terrific. I have never heard of anyone stumbling over anything while they were sitting down.
~ Ann Landers

A bend in the road is not the end of the road.
~ Joan Lunden

The most handicapped person in the world is a negative thinker.
~ Unknown

Random Thoughts on Passion

The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire. 
~ Field Marshall Ferdinand Foch, French soldier, military theorist, and writer

“When you set yourself on fire, people love to come and see you burn.
~ John Wesley, evangelist

Chose your passion, not your pension.
~ Denis Waitley, American motivational speaker and author of self-help books

Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion.
~ George Wilhelm, German philosopher

Do the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never tumble are those who never mount the high wire. This is your moment. Own it.
~ Oprah Winfrey, TV talk show host, actress, and magazine publisher

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.
~ Harriet Tubman, American escaped slave, Civil War soldier and abolitionist

A genuine passion is like a mountain stream; it admits of no impediment; it cannot go backward; it must go forward.
~ Christian Nestell Bovee, author and lawyer

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
~ Harold Whitman, author, philosopher, theologian, educator and civil right leader

Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth a spark.
~ Amiel, Swiss philosopher, poet and critic

My passions were all gathered together like fingers that made a fist. Drive is considered aggression today; I knew it then as purpose.
~ Bette Davis, actress

Chase down your passion like it’s the last bus of the night.
~ Arthur Buddhold

One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.
~ E.M. Forster, English novelist, short story writer, and essayist

Without passion you don’t have energy, and without energy you have nothing.
~ Donald Trump, American business executive, entrepreneur, television and radio personality, and author

Every civilization is, among other things, an arrangement for domesticating the passion and setting them to do useful work.
~ Aldous Huxley, English humanist and author

They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.
~ Carl W. Buechner, author and lecturer

A great leader’s courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.
~ John Maxwell, American author and motivational speaker

Random Thoughts on Dreams

Yes, you can be a dreamer and a doer too, if you remove one word from your vocabulary: Impossible. 
~ Unknown

When your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme. 
~ Jiminy Cricket

Dreams come a size too BIG so we can grow into them.
~ Josie Bissett

A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral! 
~ Antoine De Saint Exupery

A dream is woven from thin air and nothing, Embroidered with wishes and everything, 
Then filled with the padding of hope and delight. 
~ James W. King

Thinking is the work of intellect, dreaming is pleasure. 
~ Victor Hugo

Dreams are the soul’s pantry. Keep it well stocked and your soul will never hunger. 
~ Shirley Feeney (Laverne & Shirley)

Dreams are journeys that take one far from familiar shores, strengthening the heart, empowering the soul.
~ Unknown

HOLD FAST TO DREAMS, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly. 
~ Langston Hughes

One person working toward a dream is worth 99 people just working. 
~ Lani Kraus

A dream is a microscope through which we look at the hidden occurrences in our soul. 
~ Unknown

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe. 
~ Anatole France

Be careful what you set your heart on, for it will surely be yours. 
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of stars makes me dream. 
~ Vincent Van Gogh

Dreams are the touchstones of our character. 
~ Henry David Thoreau

Like dreams, small creeks grow into mighty rivers.
~ Unknown

Keep true to the dreams of your youth.
~ Friedrick Von Schiller

When I dream, I am ageless!
~ Elizabeth Coatsworth

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it; Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.
~ Goethe

Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country. 
~ Anais Nin

My eyes are an ocean in which my dreams are reflected.
~ Anna M.Uhlich.

Within your HEART, keep one still, secret spot where DREAMS may go.
~ Louise Driscoll

Dreams are renewable. No matter what our age or condition, there are still untapped possibilities within us and new beauty waiting to be born. 
~ Dr. Dale Turner

It was a great week at sea on the Oasis of the Seas. What a great ship and great time. But first things first. Starting today thru Tuesday 2/22 if you join my Facebook Fan Page Doug Gordon Workshops. We have a huge sets of prizes for one lucky winner. The winner will receive my Get Sexy Collection which include all my educational items including the torch light. This is over $4000 USD alone, but that is not enough. The winner will also receive a free year of Animoto. a 16×20 Bay Photo Gallery Wrap and 16×20 Metal Print of another Image. A free website from ImageQuix and my brand new tripod of choice A flashpoint Carbon Fiber Tripod from Adorama.

In Total over $5500 in total prizes to one lucky winner for becoming a fan of Doug Gordon Workshops on Facebook. 

Keep Tuned because starting this week we will introduce our free tutorial to the blog on using constant lighting

Link to Doug Gordon Fan Page

Special thanks to Evan. He did a great job. I can’t express how much I love teaching in London. It is such a great time. Believe it or not this was my 4th time there and I had never really acted as a tourists. This class allowed me to really see and appreciate the beauty of London. We are actually considering a European tour. The other great part of the trip was getting to do a class with my buddy Kevin Kubota. It was such a unique experience for us. It is always fun to lecture with Kev. Although we couldn’t be more different, I believe with both of us together you really create the perfect photographer / business person. The class was so different then our usual classes. there was no Posing, lighting, photoshop or lightroom. It was about life and business and more importantly having a plan. Just loved it. Well here are the images of my favorite subject, me. LOL!

As you can tell it was freezing

I feel the less you see of me, the better,

Another great view of me, The back of me.

I can’t explain how awesome it was to be roaming the streets and having people follow me. I felt like Rocky climbing the steps in Rocky 1

Like I always say, if you lay a bride on the ground the people will come.

