Austin Kleon told me to Blog
OK, he didn't personally tell me to, but because I read his book, "Show Your Work." Here I am.
My mindset and direction writing a blog was skewed. I thought I was perfectionist but to carry this mentality through all my social media and even here? Man! You might as well consider me missing in action. Instead of looking at my blog, my own personal website as a portfolio, CV, or resumé, I suppose I ought to look at is like my former MySpace page. Wow I’m aging myself. I was using MySpace probably around 6th grade and it was fun because you got to customize the look of your page through HTML, you got to change up the vibe with music and pictures, and you felt like you could write whatever you wanted. However, since pursuing this content creative lifestyle, I have been choosy with what I put out there into the world. I feel like I could only put out my “good” work, but Austin Kleon pretty much reveals that not everything that we do is even “great” but that only a small portion of it is. If anything the collection of these few blog posts is more valuable as a whole, as a group than it is if someone only judged me by one post. “Don’t think of your website as a self-promotion machine, think of it as a self-invention machine,” as Austin says.”
So in case you are struggling with perfectionism, here's some tips and ideas that I got from reading his book.
People want to see what you’re working on. You don't have to use your website or you blog as just your portfolio but also display what you're working on. “A good daily dispatch is like getting all the DVD extras before a movie comes out—you get to watch deleted scenes and listen to director’s commentary while the movie is being made.” - Austin Kleon. People are interested in seeing the behind the scenes. It's OK for me to publish my work in progress.
Consider your internet real estate. Yes social media is important and can get your reach, but that "living" there long term is not practical. Facebook, Youtube, and TikTok could be gone tomorrow or turn against you and have you lose all your hard work. However, your website is a place that YOU own and can really have your voice, even if it’s still developing. I've heard this advice of making your own website before from other Youtubers like Roberto Blake, but Austin Kleon gave me a better sense of what content that could live on my website than just curated best to impress.
If there is anywhere to be yourself, it’s on your website. I have been struggling with the idea of where I can post what I want to post. I am frustrated sometimes at the idea of having a niché and that certain platforms have certain criteria for what posts live there. For example, my Youtube has much relationship advice mixed with minimalism and even cinematic vlogs, but I want to talk about creator related struggles on there because of the effort it takes to even post there. If I post any of those topics or anything in my life, I could literally post and archive it all here on my website. If people want to know about how I went through the K-1 visa process, or want to know my thoughts on certain camera gear I could post it all here.
The best value that I am getting from reading books like these, possibly reading books at all, is that I can really be overthinking it and it doesn’t have to be that complicated. Although we all “Steal Like an Artist,” our identities and experiences are still unique, and are still very much worthy of being shared and heard.
Here's links to Austin Kleon's book and website.
Book: Show Your Work
Website: https://austinkleon.com/
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