Introspection In The Seasons
Creative Sparks: #20
I can’t believe it’s down to the last 5 weeks of 2018. Where did the year go?
We’ve come to the time where Christmas music (at least in Singapore) is blaring from every mall and supermarket in existence.
I love to start reflecting on my year. What went well, what didn’t go so well and how can I do better next time round?
On to the 7 stories I found worth sharing and which made me think over the past 2 weeks:
1. We are verbs, not nouns by Austin Kleon
There’s a lot of navel-gazing, especially in the creative community.
Should I call myself a writer? At what point do I call myself a creative? Heck, I’ve also had moments of self-doubt.
One of my favorite writers, Austin Kleon cleverly hits the nail on the head with this astute observation:
“So many people think you have to first call yourself an artist, know who you are and what you’re about, and then you can start making art. No, no, no. You do the stuff first, then you can worry about what it is, who you are. The important thing is the practice. The doing. The verb.
We aren’t nouns, we are verbs. Forget the nouns, do the verbs.”
The lesson is clear: do first, talk later.
2. Write What You Know — True Stories by Ivan Bačić
In writing what we know, are we supposed to write about our lives?
Well, write about your life, but express what you’ve felt. People want to hear drama. They want to know that they aren’t alone.
Great idea to reorientate my own writing.
3. Everything Is for Sale Now. Even Us by The New York Times
Another view of the wave of freelance work, side hustles and focus on personal branding sweeping the world.
“Almost everyone I know now has some kind of hustle, whether job, hobby, or side or vanity project. Share my blog post, buy my book, click on my link, follow me on Instagram, visit my Etsy shop, donate to my Kickstarter, crowdfund my heart surgery. It’s as though we are all working in Walmart on an endless Black Friday of the soul.”
Should you evaluate your human relationships in terms of their economic value? Is ‘being your own boss’ really all that?
4. Why Women Waste Time on Makeup by Jessie Char
“I wear makeup for myself, because it’s fun and I like the way I look with it. It’s a little way of changing up my personality every day. I can make myself look younger, older, sweeter, grungier, sexier, or sillier with 30 minutes of powders and pencils and gels and goops, and it’s an artistic expression that I have a ton of fun creating.”
It’s so easy for us guys to judge the concept of wearing makeup. Maybe we think it’s artificial, unnecessary or otherwise vain. But, Jessie here rebukes that entire line of thought. Makeup is an artistic expression.
5. How ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’ spoofs the Disney Princess industrial complex
If you’ve watched Ralph Breaks the Internet yet, you might have come across this splendid scene where Disney princesses come together and mock the different tropes that Disney has established in its long history.
I won’t spoil anything, but this scene to me was a glorious spoof of everything Disney. It’s fascinating to learn how the scene came together and screenwriter Pamela Ribon’s creative process.
6. Rise, Grind and Ruin: The Dangerous Fetishization of ‘Hustle Porn’ — MEL Magazine
Inspirational ‘hustle’ porn is dangerous if not consumed with intent.
18 hour days, all-nighters and constant exhaustion?
I enjoy the occasional kick and bursts of motivation to work harder, but what if it’s taken too far? This article sheds light on the dark side of these overly motivational ‘ hustlers’ manifestos
7. The Simplest Way to Drastically Improve Your Life: More Sleep
No need for life hacks. If you don’t nail the basics, all your hacks are useless.
Nuff said.