I love dancing shots like this, the rain made the reflection and the shot so much better.

A shot of our class, what a great group. It was cold, rainy, snowy and they all loved it.

Some are mine, Some i have read, Some I have changed. But it all boils down to if you make the mistake one, that you grow and learn from it.

Most changes are created in an instant. What’s unfortunate is that most us wait till that instant happens before we finally decide to make a change. Stop Procrastinating. Procrastination is something that many of us struggle with every single day. We simply fail to find the motivation to undertake a specific type of task or activity because of a myriad of excuses, habits, thoughts and fears that absorb our daily ritualistic behavior. Yet, procrastination can easily be overcome if we simply take time to make reasonable educated assessments of who we are and what really want. Don’t wait for that instant. Plan your future.

The truth is, there’s no better time to be happy than right now.

If not now … when?
Your life will always be filled with challenges.
It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D Souza …

“For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin.
But there was always some obstacle in the way, 
something to be gotten through first,
some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid.
Then life would begin. 
At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”

This perspective has helped me to see 
that there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way.

So, treasure every moment that you have.
And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, 
special enough to spend your time …
and remember that time waits for no one …

You can’t do today’s job with yesterday’s methods
and be in business tomorrow.

So stop waiting until you finish school 
until you go back to school 
until you lose ten pounds 
until you gain ten pounds 
until you have kids 
until your kids leave the house 
until you start work 
until you retire 
until you get married
until you get divorced 
until Friday night
until Sunday morning
until you get a new car or home
until your car or home is paid off 
until spring, until summer
until fall … until winter 
until you are off welfare 
until the first or fifteenth
until your song comes on 
until you’ve had a drink 
until you’ve sobered up 
until you die 
until you are born again
to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy

Happiness is a journey … not a destination!!

Remember if you are not happy with your work, it is very hard to be happy with rest of you life. We do this to make our living

Y

Identity is who you are. Image is how you are viewed by others. Both influence the choices that you make but identity offers much greater longer term rewards. Whenever possible, base your key life decisions on the person that you are. 

“You can’t stop being who you are because you’re afraid.” Have you heard that before. If you like Sex and The City you have. But it is so true. Great quote

I realized a long time ago. That life is too short and is about taking chances. i know one thing to be certain.No one ever stumbled on to anything great while they were standing still. You have got to move. The pursuit of dreams inspires personal growth and development. Never stop defining your vision of what life could be. 

Here is another great inspiration quote from The Astronaut Farmer

“Somewhere along the line we stopped believing we could do anything. And if we don’t have our dreams, we have nothing.” Life is about Vision and dreams. Do you have both of these?

 I will conclude with a quote that applies to our profession and is one to create a mantra too.

“Whoever tells the best story wins, Life all comes down to a few moments. This is one of them.”

Remember one thing loud and clearly. 

You will always get what you settle for. Want more, Dream bigger and work harder.

Yesterdays question was What is your definition of success?

Now think about your answer, and lets figure out how to get you there.

What do you want to achieve in your life? Where do you want to be in 5 years? 10 years? 25 years? Have you sat down and looked at your life? If you don’t know where you want to go, then I can guarantee that you won’t get there.

Most people don’t know what they want. They may think they do, but in reality, they don’t. They only know what they don’t want. They don’t want a to be broke, have a boring job, be a disappointment to their families, etc. Understanding exactly what you want is not the same as knowing what you don’t want. If all you know is what you don’t want, your life will have no focus. Try to always think and dream big.

It all starts with Focus and clarity. Without focus, you have nothing to work toward except what you don’t want. Rather than slowly building toward an ultimate goal, you end up working on a bunch of small negative goals that are easily toppled if something goes wrong. This will eventually end up creating confusion, discouragement and worst of all, failure. Whereas, if you set an ultimate goal, you can develop a clear plan of action on how to get there.

A specific goal is much easier to achieve than vague goals like not being poor, or getting rich. Setting specific goals allows you to map out a path and to setup of step by step action plan for getting there. Every accomplishment will be one step nearer to the final goal. Committing to a clearly defined goal, regardless of what it is, gives you the best opportunity to achieve success. Knowing what you want to accomplish and what it’s going to take to get there leads to inspiration and self motivation.

Self motivation is something that originates from within and helps you to overcome barriers while you pursue your goals. In business and arts, self motivation is absolutely essential. You will not be able to rely on others to get you motivated to successfully achieve your goals. The power of self motivation will allow you to accomplish anything you want in life, and this power exists within us all. It’s about wanting more and being willing to do whatever it takes to get it.

An artist must have personal goals. Your goals together with a positive attitude will provide the keys to your success. Setting personal goals allows you to direct your passion and energy into producing the desired outcomes. Setbacks and challenges are frustrating and inevitable, but an artist with a positive attitude is motivated to succeed while accepting setbacks as learning experiences.

So, in order to develop a motivation to succeed, you must set specific goals that tell you where you want to go. You then must develop a plan to get there which outlines the necessary tasks you need to do everyday to achieve your ultimate goals. Knowing what you need to do and why you’re doing it is a critical step for fueling your self motivation. If you cannot develop a strong self motivation to succeed in  business, you’ll have little or no chance at being successful.  There are way to many wonderfully starving artists. Make you art worth something.It’s as simple as that!

Those of you who have studied with me know who Big Steve is. He is not only my life long best friend , but a head photographer at my studio. My video department today obviously did not have enough work created this video of Big STEVE or BDWG (Big Dumb White Guy)as we refer to him.