What is School For? Brilliant Thoughts from Seth Godin on Art, Creativity and Education

This is an amazingly challenging video from one of the great minds of our day, Seth Godin. If you’re at all interested in art, creativity and/or education, you must watch this video.

Perfectionism and why deadlines are our friends…

One of my newer friends in this ministry set a goal of eliminating his tendency toward perfectionism. As I was working through my reply, I realized this might be a nugget for us all. I love it when I write responses that I also need to read and take to heart. I guess that means I’m not perfect either and that’s okay. Here’s my response:

Truthfully you have hit the nail on the head with the whole perfectionism thing. I wonder how many amazing things that could touch hearts and change lives, never see the light of day because their creators see them as less than perfect. Good thing our Creator doesn’t act that way. Seth Godin in his book Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?
( a must red for everyone who reads this blog) tells the story about Steve Jobs working with a programmer who was holding back a particular project due to perfectionism. Jobs was quoted as saying, “Real artists ship.” That’s become a mantra for me. When I do a project, I impose a deadline on it, then I pray and give it my all and when the deadline hits, I send it to the world, trusting that God will do with it as He pleases. Otherwise I’ll just be tweaking a bunch of stuff that no one will ever see. Some call that perfectionism, I wonder if God doesn’t call it disobedience.

Journey through Michael Hyatt’s Platform: Post 20 Start or Restart your Blog.

Throughout this chapter of Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World Michael Hyatt gives some great information and advice on blogging and getting started with blogging. As you can see with over 800 posts. I have already done this so I thought I would just touch on a few things.

First you need to pick a theme that you will write on. Mine is arts ministry and finding and using  your gifts to the glory of God. Because that is my theme, most of the  posts revolve around that theme. It’s almost either something to do with art, the arts, ministry, giftedness or a combination of the above. It’s important because a blog is more than just a place to rant. It’s an attempt at building a community or tribe based around a common interest or theme. Occasionally I will stray from the theme, but for the most part, I want to be a resource to my tribe of creative believers who want to be used to make a difference in this world.

Next you need hosting. I have tried Blogger and WordPress and WordPress just seems to meet my needs better. At the moment I am on a WordPress.com site this is the free site  that they host. It’s a great place to get started. I recently also downloaded WordPress.org  to my hosting  site. Eventually, I plan  on transitioning everything to that site. There are several advantages to WordPress.org. Mainly it’s a lot more customizable and it seems e-commerce is more readily available but you also have to secure (and pay for) web hosting. I recommend starting with WordPress.com for free until you have your blog up and running.

Lastly post regularly. I post to this site almost daily but I don’t recommend that for the beginning blogger unless you have a lot to say. It took a while to build up to that and it takes a fair  amount of effort to maintain.  Quality is more important than quantity. My goal is to have something worthwhile every time I post otherwise  people will get bored and tune out and that is the last thing one wants who is trying to build a platform.

The book has a lot more great information that will help you get started. Check  it  out.

If you already have a blog, send us a link in the comments. We’d love to check you out.

If you haven’t done it yet, check out Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World.

Journey through Michael Hyatt’s Platform: Post 19 Beware of Self-Proclaimed Social Media Experts

In this chapter Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World Michael Hyatt talks gives some warnings on interracting with social media “experts.” He has a lot of good information here. Bottom line the bestway to decide whether or not you should pay someone to help you build your platform is to look at the size of their platform. I don’t consider myself an expert by any means which is why I am working through this book.

One thing I would say is no one knows your ministry (etc.) better than you, so working through this on your own is going to be highly beneficial. Get to know your audience and talk to them.

As to the experts, I tend to spend my time listening to the experts that give their stuff out for free. Bloggers and podcasters have tons of great infoormation that they generously share. These folks are true experts and many of them have materials for sale as well. Look for people in your field of expertise and then also to the social media/marketing bloggers.

Some of my favorites are:

Seth Godin Blog: Seth Godin is a genius in the field of marketing and his blog is one of the most informative things I read. Plus Seth is a prolific writer who has put out some of the best books on the topic. His book Linchpin is a must read for evvery follower of my blog. This blog exists because of his book Tribes.
The Accidental Creative Podcast: Todd Henry, a creativity expert teaches how to be creative at a moments notice.
Michael Hyatt Blog and Podcast: The guy wrote the book on building a platform… literally.
Andy Andrews Blog and Podcast: Maybe the best storyteller of our time. Andy is a great communicator, has a lot of great guests and you can learn tons about how to communicate your message.
Relevant Podcast: Relevant Magazine’s podcast is an amazing source to the latest information on church and culture.
Catalyst Podcast: The podcast from the folks who do the Catalyst Conference for young church leaders. I think I learned about every one of the people above from listening to this podcast. It’s a treasure trove.
Dan Miller’s 48 Days Podcast: Dan is a career consultant and coach. Authhor ofthe book 48 days to the Work You Love He is a great source of information on finding and using your gifts.

