Art Vs. Commerce? The business of art.

Most of us got into music because on a deep love for making music. We loved doing it so the next logical step would be to figure out how to make a living doing it. As a result, we attempt to move from the ranks of the amateur to the professional.

The inherent rub in this transformation comes when art meets commerce. We are conditioned to believe that the creation of art is a mysterious endeavor...a noble pastime that does not need to be concerned with mundane obligations like paying your rent on time or having enough money to buy groceries. Accepting this idea as fact traditionally breeds internal conflict. But does it have to?

Art and commerce are not mutually exclusive though maintaining a balance as a creative professional is difficult to do.

How do we find that magical middle ground?

Our pain comes from trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. By that, I suggest that we can imbue anything with artistic intent regardless of the circumstance. It all depends on how we perceive the work we do.

If the phrase: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is true then we can find beauty in everything we do, see, and experience. Sometimes it shouts out at us, and other times it requires we look a little deeper from a more detached and objective position.

If we step back from our beliefs and conditioned responses, there will be room for us to see an obstacle as a potential opportunity.

Most times we fight our beliefs rather than the reality of what we face.

What does this have to do with the business of music?

Learning to be objective is the first step in assessing the value of the product or service you offer. Without we continually stumble from one obstacle to another...without having the skills to determine what works or doesn’t work.

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Creative "Quick Tip" Short Video #11

From certainty to ambiguity?

Using music to move from certainty to being comfortable with ambiguity- is it possible?

Reading between the lines.

Thinking on your feet, creative problem solving, connecting the dots. Whatever the label, it all comes down to the same thing: finding patterns and connectivity between seemingly disparate objects, situations and people.

Jeff Selingo writes convincingly in “The Hottest Job Skill Isn’t A Technical” that the seemingly mysterious quality of being able to “connect the dots” is of high value to employers…much more so than accepting that perfectionism is the surest path to success.

Life is an organism…the quintessential zoetrope. Nothing is perfect.

As composers, songwriters, producers (any creative individual) we are called upon to find unique solutions. Be it the turn of a musical phrase, a lyric, capturing a performance or deliberately choosing a oboe or English horn to play a passage, we constantly make decisions.

How do we make decisions anyway?

We can either be aware of our choices or, we can unconsciously stumble through relying on fear and/or habit. This too is a choice. So, which path is more valuable?

We are conditioned to follow rules. Conformity and common purpose provides the glue that holds us together as a society. But, at what point does compliance become a liability?  

Conformity isn’t necessarily bad. But, unconsciously following rules stifles individual thought, creativity and innovation. 

And, in our pursuit for perfection, adherence to the status quo can lead us away from contemplating and questioning whether or not the status quo is relevant for us… or not.

The older you get the more you see that life is messy, there are no easy answers and, regardless of what you’ve been taught to believe we spend the majority of our time making it up as we go along. We constantly live our lives making choices.

If this is true then why not spend our time improving our decision-making skills?

Why not focus your attention on how to make good choices rather than get swept up in competency being the determining factor of self-worth?

What does any of this have to do with studying music and music creation?

Those of us who have been trained in the arts hold a distinct and powerful advantage over those trained as specialists in a trade.

We are trained to make decisions and to judge the relative value of our choices. We are not exclusively constrained by rules of the status quo.

We continually make it up as we go along…self-determining how far to stretch the “box”.  

For me, the key to making good choices and consistently being able to connect the dots is to be aware and conscious of the choices I make.

And, if you are a creative individual never forget you have the power to choose, the ability to measure the consequences and the inherent courage to make good choices.

It is precisely your connection to creativity that gives you ability to connect the dots…in any situation.

It’s that something special about you that creates value… the unique way you approach problem solving and decision making. 

Step One: the road to better decision-making 

Spend your time listening to your inner voice. Don’t be afraid to dig deep to find out what is special about you…that something you do better than anyone else.

I suspect you will be surprised at what you find.

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Creative Thought For The Day

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Perfectionism in the creative process

Shooting for the stars and having high standards will make you work hard. 

But, have you ever considered the positive and negative of being a perfectionist?

The good news is that having high standards can push you forward.

The bad news is that perfect is not possible.

If you set your standards beyond your reach you will get frustrated.

Don’t get me wrong. This kind of frustration is to be expected if you are trying to stretch yourself.

However, if you let your frustrations get the best of you your work will be affected.

Perfection vs. Results 

Standards are arbitrary and have very little to do with actual outcomes.

All to easily we will drift into action unconsciously relying on our mood and experience to guide our way.

But what if you are in a new situation and you have no personal experience to draw upon?

