John Maxwell

"The fear of rejection or failure creates inaction."

— John Maxwell

American Author, Speaker

1947 - 

Fear is a very powerful force that affects the lives of most creative leaders.  Some people are afraid to leave their houses.  Some people like me are afraid of heights.  Others are afraid of elevators.  This list could go on and on.  A person who claims that he is not afraid of anything is either delusional or a liar.  We are all afraid of something. 

It takes courage to look fear in the face and still do something when you are afraid.  If you give into fear, you will freeze on the spot and not move.  Creative leaders face a lot of rejection of their ideas and work.  But we must keep going.  What is the worst thing that can happen?  People don't like us.  So what?  Every famous writer, artist, singer or actor has people who don't like them.  No one is liked by everyone.  So why should you and me expect to be liked by everyone?  In fact, think about the famous people whom you don't like.  You, in a sense are rejecting them.



I learned a powerful lesson from a professional speaker.  He told me that 10% of your audience will not like you.  They may not like the color of your hair.  Or the sound of your voice.  Or the tie you are wearing.  And it has held true for me.  Ten percent of my audience don't like my loud voice.  So I focus on the other 90%.  I don't let my fear of rejection prevent me from speaking.



Rejection is a good thing.  It keeps us humble.  We are not perfect so we shouldn't let success go to our heads.  It lets us know that we are ahead of our time.  We have found people who don't like our work and that is okay.  So don't let fear stop you from creating and producing new work.



(For those who read my blog regularly, I apologize for not leaving an entry yesterday.  I have spent the last two days in the hospital because of dehydration.  I checked out about three hours ago and am healthy again.)

Marc Chagall

"The role of the artist is tragic today because, while the world's horizons have been extended, the human heart is as small as ever."

— Marc Chagall

Russian Artist

1887 - 1985

The Prophet Jeremiah
1968

In the last 150 years the world has known many technological and scientific advances.  We have put men on the moon and invented thousands of items that make life easier for human beings from the light bulb to the iPad.  But the human heart has not changed.  We remain selfish, angry and territorial.  We kill, murder and steal.  We still break the Ten Commandments as well as the laws of man.  We are cruel, mean and unforgiving. 

Artists create beautiful paintings that inspire us all, but are abusive to their wives and girl friends.  Writers create powerful stories that touch the heart, but are rude, crude and demeaning to those around them.  Actors may explore the emotional depths of characters they play, but are unaware of their own self-destructive tendencies.

Stained Glass Windows
in Saint Stephen Cathedral,
Metz, France

Human beings have two natures: a violent one and a compassionate one.  And both often reside in the same person in varying degrees.  And we have not changed in thousands of years.  Every time we take a step forward and seem to be improving, we take a couple of steps backward.  Consider all the greed that helped create the latest financial recession.  

I learned years ago that I can't change the world.  The only person I can change is myself.  I ask myself, "What can I do today to make myself a better person tomorrow?"  And every day is a struggle.  Some days are better than others.  And some days I slip back into old habits and behaviors that are destructive to myself and to others.  Each day is a new beginning.  A new opportunity to be a better person than I was yesterday.  All I can hope for is that I am able to make a difference in somebody's life.  That I can touch one heart today.  Give hope to one soul.

Rudyard Kipling

"If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten."

— Rudyard Kiplng

English Novelist and Poet

1865 - 1936

Do you love history?  Do you read history?  Or could you care less about history?  Do you incorporate history into your writing and paintings?  I believe creative leaders need to study history?  Artists should study art history and many do.  Writers should study the lives of writers.  English degrees tend to focus on the literature and studying the literature.  Writing degrees tend to focus on the writing.  But few writers study the history of writing, the history of writers, the history of words or the history of publishing.  I have met many wanna-be poets who haven't even read other poets. They would never consider studying the history of poetry.

But understanding literature, art and theater requires more than studying the history of the arts.  We need to study literature, art and theater in the context of the times they were created.  We need to study the social, political and economic histories.  We need to read biographies and memoirs. 

Writers, artists and actors are people of their times.  They creative works contain the same beliefs, hopes and biases that can be found in the rest of their society.  Novels written in other times and places will teach you one perspective of that society.  Their paintings are minature history books.



So I encourage you to read a biography of a favorite writer, actor or artist.  Immerse yourself in the history of another time and place.  What was Paris like during the time of the Impressionists?  What was New York like during the 1950's and the beats?



One of my favorite movies is The Man Who Would Be King, starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine, directed by John Huston and based on the novel by Rudyard Kliping.  The movie takes us to another place and time and gives us a glimpse of a world not our own.  Here are some scenes from the movie.

Patricia Highsmith

"All arts are one and each art — even ballet — is a form of storytelling."

— Patricia Highsmith

American Novelist

1921 - 1995

 

Do you agree that "all arts are one..."?  At the core, each of the arts are about creativity, about communication and about storytelling.  Whether we are talking about a painting, a dance recital, a play or a novel, we are talking about the impulse to create stories that communicate the meaning of why we are here.  Even abstract art has a story to tell if we can interpret message within the symbols.  The forms of the storytelling are very different, but the impulse that brought the forms is the same.