All these people have managed to build huge platforms and make a major impact on their respective fields. They’re all experts in their own right. Check them out.

What have I missed? Who do you read/listen to that I should be checking out?

If you haven’t done it yet, check out Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World.

Seth Godin on Why You Need A Home Business

I’m on vacation, so I wanted to give you a few really thought provoking things to think about. Seth Godin is someone who has really influenced my work and ministry. I think the things he has to say about our future here are crucial. This applies to any industry but especially those of us who are creatives. If you think I’m off base think about what has happened to the music and publishing industries.

Once again it’s the same thing, if you don’t like your reality, change it!

Seth Godin: Are You an Artist or Just Following Instructions?

Seth Godin made this video about what it means to be an artist and I think it bears repeating.

Ministering to the Creative Soul Excerpt with a great quote from Seth Godin

Most people don’t consider themselves creatives. Pablo Picasso once said “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” If this is true, and I believe with all my heart that it is, then somewhere, maybe deep inside you, is an artist, a creative. You see I believe every child of the Creator God is creative. Maybe not with a brush or a pen or whatever creative tool you may think of as you futilely try to dismiss yourself from the list of the creative, but God has given you the ability to solve problems, to fix things, to make things happen, to find a way to get something done and by definition that is creativity. I told you, everyone is creative, even you. Relish it and use it to be a blessing in someone’s life.
Seth Godin has this to say about art in his great book Linchpin:
“Art isn’t only a painting. Art is anything that’s creative, passionate, and personal. And great art resonates with the viewer, not only with the creator.

What makes someone an artist? I don’t think is has anything to do with a paintbrush. There are painters who follow the numbers, or paint billboards, or work in a small village in China, painting reproductions. These folks, while swell people, aren’t artists. On the other hand, Charlie Chaplin was an artist, beyond a doubt. So is Jonathan Ive, who designed the iPod. You can be an artists who works with oil paints or marble, sure. But there are artists who work with numbers, business models, and customer conversations. Art is about intent and communication, not substances.

An artists is someone who uses bravery, insight, creativity, and boldness to challenge the status quo. And an artists takes it personally.

That’s why Bob Dylan is an artist, but an anonymous corporate hack who dreams up Pop 40 hits on the other side of the glass is merely a marketer. That’s why Tony Hsieh, founder of Zappos, is an artists, while a boiler room of telemarketers is simply a scam.

Tom Peters, corporate gadfly and writer, is an artists, even though his readers are businesspeople. He’s an artists because he takes a stand, he takes the work personally, and he doesn’t care if someone disagrees. His art is part of him, and he feels compelled to share it with you because it’s important, not because he expects you to pay him for it.

Art is a personal gift that changes the recipient. The medium doesn’t matter. The intent does.

Art is a personal act of courage, something one human does that creates change in another.”

Whether or not you consider yourself a creative, will you look at this definition and call yourself an artist? I hope so because if you will bring this level of commitment to the people God gives you, you will minister to their creative souls and be a great blessing to their lives. Use your bravery, your insight, your creativity and boldness, to fire the creative imaginations of people God is calling into a wonderful, deeper more intense relationship with Him. Stand by their side as God takes their abilities to heights that only He can imagine. Guide them, bless them, help them and realize that the creative God who created them to create also created you to bring out of them all they can be and do. Creatively minister to their creative souls. It may very well be what you were created to do.

Excerpt from my upcoming manifesto, Ministering to the Creative Soul available soon from AMOKArts.com

Confidence Without Guts

Seth Godin posted this, and while he posted in for business folks it definitely applies to artists as well…

Too many MBAs are sent into the world with bravado and enthusiasm and confidence.

The problem is that they also lack guts.

Guts is the willingness to lose. To be proven wrong, or to fail.

No one taught them guts in school. So much money at stake, so much focus on the numbers and on moving up the ladder, it never occurs to anyone to talk about the value of failure, of smart risk, of taking a leap when there are no guarantees.

It’s easy to be confident when you have everything aligned, when the moment is perfect. It’s also not particularly useful.

Great Free Book for Anyone Interested in Education, Creativity and More

There may be a lot of divergent opinions but one thing almost eveyone can agree on. The world is changing. As we move to creative economy, the need for a different education and different schools is becoming very pressing. Seth Godin has written an amazing book on the topic called Stop Stealing Dreams. The message is so important to him, that he is giving the book away free. It’s available for ereaders or as a pdf on the web site http://stopstealingdreams.com”

This is a book everyone should read, especially educators and parents. The creative economy is here to stay. This book will help you to prepare for what’scoming next.

Video of the Day: Seth Godin and the Tribes We Lead

If you’ve ever wondered why I call this blog a tribe, now you know.

I decided to find all the people who like me are interested in (love) art, creativity and Jesus and who would love to find a way to bring their loves together. If that’s you, welcome to the tribe.