Sharing my favorite takeaways from Austin Kleon's "Show Your Work! 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered" while the inspiration is still hot.
As a fashion merchandising major it is not often that I come across a book as motivating and self-assuring as this one, my days are mostly spent in databases and textbooks writing market research and buying plans. To me I have always felt stunted in the creativity department, I struggle with coming up with ways to represent myself creatively without starting the all popular slightly stereotypical fashion blog, I am not regularly working on paintings or books or graphic designs. While I know my talents and my passions I don't have anything physical to show for it and I hit a wall. But since the start of my User Experience class I have begun to question what I have to show and I came to the conclusion that I am what I have to show.
When thinking about who I want to visit this website and what I want them to get out of it, I know I want my visitors to learn more about me. That is all I have so far. After reading this book I'm prepared and dare I say excited? To show me one little bit at a time. And I thank Christina Dick for recommending this book and indirectly inspiring me to start this blog.
I thought I would list my top three favorite snapshots and pieces of advice below:
"Send Out a Daily Dispatch"
This is perhaps what inspired me to start my Daily Snapshot blog on this site. Being that i'm a 1997 baby and a generation z'er I am unfortunately a part of a generation who lives for instant-gratification. And a part of me feels discouraged by the fact that building a substantial body of work takes time. Mr. Kleon advises his readers to focus on days, and to appreciate the process rather than worrying about the final product.
"Your influences are all worth sharing because they clue people in to who you are and what you do - sometimes even more than your own work."
"Turn Your Flow into Stock"
What I took away from this chapter is to know the difference between the two and that flow can still be maintained while you're working on your stock in the background. The point in stock creation is to create durable content, stuff that's timelessly interesting. Flow however, is build able and have the potential to turn into something bigger and more substantial, like this site. It's a constant cycle of working on flow which turns into stock and that's how content is created.
"Your stories will get better the more you tell them."
"Talk About Yourself at Parties"
As someone who loves to talk I can't say i've ever had a problem talking about myself, or pushing through the tedious small talk at events and parties. Right now, the most common question I get is "what's your major?" and the popular follow up question, "what do you want to do with that?". I think Kleon is correct when he says that usually means they just want to know how you plan on making money in a field like fashion. It's time I, and my fellow seniors out there, take ownership of our experiences in the fast 4 years and explain with honestly but with passion what we're excited about and maybe what we're nervous about. This is how we connect with others. Once you stop treating the conversation as an interrogation we become more open and maybe even make a mutually beneficial professional connection.
Well, I did it. My first blog post. Hopefully these snippets push you to do the thing you you've been putting off all these days, months or years.