10 key takeaways from Show your work
Austin Kleon is 🔥
Show your work by Austin Kleon is a book about the importance of documenting and sharing your work online.
Hate self-promotion?
An alternative is to consider your work as a never-ending process and share it. It will attract people who might be interested in what you do and stuff you do which they can relate to.
TLDR(Too long didn't read): Show your work, process, ups, and downs.
Find A Scenius
Looking at each other's work, copying from others, stealing ideas, and contributing ideas. Work isn't created in a vacuum and that creativity is always in some sense, a collaboration.
TLDR: Join groups, hang out and talk about things they care about.
Be an amateur
"In beginner's mind, there are many possibilities," In the expert's mind there are few."
Amateurs are not afraid to make mistakes and look ridiculous in public.
Adopting an amateur mindset allows you to continue learning openly and freely. It helps you welcome feedback without letting your ego get in the way. By allowing yourself to be an amateur, you can make mistakes and learn more from the process.
Find your voice
Share what you like, dislike, your opinion, make your voice heard.
Share your process
Don’t treat the method behind your work as a secret sauce. In sharing what has helped you do good work, you empower others to do the same and simultaneously increase interest in what you’re doing. It’s a win-win.
Send out a daily dispatch
Share something little every day and you'll start meeting some amazing people.
Buy a domain name
Share your work in blogs. Don't leave it for some shiny new social media app, stick with it and it will pay off in a long run.
Good storytelling
"The cat sat on a mat" is not a story. "The cat sat on the dog's mat" is a story.
People want to know why you do the work you do. A good piece of work goes a lot further when you tell the story behind how and why you created it. We’re often motivated more by the stories behind what someone is doing versus the raw quality of what they’re producing. Don’t forget to share your story. It will make your work resonate in new and more powerful ways.
Your work isn’t your life
“Keep your balance. You have to remember that your work is something you do, not who you are. This is especially hard for artists to accept, as so much of what they do is personal. Keep close to your family, friends, and the people who love you for you, not just the work.”
It’s easy to become consumed by your work and your mission, particularly as a creator. But always keep in mind that life is about balance. You can work hard, but don’t forget your relationships, your health, and the other areas of life that bring you joy. It’s not all about your work, no matter how good or noble it is.
Give back
“When you have success, it’s important to use any dough, clout, or platform you’ve acquired to help along with the work of the people who’ve helped you get to where you are. Extol your teachers, your mentors, your heroes, your influences, your peers, and your fans. Give them a chance to share their work. Throw opportunities their way.”
When you make it, remember to help elevate those people who helped you along the way. You can do that in any number of ways. Provide feedback on their work. Introduce them to a connection that will be valuable for them. Publicly acknowledge how they helped you. If you get in the habit of giving, you’ll feel better, create more value, and generate opportunities that will only enhance what you’re doing.