Month: May 2017

5. Side projects and hobbies are important

Practice productive procrastination

Have a variety of projects on the go to keep from getting burned out on any one.

But also: remember to breathe. Space between projects allows ideas to percolate and give your mind time to find connections.

I already know the importance of having a hobby I’m not trying to turn into a business, and I know how rapidly I fall apart when I sacrifice leisure time for more work. My meditation practice is equally important, giving my space in the day where I can just be for a moment.

Don’t throw any of yourself away

“Keep all your passions in your life.”

If you love two or three different things, see if you can marry them together. Trying to ignore them doesn’t work

The things I’ve enjoyed most in life have always been books, drawing and animals. I’m fortunate that finding a link between those three shouldn’t be too hard!

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6. Do good work and share it with people

In the beginning, obscurity is good

How do you get discovered? Wrong question. How good can I get before the pressure to perform starts to destroy my ability to play?

The not-so-secret formula

Do good work and share it with people.

Part one, do good work:

• Make stuff every day.
• Accept you’re going to suck, fail, and get better.

Part two, share it with people:

• Put it on the internet

The secret of the internet is also simple: marvel at the world and invite others to join you. Marvel at odd, obscure things that move you, and be open about sharing your passions, and your methods, with other people. (Consider making online courses?)

We learn through teaching, and we find something to say by speaking – having a blog encourages you to write, apparently. I certainly feel obligated to write.

Share your dots, but don’t connect them

Find people who like the same things you do, and connect and share your passion with them.

Tease your audience with sketches, doodles and snippets, share tips and advice, link to interesting articles and talk about what you’re reading.

3. Write the book you want to read

Write what you know like

“We make art because we like art. We’re drawn to certain kinds of art because we’re inspired by the people doing that work.”
If you want to see, read, hear, play it, so will others. If something disappoints you, make it better.

“Whenever you’re at a loss for what move to make, just ask yourself, ‘What would make a better story?'”

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4. Use your hands

Step away from the screen

I’ve been moving to and from digital work for a while; on the one hand, the cheapness, speed and ease of setup and teardown is fantastic but, on the other, I feel less involved and less fulfilled by digital work. Working standing up helps, but I miss the smell of paint and the feel of stylus on glass is nothing like as pleasant as pencil on paper.

Kleon talks about analogue work engaging all the senses and they’re not wrong.

Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started

Make things, know thyself

Find yourself through your work; the act of creation forces us to confront and refine who we are.
Professionals talk about “Impostor syndrome” – everyone who creates for a living feels like they’re about to be discovered as a fraud. No one knows what they’re doing, so just keep showing up.

Fake it till you make it

Whatever you practice, you become an expert in. Act like a pro and you’ll become a pro.

Start copying

Do master studies. Do a lot of master studies. Vary the masters to explore different styles and learn from each.
The object is not to learn to copy the style, but to learn how the artist sees the world

Imitation is not flattery

Attempts to imitate are destined to fall flat – we are not our heroes – but the adaptations we make to accommodate those shortcomings create a unique style. “Add something to the world that only you can add”, even if you don’t know what that is yet (see point one).