Austin Kleon

I love reading books for creative people because I believe (quite firmly!) that all entrepreneurs are artists. They may not be able to paint worth a damn, but entrepreneurs create beautiful things, even if it has no aesthetic value.

And some of us entrepreneurs are creatives too--artists, writers, musicians, knitters--the list goes on and on.

And just like a sculptor should show her work, so too should an entrepreneur.

Austin Kleon outlines 10 ways an artist can show her work, and I would argue that every one of these tips works for entrepreneurs too:

1) You don't have to be a genius
2) Think process, not product
3) Share something small every day
4) Open up your cabinet of curiosities
5) Tell good stories
6) Teach what you know
7) Don't turn into human spam
8) Learn to take a punch
9) Sell out
10) Stick around

I especially love this quote about being part of a "scenius"--where a group of creative individuals birth great ideas, and how online communities can foster a scenius.

"Online, everyone--the artist and the creator, the master and the apprentice, the expert and the amateur--has the ability to contribute something." p. 12

A short, powerful book! Highly recommend to artists and entrepreneurs, and everyone in between.… (mer)

This book has a great overall message and provides a general set of guidelines that's worth applying to your creative process. As someone struggling with writer's block pretty much every day, I found some of the reminders well-timed and refreshing. But that's why I also think the title is inaccurate, if not pretentious - the "10 things nobody told you" are most likely things you've heard of or told yourself before, things you might have forgotten for a moment while desperately searching for new ideas.

On another note, writing-wise, the book feels like it lacks some critical essence. There's a lot of sayings from famous people sprinkled throughout, and even paraphrased in every other (very short) paragraph, and I found myself paying more attention to the quotes themselves than what the author himself had to say. And there wasn't much of the latter. Sure, perhaps it's in the spirit of the book that he's deriving his message from those of the greats, because no one comes up with anything from scratch, but after a point I just felt like I was reading an unceasing sequence of quotes with a little filler holding them together, like scrolling through a bunch of inspirational pins on Pinterest. It's almost as though the author himself didn't make it through step 1 of his list - he still seems to be "stealing" from the words of others as a crutch, and has not yet discovered his own voice.

I'm not sure if there's a recommended age for this book - admittedly, I've had it for a few years myself and just never got around to it - but having finally read it, I'd personally recommend it to kids or young teens just beginning their creative pursuits. The text is short and easy to understand, and provides a bit of encouragement to beginning artists, etc.; it therefore serves as a good starting point if you're feeling lost, but doesn't do much else beyond that. Granted, a general direction is about all a self-help book can provide. I just wasn't a fan of the way this one was written - I'd rather read an entire memoir on the author's creative journey than a jumbled collection of advice from famous people. Perhaps he too could take a page from his own book, and evolve his creative process so that it no longer hinges strictly on the words and deeds of others.… (mer)

There's something to be said for picking up the right book at the right time. KEEP GOING is precisely what I needed at this phase in my life. As I write this, we're in the third wave of what seems to be a never-ending pandemic. A year in, my creative output has suffered like never before. I picked up this book expecting more of what's already so abundant in our media-laden world. Pithy quotes, vague "advice" couched in condescending language, and the same old ideas rehashed to death.

Instead, I found practical and infinitely approachable tips, tactics, and suggestions for actually leading a creative life in good times and in bad (just like the subtitle promises). I thought Kleon's previous books were fun but ultimately forgettable. This one, however, knocked me over the head with unexpected wisdom for a life philosophy that seems both urgent and incredibly relevant. I'm so grateful I grabbed this when I did. It's found a permanent spot on my home library shelf.… (mer)