What has helped me is making sure I understand specifically why I am doing a project and what I hope to achieve. This becomes my “mission statement” to guide me from beginning to end.

You might think that the why and what are self-explanatory and why should you go to the trouble to identify the issue?

If you are confused about your motivation you run the risk of being vulnerable to any number of emotional roadblocks (conscious and unconscious) that will prevent you from doing your best work. 

Pragmatism and Art

There is a phrase in the art world: “you have to know when the painting is done and when to take your brush off the canvas”.

If you rely solely on how you feel about something you are working on to act as your judge of good/bad then you may end up failing and never know why.

Conversely, if you take a moment to come to a decision about motivations you will most likely have a better time. Your ideas will come more naturally. Chances are you will stay on target and finish on time.

The key here is to take the time to articulate where you want to go, what you are trying to achieve and why you want to do it.

This will give you the confidence and freedom to charge ahead towards your goal.

Remember: perfection is impossible. All we can hope for is incremental gains over time. And, if you strive for perfection and are pragmatic about what is possible you will unconsciously make progress.

Life is short.

Can we really afford to not get the most out of our efforts?

For more about “Mastering Your Creative Process” click here

Pulling a Homer

How often do we react before thinking about the potential consequences? How often do we say something and then think: Oh what a fool I was?

It’s so easy to fool our selves. Our inner voice is very convincing.

We are creatures of habit and for the most part we react unconsciously.  If we feel threatened we can lapse into defensiveness in a heartbeat. Or, if we’re preoccupied we can easily respond inappropriately.

For anyone who creates there is another wrinkle: we all invest so much of our emotions into the process that we can unconsciously take ownership of the result.

We forget that (as a work for hire) we are providing a service, not creating a product. We are hired for our uniqueness with the understanding that the customer is always right.

And, when you get emotionally invested it is difficult to see past your own point of view. This is when our patterned responses can take over especially when questioned or confronted (defensiveness, frustration, contempt).

This is the make/break point. We can subconsciously shoot ourselves in the foot…and not even know it.

Rules Of Engagement:

To keep from making inappropriate comments the most advantageous policy is to listen without fishing for approval, expecting a specific response or worse yet...waiting to speak.

If there is a problem, step back from your ego and try to understand where you missed the boat.

Our job (as a service provider) is to satisfy our client by applying our expertise to the task at hand. Our satisfaction must come not from approval but from the satisfaction of the client. 

Clarity of purpose, well defined and organized will provide the thread that keeps you on track and your emotions in check.

The challenge is to be present and solely focused on the task at hand. This will allow you to listen objectively.

The good news is that this is not impossible. It’s a skill you can learn and develop with enough practice and commitment.  

Are you up to the challenge?

Looking Through A Different Lens

Why is it that some people seem to be able to see solutions quicker? Find answers faster? Comprehend complex issues easier?

You can make a compelling argument that this has to do with genetics. True, to an extent. However, the value in this skill is not that you can do it. It’s what you do with it. And, like anything else, with work and dedication you can improve your abilities.

My experience has been that those who see the world differently than others are the ones who put their egos and conditioned responses aside and see life as it is…rather than what they want it to be…or think it should be. This trait is common among highly creative people. Everyone is capable of this…but it requires work…and not the work that you might expect.

We are conditioned to react in specific ways to specific events, people or things. How often do we actually look at our life objectively? How much do we take for granted? How often do we miss the obvious signs and markers that may point us in a different direction?

More importantly: how often do we act upon these seemingly random events?

What I’m trying to say here is that we all judge our current situation by what we have learned and experienced in the past. A good thing when it comes to fire. But, have you ever thought about how your preconditioned responses and prejudices affect the creative risks you take?

To be sure- experience saves time and potential embarrassment. You avoid doing things that don’t work in favor of what you know works. But, if we do not practice objectivity in your creative decision-making process then we all run the risk of taking for granted that only a few correct answers exist to any question or problem(2+2 does not always equal 4 in creative endeavors). Perhaps true…but what about all the other choices that you have ignored?

Objectivity and the ability to measure your results is essential for any creative person. With millions upon millions of people entering the creative class just doing what feels good is no longer good enough nor is there only one answer to any creative problem.

Personally I feel that maintaining my objectivity keeps me fresh and enables me to see new solutions…to seemingly insurmountable obstacles (career, health, personal relationships). Being objective takes longer but if you practice the process speeds up and you will quickly develop confidence in attacking any part of your life that isn’t working.

This is where the creative person has a huge advantage…one worth exploiting to the best of your ability.

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