“To be of service. Isn’t that what we are here to do. To do work we are proud of. To put ourselves on the hook. To find the contribution we are capable of. The only way to be on this journey is to begin. But there isn’t a guarantee. In fact, most of what we seek to do will not work. But our intent, the intent of being of service, of making things better, of building something that matters, is an essential part of the pattern.”
Seth Godin’s new book The Practice: Shipping Creative Work is just chock-full of his style of wisdom and unique take on the world. As one reviewer on Amazon stated, it’s Seth’s magnum opus on the subject of creativity. Even though it is not a long book it feels massive in the scope of its inspiring offering. The book is separated into 11 sections containing a total of 219 individual maxims. My main take away is no matter what, I need to maintain a consistent creative practice without fixating on the outcome. Create, be of service, and keep moving forward.
Trying to listen to the whole book straight through had my head swimming and I definitely lost track a couple of times. It’s a lot to take in and I would recommend splitting it up or if you have the physical book even better. Maybe digest one rule at a time and give yourself a chance to absorb it. I might even try reading one every day.
I’ve included in this post an interview he did for the book with Jordan Harbinger which I really enjoyed. And I’d like to share some of the quotes from the book that resonated with me most at this point in my life.
“Better is possible, but not if we continue to settle, continue to hide, and continue to scurry along the same paths. We have more to do. We need your contribution. But it can’t happen, and won’t happen if we can’t figure out how to trust ourselves enough to do the work. ”
“The creativity you put into your work is an opportunity for better. It opens doors and turns on lights. It connects the disconnected and creates the bonds of culture. Art transforms the recipient even as it allows individuals to become us. Art is the human act of doing something that might not work and causing change to happen. Work that matters, for people who care. Not for applause, not for money. But because we can. ”
“The story we tell ourselves leads to the actions we take. If you want to change your story change your actions first. When we choose to act a certain way our mind can’t help but rework our narrative to make those actions become coherent. We become what we do.”