Imagine there are 2 men who set out on a mission to climb to the top of Success Mountain.
There is no easy path to the top of Success Mountain.
No road has been paved. These men will have to make it to the top all on their own.
These men do not know each other. Their only goal is to get to the top of Success Mountain no matter what.
These men are also very jealous of the glory (they want it all for themselves) so they tell no one else about the path they plan to take.
Because only one man can climb one path to the top of Success Mountain, they start at different entry points at the bottom of the mountain.
These 2 men take their very different paths, they pass through each un-passable pass, they make it through every bit of adversity.
Finally they reach the top of Success Mountain and give each other a high-five.
They are happy to meet each other because they are the only two who actually made it to the top. Though thousands of other men tried and failed to climb to success, these men stuck with it until the end.
Even though they took separate paths, they each passed through their own series of obstacles to overcome adversity. They give each other a laugh because they know that quitting is the only way to fail.
All the quitter's gave up and said “I took the wrong way and had to climb down so I could start again.”
HAHA!
Our 2 heroes laugh at the pathetic excuses. The heroes know that there is no right way or wrong way.
The path you take is meaningless because all paths, taken to the end, lead to the same place.
The only way you cannot end up at the same place (the top of Success Mountain) is if you turn around and go back down before you reach the top.
These 10 important tips for starving artists will ensure you do not quit before you reach the top…
1) There is no one-way to success
Everyone wants to know the rules and the laws of success.
Very few understand that rules are meant to be broken and laws are only abided by the law-abiders.
It takes a rebel to achieve the mega-success that you want.
We all want to think that there is one secret rule that will guarantee you success.
And if there was one rule that absolutely guarantees success it is this: There are no rules.
Everything is dual; Everything has poles; Everything has its pair of opposites; Like and unlike are the same; Opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; Extremes meet; All truths, are but half-truths; All paradoxes may be reconciled.” – Hermes the Thrice Great
And as an artist your job is to turn a half-truth into a full-truth. You must reconcile paradox.
“You can't do it this way, you have to do it that way!” is wrong.
All paths lead to the same destination. Climb and you will reach the top. Don't climb and you will stay at the bottom.
What is important is that you become like the Little Engine That Could and you choo-choo choose your path and you follow it until the end.
2) A strong opinion is what makes an artist
I always tell you “you must do it this way to get your way!” but that is a lie I tell you.
I tell you this lie because as an artist you must have an opinion.
Having a strong opinion is key to artistry.
If you do not have a strong opinion, what will you communicate? Nothing!
Everything worth communicating is a strong opinion, one way or the other.
It does not matter what the opinion is, it only matters that it is strong and you believe in it.
If you are not willing to go too far you will never get far enough.” – Chael Sonnen
Middle of the road types will not succeed as anything other than middle managers in fluorescent offices.
3) Originality is over-rated, copying is key
When you start out, it's important to just start. However, a new artist has no idea how to start.
Therefore it is perfectly acceptable for a new artist to copy another artist. This way, the artist will learn what to do and what not to do.
In the beginning, no one is original and everybody copies. In time, the aspiring artist will develop his own taste and talents and he will become original.
So many people have been mad at other blog artists who copy the great work of Bold and Determined but copycats have never bothered me.
I've always understood that when you start you have to follow some sort of guideline. It is only in time that the true artist develops his true voice and true abilities.
What kind of artist would Michelangelo be if he did not first start out by painting the same landscapes and portraits that everybody else painted?
If you start out trying to be original you're going to be nothing.
Everybody has to learn the basics and copying is how you learn them.
Copying is more like an internship. It is your time for learning your craft.
Copy away, young maestro.
4) Copying will lead to failure, originality is key
Copying in the long-term is a losing strategy.
Yes, you have to copy at first just to learn your craft.
However, the only way to master your craft is to do it in a way that nobody else is doing.
To create art in a way that nobody else is doing you need 2 things:
- A mastery of the basics (learned via copying)
- And one slight twist that nobody else is doing
It doesn't take some gigantic new way to create a masterpiece, it only takes a slight twist to create something that is entirely new.
