There is a secret that all successful creative people know: If you want to be a successful creative, you have to create a lot of work.
Yep, it’s pretty much that simple.
However, in order to create enough work to become successful, generally speaking, there are two requirements.
First, you have to learn how you create best. If you can’t figure out your creative process, the one that works best for you, you’ll never create enough work to become successful.
To figure out how you create best, you have to create a lot of work.
Yep, it’s pretty much that simple.
The second thing you have to figure out is what intrigues you, what fascinates you enough, what makes your heartbeat quicken so that you can stick with your creative work long enough to produce enough work to be successful. If you don’t have excitement around your work you’ll never create enough work to become successful.
To figure out what you get excited about, you have to create a lot of work.
Yep, it’s pretty much that simple.
In education in general, and in arts education specifically, we tend to put a lot of emphasis on the quality of student work. However, if we want our students to grow up to be successful creatives, there is a good argument to be made that the emphasis should be on quantity rather than quality.
If you look at nearly any successful creative, there is a huge pile of work behind their successful work. People become better at creating by creating. It’s easier to see and appreciate a whole body of work than a single piece of work.
Help your students find the creative processes that work for them.
Help you find the creative processes that work for you.
Help your students find the kind of work that makes their pulse quicken.
Help you find the kind of work that makes your pulse quicken.
It’s a lot of work. But worth it.
Trevor (@trevorabryan)