Forget Unique. Pursue Meaningful.
Work from the heart. Make the world a better place.
Theodore Roosevelt once said that the best prize life has to offer is the chance to work hard—at work worth doing. Lives can be enriched by meaningful work, but what is creative work that’s worth doing? Even if you’re unique, and great at what you do, you have to ask yourself whether what you’re actually producing is meaningful.
I’m an advocate of unique, but originality isn’t worth the effort unless it has significance or a positive impact on people’s lives. Ultimately, it’s the meaningful ideas that have the capacity to do that—to make hard work worth doing. It’s how your creative journey will become more fulfilling over time.
‘Pay attention to the stuff that keeps you awake at night, not because of fear and obligation, but because you’re always fantasizing about it — that’s where your advantage is.’
T.K. Coleman • The Mission
Often, it’s the most meaningful ideas that keep us up at night. I’ve found myself lying in bed and staring up the ceiling—unable to sleep because of the notion that I may conceive of an idea that could positively impact people’s lives. I know that if I work hard enough at it, it’s a possibility. That feeling doesn’t stop until its executed. You have to use this to your advantage.
If an idea is worthwhile and significant enough, it’s not only worth working hard for, it’s worth fighting for.
Creativity is about picturing the future or the reality you want to be in, and pursuing it. Without this mentality, you’re leaving it up to others to decide for you—as if we don’t do enough of that already. When it comes to writing your story, be the one holding the pen.
‘If you’re just doing work for other people, that’s what it looks like. But if you’re doing work that comes from your heart, it’s a really different story.’
Louise Fili • 99u
There’s a difference between working from the head and working from the heart. The former is mechanical and unemotional. When it comes to creativity, more often than not we need to do the opposite. All too often, we settle into the rhythm of just doing because we have to. Your demeanor and output will tend to reflect that. But when you put your heart and your emotional energy into something, there’s a notable difference.
You can either allow your work to reflect that it came from your quest to maintain or further your career, or it can reflect that you genuinely wanted to make it. It’s either going to be one or the other.
‘You must have goals — these goals must balance the needs of your heart and your mind; they must remain true to your vision for yourself and for the world.’
Matthew Pirkowski • Medium
When you balance the needs of your heart and mind, you’re focused on the meaningful. What matters to you most. Results and opportunities will reciprocate and enrich your life when your actions come from an honest place of good intent. With goals that compliment these needs, you can overcome almost all obstacles because your commitment has a stronger foundation.
Test yourself—are you taking action with your head or with your heart? Are there opportunities within your realm that provide goals you can aspire to?
‘You will not always get to do gigs where you’re helping to make the world a better place, but do the work to make the world a better place regardless of where you are.’
Dylan Wilbanks • CCA Interaction Design Thesis
In order to consider what the world truly needs, you need to be open to the possibilities that could improve your own circumstances—whether that’s functionally, emotionally, or even spiritually.
The world is dependent on creatives to produce meaningful ideas that can change it for good. This is why we need to put work out there that doesn’t just surprise and delight, but deserves to exist. And we need to be prepared to fight for it.
Opportunities to change the world with our creativity will feel few and far between. Most of the time it will feel like we’re just towing the line of an organization, or simply adding noise to an already noisy space. But we have to try wherever possible, because life is too short not to pursue meaningful.
