To Make Art, You Need To Do These Three Things.
But First, You Need Self-improvement.
“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time”. Thomas Merton
For me, it’s writing. Lately, I have been having some irrational thoughts like being a fraud, not practicing what I actually write about, and if I ever care about writing. Hmmm… In all honesty, I can’t say if it’s true. But remember:
Ryan Holiday once let his ego defeated him which his what birth the book Ego is the enemy.
Robert Greene keeps seeking continuous improvement in his work which is what birth the book Mastery.
Mark Manson values once fucked him up which his what birth the book The Subtle art of not giving a fuck.
Jeff Olson actions once dealt with him which his what birth the book The Slight Edge.
Simon Sinek once lost his WHY which is what birth the book Start With Why
So in a way, these authors all use their art to know themselves. By reminding them who they once were.
But do you know why I actually write?
I write about Self because am still learning about myself.
I write about fear because am still learning how to overcome it.
I write about change because undergoing change has not been easy for me.
I write about productivity because am still learning how to make proper use of my time.
I write about life because am still learning more from life.
I write about failure because am still learning how to cope with failure.
I write about philosophy because am still learning to use perception to my advantage.
I write about the unknown because I am still learning to embrace it.
I write about distraction because am still learning how to go deep in my work.
If you look at all the reasons why I write, it all boils down to one thing learning.
So yes. You can call me a fraud if you like but the truth is am writing to remind me of myself. And I write because of the self-improvement I am going through.
The former me is different from the present me, and the present me will be different from the future me. Why? Because we learn through experience and change happens to us when our values distort.
“As the years go by, you get to know yourself better and learn what works for you”. Marie Helvin
Life is a process, and we are all on the journey to keep figuring out what works best for us. But until then one thing is certain. We all have to learn. Because learning is what leads to self-improvement which is where I am at the moment.
Ryan Holiday put it best when he said there is no excuse for ever ending the process of improving.
Three Things You Need to Start Making Art:
Learn, Practice and Train Every day
“Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health. Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the miracle process all begins”. Jim Rohn
Humans are learning creatures. And the lifelong practice of learning is what has brought us this far.
Self-improvement is a journey with no end because it’s a process and not a goal.
The best way to keep improving yourself is to keep learning every day. Because the moment you stop learning, it means you are dying already.
The majority of people can’t point to any significant thing they achieve before going to bed. Wake up with no goals and yet expect to get something meaningful out of life. Taking time to read one or two pages of a good book might be the only thing you do. It’s something.
5 to 10 minutes of practicing or learning that new language is something too.
You don’t have to learn any new thing with intensity. Rather find a way to make the learning consistent by finding time to do it daily. By that, you will be better at it.
Listening to an educative podcast, subscription to your favorite author article are things you can do to name a few.
The bottom line is to get yourself active with what you know will have a significant impact on you in the future.
“TELL ME AND I FORGET. TEACH ME AND I REMEMBER. INVOLVE ME AND I LEARN.” –BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
I read three books almost every day. Philosophical book in the morning, Medium articles in the noon and Non-fiction in the evening.
10 to 15 pages of each book is enough for me. And reading 5 to 6 articles of my favorite writer on Medium is all.
Reading good books and articles is all that changed me to the person I am growing to be.
I started my art which is writing through reading books. I started an online business by reading books. I became a go-to person for advice through reading books.
Do you want to make art? Start learning today.
Create more and consume less
“Creating means living.” — Dejan Stojanovic
Creating more than you consume starts with these: a shift in mindset, action, and heart.
In a way, we are all creators of some sort. Some of us are writers, painters, musicians, artists, businessmen, and designers. Yet, our society encourages us to be more of consumers rather than a creator. Our need to consume more is everywhere in our society.
We’re so caught up in our consumeristic mindset that we forget our inherent need to create. The solution, then, is to create more and consume less. If we spend more time creating, we will spend less time-consuming.
Creating is learning to be a better driver every day. Each time you wake up to create, you are fighting resistance. The moment you release your art to the world, you’ve conquered the resistance. The War of Art and do the work by Steven Pressfield are two books that can teach you how to overcome resistance.
In a world that requires more action from us through our work, we have resort to the consumer culture of more, more, more and more. If we spend our whole lives ingesting information and scarfing down an assortment of stuff meant to soothe us, we’ll never have the time or space to connect with ourselves and create the things we want to create.
As Chinua Achebe once said that “Art is a man’s constant effort to create for himself a different order of reality from that which is given to him”.
It’s important to always be creating, but integrating doses of mindful consumption is often an important part of the creative process.
Improvement lies in creating and not consuming. And how can you start creating? By immersing yourself in total deep work of what you are learning or practicing.
Nothing happens overnight, but taking no action won’t give you any results in growing your business, art or skill. It’s about being consistent by taking small steps toward your goals.
To make art, you need to be a creator rather than a consumer.
Show up to your work every day
“Life is about showing up, so is writing. That’s why I sit at my desk every day and dance my fingers across the keyboard” ― Laurie Buchanan, PhD
Showing up doesn’t mean arriving at a place. It means being prepared to put in the work, regardless of outside factors or obstacles, including your own naysaying mind.
As Jeff Olson puts it you’ve won half of the battle if you will commit to showing up every day. The rest is left up to skill, knowledge, drive, and execution.
But do you know the ultimate advantage of showing up every single day?
Because it is what leads to mastery. And mastery is not a function of genius or talent. Its a function of time and intense focus applied to a particular field of knowledge, craft, art or skill.
When we say someone has mastered their craft, art, or work. What we are alluding to is their ability to grasp, and then fine-tune the finer details that encompass the palette of their vocation to produce remarkable results says Eze Onukwube.
Do you know why Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Seth Godin, Ryan Holiday, Robert Greene, Lebron James, Beyonce, and the likes are up there on the food chain ladder? Because they showed up to their work every single time irrespective of whether they are ready or not.
To rise to the level of mastery requires many hours of dedicated focus and practice says, Robert Greene.
As Michelangelo once said If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all.
Showing up to your work every single day is what differentiates the professional from the amateur.
Amateur shows up to work when they feel like, Professionals show up to work every single day.
I guess it’s up to you to choose which one you are. Do you want to be an amateur or a professional?
Hint: The greats are all professionals with their art.
So that’s it, friend. Yes am a fraud, I don’t practice what I write about because while I am still on the journey of self-improvement. I still make mistakes, I still fall off the train, I still don’t show up every single day. But you know what? That is why I wake up to my art writing to remind me of myself and where am headed.
Remember the quote again there is no excuse for ever ending the process of improving.
With that being said I ask you: What’s your art?
