You always end up with too many pictures to edit and too few that you feel 'got it'.
Since the background is as important as the subject, you mustn't let it default by chance. You must control not only vertical and horizontal, you must be aware of the depth of field (or lack of it) that you want in the background.
Allow yourself to lose your way.
The best camera is the one you have with you.
Every picture should have a place you can go, a home, a climax.
Sometimes as you work, you find that you are learning things about your own perceptions and motivations that are way below you consciousness. If you get lucky, you recognize what you are doing, but all too often we don't find the connection between our work and our own motivations.