Foolish People just posted this great blog:
Dig deep, they say, feel the burn and power on through, break on through to the other side.
As if there is an infinite store of resources to draw upon. As if you’ve been holding back, as if you’re not fully committed to the work you do. As if you don’t love it enough. As if there is some secret that you don’t know, that you really should.
As if they have it all sorted out – every single criterion and category, as if they have perfectly balanced the books, are well on course to make a profit.
This quote in particular speaks to me because I’ve realized I may have answers for me, but I don’t for anyone else. Although I wish someday to spend just a couple minutes by some magic experiencing life through someone else’s brain and perceptions, it’s not an option right now. So, you know, my advice is generally moot. I wonder about the people who have the answers. Have they really sorted it all out? What gives them the initiative and drive to offer up all these answers? What can shut them up?
The rest of the post doesn’t really have anything to do with people offering advice. Just the emphatic statement that YOU ARE IT, for yourself and your art, whatever it may be. Which constitutes advice, but of the kind that turns you back towards yourself, which is the best kind.
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photo used via CC BY-SA 2.0 from opensourceway
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