5) Stop thinking big and start thinking small
So many would-be artists believe that they need to think big to achieve their dreams.
This belief neuters the artist's ability to create great work.
Instead of creating something, they create nothing because they are waiting for some divine inspiration to create the next Sistine Chapel.
Michelangelo himself did not start out thinking big, he started out by painting flowers and learning the craft of art.
The great master started by painting houses, portraits, flowers, landscapes etc., just like everybody else.
It is only in time that the great separate from the average.
Everyone has to start at exactly the same place – the bottom – and climb from there.
To create something great big takes a great big amount of time.
And in that time you must be creating small pieces of art. This is how you learn and how you grow.
You can't go from creating nothing to creating greatness overnight.
It takes many years of creating small achievement and building up to your great big work.
The belief that you need to create a great big work immediately neuters the would-be artist and this belief has to be killed.
Do not try to think big, instead think small. Do small works every day.
The magic of thinking small leads to big changes in your life and in your art.
6) Always be deaf to critics
Stop listening to critics because if you do listen to them you will never create anything new.
Critics exist only to ensure you do not color outside of the lines.
Critics are incapable of original or creative thought and they have a need to fit in with the masses.
Listening to the critics say “But nobody else is doing it this way!” will kill your chances of success.
If nobody else is doing it that way, that's exactly the way you want to do it.
7) There is no guarantee
So many would-be artists quit before they start because they never get a guarantee of success.
Guess what? You will never get a guarantee of success.
That is because success only comes to those who have the nuts and the guts to go their own way and create their own success.
If success guarantees existed then everybody would be a success, wouldn't they?
If there were “sure things” then everybody would follow them and poverty and starving artistry would vanish overnight.
In fact, there is only one sure thing in the world: No risk, no reward.
The reality is that success is only for the few and the brave.
The weak and the cowardly will never achieve success, and don't deserve success, because they never took the initial risk that sparks the rewards.
You have to be a go-getter and go get it.
8) Creating great art isn't hard, but starting is
Don't you know what the great Lao Tzu said?
Your journey of a thousand long miles begins with a single step.
Once you begin your journey it is not difficult.
The only hard part is making that very first step.
So many people quit before they even start because they cannot make that first step.
9) You have to work for the future, not for today
Being a great artist (via word, painting, audio, or video) is about creating a legacy.
Legacy is more important than creating outrage today.
Todays come and go, the future is forever. Working for the future is the key to greatness.
Working for today leads you to create art that comes and goes and is unimportant in the long run. There are topics of interest that will forever have an audience.
We call these topics “evergreen”.
Concentrating on the topics of today will always date your art in the long run.
Doing political commentary today means in 5 years your work is completely dated and meaningless.
Concentrating on work that is always popular ensures your art will have a new audience forever.
And this, young maestro, is how you create the great work that keeps you remembered through the ages.
10) The only barrier to success is yourself
Failures love to blame everybody for their failures.
Well, almost everybody.
They always forget to blame the real person who is responsible for their failure: themselves.
If you want to see the person who is holding you back, go to a mirror and look directly into your own eyes. That person is your biggest enemy to success.
It is self-sabotage that kills art careers before they ever get started.
Before laying the blame on others, you've got to overcome self-sabotage and conquer your fear of success.
Say to yourself, “I can do it, I will do it, and nobody will stop me.”
Say it enough and it will become true.
BONUS #11) Success is a manifestation of your will
You must will your great work into existence because it will not come to existence any other way.
That is how magic works – you say it enough that you come to believe it, and when you believe it it comes true.
Like the great creator who says to a thing “be” and it becomes.
If you concentrate on it, you can make it true.
After Michelangelo, after Lao Tzu, is, perhaps, you.
But only if you want it to be you.
Until next time.
Your man,
-Victor Pride
It is like you secretly knew what I’ve been going through.
This post came exactly at the right time, I needed this.
My life has never been the same after B&D.
God bless you, Victor, thank you, my man.
