Eternal Awful Truth #1: Authentic selves fail all the time
With all the talk going on in the world about finding yourself, believing in yourself, and being true to yourself, you’d think if you’re just honest and true, it’s all going to work out. Lord knows, I’ve preached the gospel. It doesn’t. There’s no guarantee that the best, most honest version of you is going to hit the market and make a splash. There are lots or products and services in the world created by people who care with values and with beliefs that are simply bad products that shouldn’t have seen the light of day. There are also good products squelched by the market. Almost every indie movie is just that. They all had loads of heart. But most really sucked. And more often than not, the ones that didn’t still didn’t make anything. More heartbreaking? There are plenty of soulless commercial products that have succeeded.
But none of this is the point. The point is, being yourself is your best shot. It’s your best shot to take what you have and what you know and put it out there and get somewhere with it. It’s your best shot to avoid regret. It’s your best chance to make a mark in the world in a way that matters to you. Because no matter how much money you get, you won’t get enough to be free. You won’t be able to retire. No one does. If you could give it all up for something that was likely to happen, that would be one thing. But if you have to give it all up for nothing? Forget about it. Early retirement is a pie in the sky. For most of us, our careers are going to be a slow, lifelong grind. But it’s better than the alternative.
Look at the people who hit it big. Many wind up right back where they came from after they blow through their overnight success, wonder boys who can never get back to their pedestal. And those who keep making the money? They adapt to it. They hike up their living expenses, and then they still don’t have enough. What about the people who really, really make it? Well, the ones with something better to do were doing it before they made it filthy rich. In fact, it’s what got them there. And the ones who just want to cash out? They spend their time trying to find something to do, and that becomes their new purpose instead of getting rich. So instead of blowing through time, they blow through cash and time. Yeah, maybe they get the privilege of worrying about thread counts for Frette sheets and what new Ferrari is coming out. But if that’s the win scenario, it’s not the game I want to play.
As for the rest of us, we will work most of our lives. Some will make big money (just not big enough), some will not. But we’ll all be at it and at it and at it. There is never enough to be enough. And if you’re going to be at it your whole life through, you may as well do something you feel something for. That’s how the grind doesn’t become a grind. And that’s the real point of believing and being true. For most, being yourself is your best shot at elevating your business. For everyone, it’s the best shot at elevating yourself. And that, you can take to the bank.
Eternal Awful Truth #2: No one gets us
And no one ever will. That’s how it is. That’s how it is supposed to be. Do you get your hair stylist? Your butcher? Anyone else? Of course not. Why should anyone get our photographs?
The business of business is not to take a product and just show it. It’s to take a product and create value. Let me repeat that. Business creates value. Or think of it this way. Business is the frame. And let me repeat that. It is the frame. Now that doesn’t sound all that important. It’s the artwork that counts, right? Not if no one sees the art. And, more importantly, not if no one sees it in the right light. It’s a chicken or the egg problem. The forest in the tree that no one heard. The noise may be there, but it’s only doing something if someone is perceiving it and understands it. The frame serves that purpose. Business is the frame, and in the real world, when you’re making a living, the frame is everything. It’s not just about creating the work. And it’s not just about getting people there. It’s about connecting the dots for them to know what to examine, how to examine it, and what it stands for.
I recently saw the documentary The Queen of Versailles. Highly recommended for those who haven’t seen it. It’s about a husband and wife who own the largest timeshare corporation in the world and their struggles during the recession. We see a lot of their personal lives, and as the camera wanders through the house at this tacky picture and that gaudy decoration, I overhear someone say “Why do the rich have such bad taste?” They don’t. Most people don’t have bad taste in general – that’s how the curve works. However, the ability to buy anything you like and make it look any way you like makes it very apparent when people do have bad taste. In other words, being rich gives you the resources to show off your bad taste.
If you’re an image-maker, there’s a good chance you’re higher up on the taste scale. After all, it’s your job. But other people aren’t going to see the world the way you see it. And we look to all the wrong examples. We look to the outliers and exceptions, and not the rules. We look to the .1% who have an image that taps into the cultural consciousness and has a look that catches on fire, and we say “Look! They made it work just by putting it out there!” Yes. But can you? Because if you’re just a fraction of a percent off – let’s say, in the top 2% – it’s going to make a world of difference. And there’s a good chance you can’t. Just because it works for the exception doesn’t mean it’s the rule. Banish the thought. Not to mention a lot of the people who came out of nowhere spent a hell of a lot of time to come out of nowhere. They were usually spending their time refining their craft (see Eternal Awful Truth #1). Luck finds the prepared. But even if it didn’t, why put yourself at the mercy of the marketplace, when you can take the horse by the reigns and do something about it?
The top 2% or 5% or 10% should be a great place to be. In fact, quite often the top .5% really was the top 10%, except with a lot of extra work applied to it. They built their frames. The real trick was that along with building their frames, they kept at their craft. Great artists might burst onto the scene, but it’s not when they do their greatest work. That comes after. Somewhere right in the middle, when the fight was still there and the burnout wasn’t.
Here’s the thing of it. If most people do have bad taste, or to put it a better way, if most people can’t appreciate at the same level of sophistication as you (and they shouldn’t be able to, or else you wouldn’t be much of an expert, right?), you’re making a mistake to think that you can just show them your work and they’ll get it. That’s how most of us wind up frustrated as we mutter to ourselves that no one gets us. It’s like showing up in a hot cocktail dress to a tribal gathering in the outback. Do you think they think you’re stylish? Or do they just think you look really silly? Unless you step in and guide people, they understand what they understand. And that won’t necessarily be you.
And that takes us right back to the essence of Eternal Awful Truth #1. Be you. Be as authentic as you can be, and let it out there. It will do two things. First, it’s going to keep the people who just don’t get you at bay, and, second, for the ones that do get you, it will signal to them you are their people. Being you is not an end – in fact, it’s better – it’s a beginning you can start on over and over. And it’s exactly how you’re going to figure out what type of frame you need to build. No guarantee it will work. But, hey, it’s better than the alternative.
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