SHOW YOUR WORK (PART 1)

10 WAYS TO SHARE YOUR CREATIVITY AND GET DISCOVERED

By Austin Kleon

BOOK NOTES — Akhil Chenna

This book is mainly the reason why I have decided to start blogging. Now, before I read this book, I had various stigmas on blogging or, generally, any kind of self-promotion. What would people or my relatives think about me when they read my blog, what if they criticize me for not being good enough, why do I need to start blogging when there are already loads of blogs out there, blah blah blah. Then, I came across this book, a book meant for changing the mindset of people who hate the idea of self-promotion. It basically taught me that I don't have to be exceptionally good at anything to put myself out there. It’s enough to just blog my experiences, my behind-the-scenes of my life, share my thought process or goals, as trivial as they might be. Interested people will definitely find you, and by doing this, you can gain an audience that you can leverage when you need it — like fellowship, feedback, or patronage. Now, imagine that your boss didn’t have to read your resume because he/she already reads your blogs; it’s a feeling that is out of this world. Or imagine something simpler and just as satisfying: spending the majority of your time, energy, and attention practicing a craft, learning a trade, or running a business, while also allowing for the possibility that your work might attract a group of people who share your interests. That’s why all you have to do is SHOW YOUR WORK.

The aim of this book review is to give the readers a glimpse of this book, and if possible, change their views and mindset about self-promotion. There are some more reasons as to why I’m sharing this post, maybe it might help with my vocabulary, maybe I can gain some more insights on the book as I’m writing this post. I also hope to inculcate the habit of reading more books by writing these book notes.

The book is divided into 10 chapters, and I’ll be giving my thoughts and some notes on each of the chapters. This article will contain the first 4 chapters of this book, while the follow-up article will cover the remaining 6 chapters of this book. Now, sit back and enjoy reading, hope you like it!

Chapter 1: YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE A GENIUS

Find a Scenius — There are some destructive myths on creativity and one of them is the “lone genius” myth. The myth states that once in a while, an individual with enormous talent appears at certain points in history. He/ She gets inspiration for an idea like a lightning bolt as if he/she has some direct connection with God. The person then isolates himself from the rest of the world, putting his entire efforts into his idea, to bring life into his idea. He then releases his creation into the world which is supposed to turn the world upside-down. Now, this is an act that can be performed by only a few great figures like Einstein, Mozart, or Picasso. It’s as if the rest of us are there just to gawk and marvel at their creations.

A healthier way to think about creativity is through the word “scenius”. It’s a group of creative individuals who support each other, look at each other’s work, copy from each other, steal ideas, and contribute ideas. They acknowledge that creativity is often a collaboration, the result of a mind connected to other minds. Now, the good thing about scenius is that it allows room for the rest of us people: the ones who don't consider ourselves geniuses. You don’t have to be talented or extraordinarily gifted to be a part of scenius, yet at the same time, one gets the opportunity to contribute something for the greater good.

You might be thinking whether it’s an easy task or not to find a scenius. Welcome to the age of internet folks! The internet is basically a bunch of sceniuses, connected together through blogs, forums, social media sites, etc. It’s basically the same thing where people hang out virtually and share ideas. You don't have to be rich or famous to join sceniuses. Everyone has the ability to contribute something.

Be an amateur — Sometimes it’s just better to be an amateur than an expert in a field whatever it might be. An amateur would experiment in various ways and would come out across various possibilities when working in an unprofessional way. In an expert’s mind, such possibilities are very few. An amateur is able to understand the beginner’s mind, they are lifelong learners, and they make a point of learning in the open so that others can learn from their failures and successes.

Sometimes, amateurs have more to teach us than experts. Many of us prefer to ask our classmates a doubt about a subject rather than asking our teachers straightaway, why? The reason being the same again, the difficulty we want him to explain is one he has recently met, whereas the teacher who is an expert met it so long ago that he has forgotten. Even for the professionals, it is better for them to embrace each day as an amateur, embrace the uncertainty and the unknown.

