Why can we imagine better work than we can create? || Unthinkable #146
What does it take to build a thriving creative career? (I mean, how much time do you have?)
Perhaps a better question we can ask is this: What IS a creative career? It’s the consistent building of a body of work. Maybe tack on “that we’re proud to build” and “which helps others,” and maybe you get closer.
Creating things for a living can feel messy. It can often feel like things escape you — the skills, the direction, the ideas, the results. Everything. But if we reset back to the most fundamental of ideas, we arrive here:
The job isn’t to “be creative.” The job is to create.
And that’s great news! Because anyone and everyone can create stuff. Of course, we don’t want to just create “stuff.” We want to create things that matter — to us, to our companies, and to our communities. That’s what drives us and every creative person.
We’re trying to make what matters. The projects and jobs we pursue, the bosses or clients we like or dislike, and the works we admire -- it all comes back to that one idea. Not "rank #1" or "drive massive growth."
Make. What. Matters.
I believe everyone has what it takes to make what matters, but we often stop or stagnate in our creative process. So what do prolific, thriving, ever-improving creators have in common? What does a healthy body of work require to create?
They keep building their body of work.
And what is a body of work? It’s the sum total of lots of tiny little movements forward. When you really distill this notion of “creating things” down to its essence, it’s easier to see that the most important thing — and perhaps the ONLY thing that really matters to us, is this:
The next rep.
Welcome to a new journey, where we’re exploring what creatively prolific and successful people do to reach that next rep — consistently, faster, and better — so we can do that, too. Each Friday, in my newsletter, I’m trying to make sense of a question or concept for the first time. I’m using my own first-person point of view to write, explore, tell stories, reflect backwards, and mess around. (You can subscribe for free right here.) Then, on Unthinkable, I’m venturing out into the world to find other perspectives, exploring the science, the stories, and the successes (and failures) that swirl all around us, all the time, as creative people everywhere focus on reaching their next rep.
I have a TON more questions than answers at this point, but if we can learn what it takes or what successful creators do to constantly reach the next rep, then we'll understand how to build an entire body of work -- all in the name of making things that make a difference.
Welcome to this journey.
Welcome to The Next Rep.
UNTHINKABLE IS MADE POSSIBLE BY MY MEMBERSHIP GROUP, MAKE WHAT MATTERS
Make What Matters is a community group of content creators who are independent (in function or spirit). Together, we learn to elevate our creative skills, earn more resources and income, and execute our best work yet. We give and get support, and we build our bodies of work.
Learn more about monthly and annual memberships, or become a monthly patron, at makewhatmattersgroup.com. New members get a discount with the code UNTHINKABLE.