I’ve come across a few articles where creators (or “creatives” if you like this term better) wonder if they should be making art related to the effects of the pandemic. Or if they should be doing things where the main theme is living in confinement for months.
I find that question interesting. While our lives will be marked forever by this once in a lifetime event, some of us will want to stay away from that theme while making art. Other creatives, though, will let out their thoughts in their upcoming endeavours.
On the other hand, I believe the pandemic is not a theme. It’s the door that leads to a different place to create.
Sometimes, an idea or a thought are enough to acquire a new philosophy. A spark is all you need to keep lighting your own way. Recently, I came across the idea “seek to be worth knowing,” proposed by Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 BC).
I’ve always admired him. His teachings focused on self-cultivation, emulation of moral exemplars, and skilled judgment rather than knowledge of rules. I thought that, when it comes to creativity, the same principles apply.
On self-cultivation, the following idea is marvellous:
Worry not that no one knows you; seek to be worth knowing.
Confucius
In a creative journey, you start from zero. Nobody knows what you do or what messages you’re trying to convey. However, the important part is not producing a masterpiece after a masterpiece to gain fame and become a recognizable face. It’s about sharing who you are through your ideas; through your craft.
You build a reputation from something that matters to you. As you keep sharing your work, it resonates with others. They get interested, and then they decide to connect or ‘buy’ you. It’s that resonance that makes you a person worth knowing.
So don’t worry if you don’t have many followers on social media or enough subscribers on your newsletter. Avoid obsessing over numbers and stressful metrics. Above all, make sure your work is worth exploring.
I’ve been thinking about the meaning of choosing long-term over short-term games in any aspect. You name it, personal goals, business strategies, career paths and so on. There’s an urgency to see results as soon as we start working so that we feel accomplished. However, in the game of life, processes to achieve results are non-linear.
“How can I easily reach my goals this year?” “What are the best hacks to find the quickest path to success?” The truth is, there’s no shortcut. It’s important to understand the game we want to play. Anything that’s worth achieving requires a long-term journey.
Type the phrase “routines of successful people” on Google, and you will get hundreds of articles that tell you how to organize your life in a way that will make you more productive.
While those articles are appealing, and some of them can be actually inspiring, the truth is that every individual in this world operates in a different mode. What works for “the successful” may not work for those who are trying to develop better habits.
Here’s a few thoughts on focusing on what works for you rather than following steps that you might not be willing to even try.
One concept that has been buzzing lately is “compound knowledge.” I’ve been seeing it often in the Orange Book’s timeline on Twitter. Anything this person shares on that channel interests me, and if there’s an idea that’s completely new to me, I do a bit more research.
Compound means “made up or consisting of two or more existing parts or elements.” Therefore, compound knowledge refers to integrating all the elements we’ve collected from the various sources we learn from and using them to upgrade our skills or achieve wisdom, for example.
However, compounding is a process that takes time. Immediate results are out of the equation. The core essence is patience and consistency. Outcomes will show as one continues to gain knowledge year over year.
Have you ever asked yourself why you like the things you like? When your favourite song randomly plays on whatever app you use for music, you just know that it makes you feel good. However, could you describe what makes it so wonderful?
In 2020, the 99u conference presented a series of keynotes, master classes, and workshops around the theme “The Creative Self.” One of the talks that stood out for me was Look Around You by Nishat Akhtar. She proposes to remember that it is our responsibility to continue to reshape those things that shape us to maintain creative autonomy. This is possible through the power of noticing.
Her ideas are deeply relevant in a time where we all are trying to figure out life.
When it comes to thinking about ways to improve our lives, businesses or other personal goals, there’s a tendency to consider addition as an option. I need to add services ‘X’, ‘Y’, and ‘Z’ to be more competitive in my market. I have to acquire this device to be more creative. I will buy all these products to be healthier.
I recently came across the concept of subtractive knowledge: “the idea that the most robust knowledge consists of understanding what is incorrect and what to avoid.” (Joseph Markel).
So, instead of adding, how about subtracting? Here’s a few more thoughts on this approach.
In the creative world, it’s common to hear conversations about “finding your voice.” You know, that thing that makes you unique when it comes to expressing yourself or bringing ideas to the table.
Once it’s time to turn your abstract thoughts into tangible actions, it’s a struggle to capture your true essence in them. How do you discover your own voice then? There’s many answers to this complex question. I recently discovered one through a powerful exercise that helps you reveal truths in an authentic way.
The first time I discovered this song, I thought it was a spoof. The original song is called Garota de Ipanema (“The Girl from Ipanema“), which was written in Portuguese in 1962 by Vinícius de Moraes and composed by Antonio Carlos Jobim. And, as pointed in the title, it talks about a girl that swings so cool and sways so gentle.
I found funny that someone would replace the word “girl” with “boy” and change a few more words here and there to match the “boy” theme. Now that I think about it, this is actually an interesting approach for a cover song. There has been 100 versions of it, and each is so unique in its own way; however, rewording it and turning into a different version refreshes the cover.
This is a great example that shows that, in the creative process, everything is a remix.
Everything we create is copied, transformed, and combined from our culture.
Kirby ferguson
Or from Ben Murray’s perspective, as written in Remixing Culture and Why the Art of the Mash-Up Matters, “all cultural artifacts are open to re-appropriation.” The results can be truly fruitful. As I did a bit more research on this song, I found that Diana Krall isn’t the only singer that has interpreted The Boy from Ipanema. Shirley Bassey, Petula Clark, Rosemary Clooney, Ella Fitzgerald, Eartha Kitt, Peggy Lee, The Supremes, Crystal Waters, and Sarah Vaughan also did it. Even if it’s the same song, each performance provides a different vibe to it.
How about Nancy Wilson’s version? It’s completely different than Diana’s.
We all need to be on learning mode at any stage of our lives.
It doesn’t matter how experienced we are in our professions. It doesn’t matter if we aren’t going to school anymore.
As snow falls outside and confinement remains the same, I’ve been thinking about my days as a university student. I look back and see myself sitting near the lecturer’s desk to avoid any distractions. I see my notebook ready for notes along with a black pen and a red pen to scribble as much as possible.
I was receptive to learning.
For the real world, I believe that same formula is worth implementing. Our lives and professions nowadays are demanding us to adapt to new forms of operating. The transition turns difficult when there’s resistance; however, in learning mode, it is possible to approach challenges with new eyes.
At the same time, learning means being willing to accept that there’s a whole world inside of ourselves that we know little about. We need to stay curious to unblock our own minds.
Learning is discovery, the discovery of the cause of our ignorance. However, the best way of learning is not the computation of information. Learning is discovering, uncovering what is there in us. When we discover, we are uncovering our own ability, our own eyes, in order to find our potential, to see what is going on, to discover how we can enlarge our lives, to find means at our disposal that will let us cope with a difficult situation.
(…)
Learning is definitely not mere imitation or the ability to accumulate and conform to fixed knowledge. Learning is a constant process of discovery and never a concluding one.
