It’s no small feat to put yourself out there into the world. I’m fortunate that I get a behind-the-scenes look at the world of many creatives, whether they’re musicians, song writers, actors or entrepreneurs. It’s a world of auditions, agents, contracts and pitches where the outcome is often rather stark. Yes or no. Acceptance or rejection. It can be hard to navigate that territory with self esteem and sanity in tact.
Whether or not we see ourselves as “artists” or “creatives” we’re all making daily choices on whether to hide or put ourselves out there – online dating, job searching, showing up at a party where we don’t know many people (back when gatherings actually happened).
I don’t think I’ve ever read a marketing book (maybe I should have?) but I loved the advice in Seth Godin’s new book “The Practice: Shipping Creative Work.” It didn’t read like marketing. It read like sage advice on how to tap into your aliveness and put yourself out there whilst staying resilient. By which I mean less falling apart and concluding you’ve got nothing unique to contribute so why bother.
1. “ART – SOMETHING THAT MIGHT NOT WORK BUT MIGHT BE WORTH PURSUING”. SETH GODIN
Seth Godin says “Art is the human act of doing something that might not work, something generous, something that will make a difference.”
If “art” is by definition “something that might not work” (which I think is true) then all our feelings of insecurity and doubt make sense. So-called “failing” is actually baked into the equation a fair amount of the time and that’s actually to be expected.
To put yourself out there may never be easy, but the latter realization can change the inner dialogue. Instead of “WTF, why I am so nervous and/or procrastinating so much?” we can shift to “of course this is scary, it may not work, these feelings are normal and natural.”
Also, it can be helpful to realize we don’t all need to be painters to be considered creative or “artists”. Before this book I would have cringed at the idea of seeing my work as “art” (okay, maybe there’s still a small cringe there). After reading it I can see so clearly that whenever we’re creating something from scratch, or putting our thoughts out into the world, we’re engaged in “art” even if it’s not on a canvas or Oscar-worthy.
2. “THE MAGIC OF THE CREATIVE PROCESS IS THAT THERE IS NO MAGIC.” SETH GODIN
Whether somebody’s working on their start-up or book, procrastination and avoidance and stuckness are so easy to fall into. It’s easy to slip into stories of self doubt. If it was going to work, wouldn’t it have worked by now or wouldn’t there be more momentum? If it’s truly what I’m here to do on this planet wouldn’t it be easier more of the time?
Seth Godin sees all these musings as ways we get ourselves “off the hook” and therefore allow ourselves to hide from work that feels scary or hard. It’s why he believes we each need a “practice” – something we’re showing up to consistently regardless of how we’re feeling or how well the work is going. He says, “Your work is too important to be left to how you feel today”.
He argues, correctly I think, that flow is often the result of taking action and that we shouldn’t wait around for inspiration to hit. Seth writes, “We do the work, whether we feel like it or not, and then, without warning, flow can arise. Flow is a symptom of the work we’re doing, not the cause of it.”
What he doesn’t delve into (I guess that’s my work) is what it takes to sit with the physical sensations of fear and doubt and still put one foot in front of other. Those can be deeply uncomfortable patterns and most people will do anything to avoid feeling them. You know, head to the fridge, start cleaning up or dealing with 26 admin tasks, scrolling Instagram, numbing with Netflix…
3. “SHIPPING, BECAUSE IT DOESN’T COUNT IF YOU DON’T SHARE IT.” SETH GODIN
The importance of “shipping” work cannot be understated. How many of us have ideas, and work on our ideas a lot, but struggle to share them with others? We know we should email that colleague, new contact or investor but we don’t. It feels safer not to reach out because then we don’t have to bump into their rejection or lack of interest. I love Seth’s take on hiding. “Hiding is pleasant. If it weren’t for the ways it leads to suffering a thousand small deaths, hiding would be a comfortable way to coast through life.”
It’s not unusual for somebody’s fear of death to be directly linked to their not taking enough risks and not doing what they really wanted to do. In our earlier years it often feels like failing is the most catastrophic outcome. But as we age, and certain doors actually close, it’s the not having dared that will eat at our soul. There’s an aliveness that comes from consistently daring to put ourselves out there, ideally whilst practicing being less attached to the outcome. Seth Godin compares the process with learning how to juggle: “our work is about throwing, the catching will take care of itself”.
p.s. I’m not an affiliate of Seth Godin but I loved this book of his. Seth does send out short daily (yes daily, that’s definitely a practice!) nuggets/emails about what’s on his mind. You can sign up for them here.