Category: Creator Confidential
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What is your relationship with your craft?
A contemplative exercise: If writing was a person, what would it be like? What would your relationship with it be like? For example, are you in a relationship with writing only because you hope it will bring you success and wealth? Is writing more like a friend, a spouse, or an acquaintance? Or is it…
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New Material on Creative Odyssey
When I meet my friend Hamza to record our podcast, New Material, I’m usually sitting at a desk with a podcast mic. A few months ago, Hamza and I joined Emil Drud at his podcast, Creative Odyssey. (I’d mentioned this episode here, and previously joined Emil here!) It was a beautiful day outside, so I…
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Two practical approaches to focus
The survival approach: Choose the best option available, while you’re looking for your ideal option. Do whatever it takes to survive. There’s a Chinese saying, 騎牛搵馬, which translates to, “Ride a cow until you find a horse.” Seth Godin writes the second rule in The Bootstrapper Bible, “Things get better. But first, youʼve got to…
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Art about art
On a recent visit to the Art Gallery of Ontario, I came across J.L. Gérôme’s “The Antique Pottery Painter,” which was accompanied by this statement: Artists often have the ability to make us believe their paintings are real. Gérôme mastered and exploited this quality, using the incredibly smooth surface we see here to challenge our…
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What would a doctor do?
Doctors don’t look for clients. They look for patients. A doctor helps a patient diagnose their health condition, and puts a plan together for the patient to recover and heal. A good doctor doesn’t need to pitch you to be their patient. In fact, if you find a doctor being overly pushy, it’s a signal…
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It’s easier to make art, harder to make a living off it
“It’s easier than ever to make music, and harder than ever to make a living from it,” Luc Rinaldi writes. This statement applies well to writing. Perhaps it’s a matter of expectation: too many people expect to make a living from art. Maybe it’s because we are exposed to a lot of artists who have…
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The bad joke phenomenon
When you get promoted, other people will laugh harder at your jokes and seem to excuse your tardiness. The feedback signals that had previously guided your behavior will seem distorted because you’ve gained power and status. Daniel Shapero calls this the “bad joke” phenomenon (via Rohan Rajiv), and he suggests three ways to accommodate this:…
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When a detour is the best route
You are on a road trip. The fastest path to your destination has no fuel stations, and your car is running low. An alternate path has several fuel stations, and it requires a detour—taking you an extra hour or two. Which path will you take? Sometimes, it’s most useful to go directly towards your goal.…