MANIFESTO
Heart.
Body.
Mind.
Imagination.
what I focus on tends to expand itself. I create. Everyday. Not because I have to, but because I can’t help it. I empty myself because that’s what artists do. I am brilliant at what I do, but what I do does not define me. I am committed to growth. I do not tolerate stagnancy, because it’s the first sign of death. I am committed to healthy creating. I recognize that to be prolific for a long time involves intentionality, choice and discipline. I know the value of what I write, and I refuse to prostitute myself to an organization. I make career decisions based upon who I am, not what everyone else would do in my situation.I am always looking for ideas. I am focused, curious and passionate about life, because life is art. I refuse to play the victim. I am proactive and responsible for my own creative health. I am committed to relationships. I recognize that healthy creating will come out of vibrant connections.. I don’t know who I am until I know what I can do. Practice deliberately. I have to fail in order to grow. Push the edges of what I understand, and listen to intuition. That’s when I become a visionary.The art of any art is the art of obsession. It’s not about improving myself. It’s about remembering my soul DNA, and learning to burn off the bullshit. It’s my job to say what others cannot, will not, or don’t even know that they know. Interestingness lives on the edges and deep in the intersections, where ideas bang together and things change to other things. Part of learning to do the work is learning to navigate the fear and anxiety before they navigate me. This takes practice. Go there. And then go deeper. Build on what comes easily. Real art makes me vulnerable, but that’s where the power is. Aim to seduce instead of conquer.It’s when I become a most excellent thief that people will find me original. Achievement and transformation walk hand-in-hand. I will learn as I go along. Allow the ego to recede and the imagination to take the lead. We can give ourselves to the constant invitations of life and the intuitions and inclinations of the heart. The more actions I take toward realizing my ambition, the less ridiculous that ambition starts to seem. I need to make something, build something, bring something into being, that is uniquely my own. Everything connects. Creative work is dangerous. Originality is rarely found in the idea, but the execution of the idea. The challenge of creative work is to develop and know yourself as a person even as you learn about yourself as an artist; to form a deep and authentic worldview, and the courage and skill to infuse that worldview – that soul – into your work. What results is your voice, your signature style, your brand. Put the hours in. Do it for long enough and magical, life-transforming things happen eventually.
Body.
Mind.
Imagination.
what I focus on tends to expand itself. I create. Everyday. Not because I have to, but because I can’t help it. I empty myself because that’s what artists do. I am brilliant at what I do, but what I do does not define me. I am committed to growth. I do not tolerate stagnancy, because it’s the first sign of death. I am committed to healthy creating. I recognize that to be prolific for a long time involves intentionality, choice and discipline. I know the value of what I write, and I refuse to prostitute myself to an organization. I make career decisions based upon who I am, not what everyone else would do in my situation.I am always looking for ideas. I am focused, curious and passionate about life, because life is art. I refuse to play the victim. I am proactive and responsible for my own creative health. I am committed to relationships. I recognize that healthy creating will come out of vibrant connections.. I don’t know who I am until I know what I can do. Practice deliberately. I have to fail in order to grow. Push the edges of what I understand, and listen to intuition. That’s when I become a visionary.The art of any art is the art of obsession. It’s not about improving myself. It’s about remembering my soul DNA, and learning to burn off the bullshit. It’s my job to say what others cannot, will not, or don’t even know that they know. Interestingness lives on the edges and deep in the intersections, where ideas bang together and things change to other things. Part of learning to do the work is learning to navigate the fear and anxiety before they navigate me. This takes practice. Go there. And then go deeper. Build on what comes easily. Real art makes me vulnerable, but that’s where the power is. Aim to seduce instead of conquer.It’s when I become a most excellent thief that people will find me original. Achievement and transformation walk hand-in-hand. I will learn as I go along. Allow the ego to recede and the imagination to take the lead. We can give ourselves to the constant invitations of life and the intuitions and inclinations of the heart. The more actions I take toward realizing my ambition, the less ridiculous that ambition starts to seem. I need to make something, build something, bring something into being, that is uniquely my own. Everything connects. Creative work is dangerous. Originality is rarely found in the idea, but the execution of the idea. The challenge of creative work is to develop and know yourself as a person even as you learn about yourself as an artist; to form a deep and authentic worldview, and the courage and skill to infuse that worldview – that soul – into your work. What results is your voice, your signature style, your brand. Put the hours in. Do it for long enough and magical, life-transforming things happen eventually.