Do you celebrate and support other art forms?  Do you associate with artists of all stripes and shapes and genres?  Or do you stick to your small corner of the universe?  Do you only surround yourself with poets, or realistic painters, or ballet dancers, or stage actors?  We can learn much from talking with others and studying their creative processes.  We can be inspired by the works of others.

Unfortunately, in the American society, people don't always appreciate the value that the creative arts bring to a community.  Usually the arts are the first programs cut when there is a budget crunch.  The hard subjects of math and science are more important.  Yet, I believe, the arts are what make us human.  They help us create new futures and new visions.  Without the arts, life would be boring and dull.  So support your fellow artists today.

Carl Rogers

"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change."

— Carl Rogers

American Author / Psychologist

1902 - 1987

Have you ever had a desire to change who you are?  Have you ever dreamed of waking up and being somebody different?  That is one of the fun things about being a novelist or an actor.  Novelists and short story writers can become the characters inside the stories they tell.  I once wrote a short story, Bath Day, in which I inserted my real self as a minor, minor character seen through the eyes of the main character.  Actors take on the character of others.  They play heroes and villains.  They experience death, love, sorrow and laughter in the skin of imaginary characters.

Most of us have struggled with our self-identity.  We may not like our physical looks or the bill-paying work that we do.  We may think that we are poor husbands, wives or parents.  And yet, if we learn to accept who we are and what we have done, then we can begin to change into who we want to be.

Have you ever tried to change your habits?  Stop smoking?  Lose weight?  Start exercising?  Learn another language?  Leave the toilet seat down?  Some people say it takes 21 days to form a new habit.  Personal change is never easy.  We need to learn to be more forgiving of ourselves and those with whom we share our lives.  None of us are perfect.  And if change is difficult for us, don't you think it is just as difficult for those you love.  Learn to be gentle with yourself and those you love.

Claudia Black

"Surround yourself with people who respect and treat you well."

— Claudia A. Black Ph.D

American Author/Speaker

As creative leaders, we can be very sensitive to the comments of others.  If people negate our art, we may stop painting or writing or even creating altogether.  We face rejection from world every day.  "Oh, you are a writer?  Have you written anything that I might have read?"  We face rejection when we submit our work to magazines and publishers.  I once send out the same haiku to two different publishers by accident.  I discovered my mistake when I open the mail one day.  I received a rejection letter from one magazine and the other magazine wanted to publish the haiku.  

Rejection is very common not only for writers, but also painters and actors.  Think about auditioning for a part in a play or a movie and you are judged not only on your acting talent but also on your appearance.  You are either too short, too tall, too fat or too ugly.  

And some people won't even submit their creative work to the scrutiny of the public eye.  They refuse to give others the opportunity to judge or criticize them.

So the message in this quote is very powerful.  Surround yourself with people who respect the work you do, who don't criticize you, who support you and compliment you.  The friends we choose are very important to our success.  

Peter Ustinov

"The point of living, and of being an optimist, is to be foolish enough to believe the best is yet to come."

– Peter Ustinov

British actor/novelist

1921 - 2004

No matter what age you are, the best is yet to come.  No matter where you are in your career, the best is yet to come.  Each day we live provides us with new opportunities, new ways to grow and new things to learn.  Colonel Harlan Sanders was sixty-five when he opened his first Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.  Thomas Edison was sixty-seven when he reinvented the phonograph.  At seventy-seven, Grandma Moses began painting.  At eighty, Jessica Tandy won an Oscar for the film, Driving Miss Daisy.  Winston Churchill wrote A History of the English-Speaking Peoples at age 82.  Peter Ustinov acted in the movie, Luther, at age 83.  At ninety, Picasso was still producing drawings and engravings.  At age 93, P. G. Wodehouse was working on his 97th novel when he died.  Remember the best is yet to come.  

John Sloan

"Color is like music.  The palette is an instrument that can be orchestrated to build form."

— John Sloan

American Artist

1871 - 1951

The arts are interrelated and interconnected.  If you are a writer, you can learn from artists and musicians.  Don't just study writers, study artists.  Learn to paint and it will make your writing better.  If you are an artist, you can learn from film and theater.  Learn to act and it might make your painting better.  Why do you think some actors turn to painting or writing when they are not engaged in making films?  Don't feel you have to limit yourself to one form of art.  Explore them all.  Do you have writer's block? Go paint a picture.  Don't know what to paint?  Play the guitar.

Jonathan Winters

"I couldn't wait for success . . . so I went ahead without it."

— Jonathan Winters

American Comedian/Actor/Artist

1925 - 

Ah, this statement hits home.  If you spend your life waiting for success, it may never come.  Keep doing what you need to do.  If that is to paint, then paint.  If that is to write, then write.  If that is to sing and dance, then sing and dance.  The key is not to wait on success because when it comes you may not recognize.  It may be disguised in the love of a soul mate or in the gift of friends.