So many people set out to create a product—whether it’s a book, a coaching service, or an online course—and assume they know what people want. Don’t do that. Instead of assuming, just ask.
People don’t typically buy what they need. They buy what they want. Which is why I love the saying: Sell them what they want, give them what they need. But how, exactly, do we do that?
Learning how to be unapologetically ourselves in our writing and creative work is the first step to becoming effective at what we do. If we don’t do this, our writing will not resonate with our audience.
Is your work timely or timeless? That is, is it something that is relevant to your current place in history, or does it transcend the limitations of its context? You may be thinking that the goal of every artist is to do work that lasts, but this is a myth.
It’s one thing to call yourself a writer; it’s quite another to actually write. So what separates the pros from the amateurs? Is it God-given talent? Natural skill? Or something else?
Of course, we all have gifts that we’ve been given. This is grace, the fact that we have things we are good at — and don’t deserve them. But what we do with those gifts is what separates the outliers from the rest of the pack.
Bestselling author and creativity expert Jeff Goins dismantles the myth that being creative is a hindrance to success by revealing how an artistic temperament is, in fact, a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
For centuries, the myth of the starving artist has dominated our culture, seeping into the minds of creative people and stifling their pursuits. But the truth is that the world’s most successful artists did not starve. In fact, they capitalized on the power of their creative strength. In Real Artists Don’t Starve, Jeff Goins debunks the myth of the starving artist by unveiling the ideas that created it and replacing them with fourteen rules for artists to thrive.
