David Finn, an acclaimed professional photographer and lifelong New Yorker, wrote a fascinating book, How to Look At Everything. Finn recounts how he was affected by a single photograph he took while amassing a portfolio of shots for use in a book documenting life in New York City. This particular photo was taken out a car window and captured a man walking down the street while reading a book (a pedtextrian in the predigital age). Only after Finn had developed the film, did he notice a second man seated on a stoop as the reader-walker went by. The juxtaposition of the two men made for a most arresting image, one that prompted inner refection.

Finn concluded: "Why did I consider it such a revelation? Why did so many familiar sights now look so different? It was because I had never looked so intently at the scenes of daily life before. And as I looked through my viewfinder, my mind gave new meaning to what I was seeing. I saw more than what was there because I was paying such close attention to what I was photographing." Finn no longer saw himself as just a photographer, but rather a "walker in the city." This different look at himself transformed his ability to look outside himself.

Want to be more skilled at looking? Look intently at the scenes of your daily life. Pay closer attention to where you are and what you are doing. See yourself as an observer, a walker in your city.

Stop. Look. Listen.