P.S: I copied your stuff a lot on my blog, but it started to dissolve with time. I believe it’s like learning a new instrument, first you copy the notes and the rhythm. When you mastered it, you think nothing, you just make the art. You had such a strong effect on my development, your thoughts are injected into my soul. I never feel sorry about that, actually, I am more than happy.
The key to becoming “unique” is by finding multiple inspirations.
Men always try to copy what inspires them.
If you have multiple sources that inspire you…
…then you will copy multiple aspects of different personalities and unite them with your own.
All inspirations in my life led me back to my ancestors, now I almost live and look like them, just more muscular.
And I know you experience the same Victor because I see you are liking nature and “your roots” way more after checking out ThuleanPerspective.
Cheers.
Fantastic blog Victor as always. If it wasn’t for you I would never have started my Superior Student blog. This post in particular is full of such useful knowledge for people just starting out on a journey. Keep up the amazing work.
Simply beautiful Vic.
Thank you.
This is art in its truest, most sincere form. As a great man once said “All killer, no filler.”
I enjoyed this post a lot. :)
Masterpiece, Vic.
You have A LOT of great posts on your blog, but THIS one is one of the best. Most of your articles fire me up and motivate me, but only few of your works speak to my soul and will stay with me forever. This post is one of them. I will probably read it one hundred times over the years.
Thanks for the tips :)
“The path you take is meaningless because all paths, taken to the end, lead to the same place.”
Do the work. Those two lines hit hard. So much truth.
Damn, number 3 and 4 is exactly what I needed to hear.
I started out my blog recently after years of procrastination and the first obstacle that I hit was should I look at Victor’s first posts or the most recent ones and emulate them?
There’s no doubt in my mind that I don’t want to end up as a copycat of another man’s hard work, although it would be never obvious as the blog is in my native language, but neither it would deliver the message in the same way.
I was also thinking about whether or not I should be referencing other links, as the rule is not to send visitors to other sites, but there is no one way.
Now when I go back to the article I see that number 9 also speaks to me, as I was doubting whether or not there are enough people out there to stand behind me, but damn.
The timing is never perfect. If you want something just get your foot into the door and go from there.
Loving the NWR feel on these last two articles.
Funny you should mention The Little Engine That Could, my Grandmother bought that book for all of her grand kids when they were young, to remind them not to give up.
Also, there’s a typo on the first tip, towards the end. “Climb and you will reach the time.”
Sincerely,
-Justin N.
Good article, it is so true that the only obstacle in your way is yourself. I learned that myself. However I worked on myself and eventually mastered myself, not completely but enough to make my dreams a reality. Remember, inner game is everything.
This is your best article yet. Thank you.
This is exactly what I needed Victor, you are changing my life, like for real, i was living in the culterscape ,but now im hustling and doing things that i love.
Thank you Victor Pride
I love these new graphic images. Very expressive style, and thematic to the words written.
Great article that anyone in the blogging business needs to read.
In another post you wrote “Copycats – Bold and Determined has more copycats than the Beatles. The copycats will never “make it”. They’ll never get anywhere because they don’t have a voice. They’re pretending to be me and using my pretend voice. You can’t out-Victor Victor Pride. There is only one person you can be – you. To be successful you have to relate to others. The only way you’ll relate to others is to express yourself. You won’t do it by copying someone else.”
I get what you’re saying even though it’s a little contradicting.
A great work of art that what you are Victor. This is inspirational and believe me this has awaken me to the reality. Now I have to revisit my works and made sure they fulfill their purpose.
Thanks Vic for this post once again…
My Man!! Feeling pumped up! Sometimes I feel like the world doesn’t get me and watching them do the wrong shit is exasperating to the say the least. Took a break from school (I don’t think i’ll go back) to focus on making cash online.
I didn’t like the path of mediocrity I was headed to and whenever I mentioned this to family and friends they made me feel like am going bananas…fuck them for accepting a mediocre life. I accepted that being a lone wolf would simply mean more prey for me! Your posts keep me motivated during the rough times …can’t wait to get to the top of the mountain and give you a high-five!
Digging this piece.
Amazing!
A good artist copy, a great artist steal. Picasso