As you should know by now, I am a huge fan of Austin Kleon and his books.
So, it won’t come as a surprise to you that I picked up the third of his trilogy; Steal like an artist. Again, this book is a great place to turn to when you’re looking for inspiration. Because let’s face it, a lot of creative work is based on someone else’s.
Now that’s not to say we’re blatantly ripping other’s work off and putting it out there as our own. But there may be references, ideas that we develop ourselves or just interesting thoughts that we agree with.
So let’s check out my top ten takeaway from this book!
1. Originality
There is no such thing any more. All previous work references something, and this lineage of reference could go back much farther than we are aware. So add your developments, and leave it out there for someone to develop even further.
2. You are a product of what you consume
Consumer good work, create good work. Consume rubbish, create rubbish.
Simple really. So just make sure what ever you consume is good to feed your own work. Maybe try concentrating on one creator to learn from and develop. But don’t fight it as you start to turn your attention to someone different, it’s time to learn from them now.
3. Creativity helps you find ‘you’
Being creative isn’t always easy, but by showing up everyday, we eventually learn our creative paths and what the stories are that we want to tell. We can start by following the people that we aspire to be like, and looking to use a similar style to their videos. Even your own flaws can help you to create your own style.
4. Finish what you consume
We’ve all read an article or watch a film and thought it was so close, bu that it was missing something. So finish it. Take that story and evolve it to include your own twist to make it yours. this is especially easy to do if you are consuming content that you like and inspires your own creations.
5. Let your work be physical
So much of my work involves sitting and writing or filming. But if we can continue to be active in some way, it will help to keep your creative juices flowing. Go for a walk, cut out magazine articles, do whatever you need to do to remain physically engaged.
6. Let boredom in
Sometime boredom can be the start of the your creative process. I know that something always comes to me in the shower, that’s why I’ve put in place a fool proof quick capture system. But sometimes by letting your mind be free of everything, we can find inspiration in some way.
It’s good to switch off from work, so get a hobby or give yourself some time to unwind and play for a bit at least.
7. Celebrate obscurity
There will come a time when we I have thousands of followers and people will expect me to create a certain type of content. But we need to keep experimenting with our style until the time comes otherwise we may never find our style.
Simply concentrate on creating work you enjoy and would consume, then share it with the world.
8. The Global community
The internet is an amazing tool for making the world seem smaller than it really is.
So use that to your advantage. In the last week I’ve talked to people in Australia, India and USA, all via the power of the internet. So use it to develop friendships new friendships and strike up conversations that would never be possible before now.
9. Play nicely
Find good work, share it, celebrate it.
Say nice things about nice people
Follow people that you admire and who inspire you.
Answer their questions.
Not because you want something in return, but because it is a nice thing to do. We should hold up good people, and ignore those that aren’t.
And for clarity, this isn’t just online.
10. Conserve your energy
Being creative is hard work. It takes ages to plan, then you have to actually do the work!
So make use your time effectively and efficiently, don’t waste it on rubbish that doesn’t matter. Set a schedule to plan, create and share your work consistently, and stick to it!
Steal like an artist is available on Amazon