You can’t find your voice if you can’t use it — What does one mean by find your voice. Many people still wonder if they have their own voice in general. The hard part is that one can only find his/her voice by only using it first. Talk about the things you love, and your voice will follow. Now, using your voice does not mean that you shout at the top of your voice in a class or in a street. It means to put yourself out there through various platforms, be it blogs, social media, or anything else. It sounds harsh, but in this day and age, if your work isn’t available online, it is non-existent. You have to share if you want people to know what you do, and the things that you care about.

Read Obituaries — Now this might sound absurd, but when you think of the fact that you are going to die one day, it automatically puts everything into perspective. You might have heard or read this line from somewhere — “I almost died once, from then onwards, every day is just an extra day”. Don’t sit and wait for things to happen, get up and make them happen. None of us really want a near-death experience, but it’s better to remember that it’s coming for us, and for that reason read obituaries. It’s a good way to think about death, while also keeping it at an arm’s length.

They really aren’t about death, but they are about life. Reading them will make you realize the number of things people got done in their lives. This will motivate you to get up and do something in your life as well. It makes you want to live. Try it and follow their example.

Chapter 2: THINK PROCESS, NOT PRODUCT

Take people behind the scenes — Creative people in the old days such as painters, sculptors, composers used to produce pieces of their work in isolation, and then release the product to the world after completion. There was no means to share the process they undertook to complete their creation, with others. This was also very uninteresting for the viewers to get to know about the process because they’re almost never visible, or even knowable from examining the finished work.

Now, this was viable in the pre-digital era. Nowadays, due to the internet, an artist has the freedom to share whatever she wants, whenever she wants, and at almost no cost. She can speak about the process as much as she wants to. By doing this, by sharing her day-to-day process, she is able to form a unique bond with the audience. This was a terrifying idea to do in the pre-digital era. But we as human beings are always interested in what others do and how they do it.

“People really want to see how the sausage gets made.”

Become a documentarian of what you do — You might have heard of Chris Hadfield, a famous Canadian astronaut, at some point in your life. At one moment, he was wondering how to generate interest for the Canadian Space Agency, which like many space programs, had major budget cuts, and needed more public support. To do this, his son set him up with social media, and slowly things fell into place. During the next five months, he answered questions from his followers, posted pictures of the Earth he took, filmed his daily life on the International Space Station, and uploaded them on YouTube. Normally, no one would watch such things on plumbing or brushing teeth, but IT’S IN SPACE!

Now, we might feel that nothing interesting is happening in our lives to present it to the world. But whatever be the nature of one’s work, it’s an art, and people will be interested in that art if you present it to them in the right way. How can you show your work even when you have nothing to show? Pick up pieces of scrap, scoop up the residue of your process, and then shape them into interesting bits of media that you can share.

“No one is going to give a damn about your résumé; they want to see what you have made with your own little fingers.”

Take photographs of your work at different stages, maintain a work journal, write down your thoughts. Whether you share it or not, documenting and recording your process as you go along has its own rewards.

Chapter 3: SHARE SOMETHING SMALL EVERYDAY

Send out a daily dispatch — Once a day, after your day’s work has been completed, go through your documentation and find a little piece of your process that you can share. If you’re in the very early stages, share your influences and what’s inspiring you. If you’re in the middle of executing a project, write about your methods or share works in progress. If you’ve just completed a project, show the final product, or write about what you learned.

A daily dispatch is even better than a résumé or a portfolio because it shows what we’re working on right now. It can be anything, a blog post, an email, a tweet, a YouTube video, or some other media. Pick and choose the platform based on what you do and the people you’re trying to reach. Don’t show your lunch or latte, please don’t, show your work.

Don’t worry about everything you post being perfect. 90 percent of everything is crap. The same is true of our own work. The hard part is, we don’t always know what’s good and what’s bad. That’s why it’s important to get things in front of others and see how they react. But, do keep in mind that sharing your work should not become a priority over actually doing your work.

The “So what?” test — Always remember that anything you post on the Internet becomes available to the public instantly. The internet is a copy machine, anything that can be copied is posted on the internet, it will be copied and those copies never leave. So, don’t post things online that you don't want the world to see.

“Post as though everyone who can read it has the power to fire you.”

Be open, share imperfect work that you want feedback on, but don’t share absolutely everything. It’s basically an act of generosity, you’re basically putting out there thinking that it might be useful to someone at some point in their life. Ask yourself the question “So What?” every time you share something with others. Don’t overthink it and just go with your gut. If you’re unsure whether to share something or not, set it aside for some time. Take it out again after some time and see it with fresh eyes, think if it is entertaining or not, if it is helpful or not.

Turn your flow into stock — Stock and flow is an economic concept. The magic formula is to maintain your flow while working on your stock in the background. Stock is best made by collecting, organizing, and expanding your flow. Once you make sharing a part of your daily routine, you will be able to observe some trends emerging in what you share. You’ll see patterns in your flow.

Once you start seeing these patterns, start gathering these bits of pieces, and turn them into something much bigger. This is what is meant by turning your flow into stock. For example, as the author states, a lot of the ideas in this book started out as tweets, which then became blog posts, which then became book chapters. Small things, over time, can get big.

Build a good (domain) name — Social networks are great but they come and go. How many social networks do you think are there currently? That’s why nothing beats having a space of your own online. What else is better than having your own personal website? Nothing! Start building your own website either through hardcore coding through HTML, CSS, Javascript, or there are many other sites that let you do so easily, like Squarespace, Ghost, WordPress, Wix, etc.

I recently built my own website through HTML, CSS, Javascript and the product was ugly in the beginning. I watched YouTube tutorials and improved the design of it slowly, which then turned out pretty good. I then hosted the website on GitHub. Now, if I need to show my portfolio to someone else, I just share the link of my site, which is a huge added advantage and it’s so easy.

Figure out how to install a blog on the website, which will be the ideal machine to turn your flow into stock. Your website doesn't have to look pretty, it just needs to exist. Don’t think of your website as a self-promotion machine, but think of it as a self-invention machine. Don't let it fall into neglect though.

Chapter 4: OPEN UP YOUR CABINET OF CURIOSITIES

Don’t be a hoarder — Before we’re ready to take the big step of sharing our own work with the rest of the world, we can share our tastes in the work of others. Our interests are what make up the cabinet of curiosities. Share your influences, they are worth sharing because they clue people into what you are and what you do, sometimes more than your own work.

Where do you get your inspiration? What sorts of things do you fill your head with? What do you read? Do you subscribe to anything? What sites do you visit on the Internet? What music do you listen to? What movies do you see? Do you look at art? What do you collect? These are some of the examples that might help you get started.

No guilty pleasures — Don’t believe in guilty pleasures. If you like something, like it. We all love some things that other people might think to be garbage, but, you need to have the courage to keep loving your garbage. That’s what mainly defines us or influences us, the unique ways in which we mix up the parts of culture that others might have deemed as “high” or “low”.

When you truly enjoy something, don’t let anyone make you feel bad about it. Don’t feel guilty about the pleasure you derive while enjoying what you love. Being open and honest is the best way to connect with people who like those things too.

Credit is always due — Always remember that it is your duty to give credit to the creators of the work of others that you share. Always treat the work of others as if it was your own, with respect and care. But that’s only half of the story, if you fail to properly attribute work that you share, you not only rob the person who made it, you rob all the people you’ve shared it with. Without attribution, they have no way to dig deeper into the work or find more of it.

So, what makes for great attribution? Attribution is all about providing context for what you’re sharing. Attribution is about putting little museum labels next to the stuff you share. Eg: Thanks Austin Kleon for writing this book. It’s always good practice to give a shout-out to the people who’ve helped you stumble onto good work and also leave a bread-crumb trail that people you’re sharing with can follow back to the sources of your inspiration. Online, the most important form of attribution is a hyperlink pointing back to the website of the creator of the work. This sends people who come across the work back to the original source.

Now, this might raise a question: What if you want to share something and you don’t know where it came from or who made it? The answer: Don’t share things you can’t properly credit. Find the right credit, or don’t share.

CONCLUSION

Now that we have reached the end of the four chapters of this book, we have also reached the end of this article. The next 6 chapters are sure to come up in the follow-up article, so do stay tuned for that one. I hope that I have changed your opinions on self-promotion and might have given some ideas on the right way for self-promotion, somewhat. If still not, the next 6 chapters might, who knows, so do read that as well when it comes up.

If you liked this article, do clap and share if possible. These small things will give me the most joy and will give me enough motivation to push myself much forward. Thank You!