The 10 Commandments on Becoming a Creative.

Hey, it wasn’t me that wrote it. Austin Kleon did in his book “steal like an artist: 10 things nobody told you about being creative.”

It’s incredible the books that are sitting there online and in bookstores, if only you just search for them.

Last night, when I was scribbling out quotes on my post-it notes (yes, I am big on inspirational quotes and funny memes), I remembered one of the quotes in Austin’s book and I felt someone reading this right now can use the excerpts of the book as a guideline and source of inspiration.

P.S. Austin Kleon in my book is the modern creative man’s equivalent of Moses.

Here we go:

1. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. It could be paintings, books, paintings, poems, random conversations. You’re only as good as the stuff you surround yourself with.

2. Quit looking around for mentors. Chew on one thinker- writer, artist, activist, role model- you love. Study everything there is to know about that thinker. Then find three people that the thinker loved, find out everything about them. Repeat this as many times as you can.

3. Stay curious. Google everything. I mean everything. Don’t ask a question before you google it. You’ll either find the answer or you’ll come up with a better question. You have to be curious about the world you live in.

4. Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started. You are ready. Start making stuff. The truth is everyone is winging it. We just show up every day to do our thing.

5. Start copying. First, you have to figure out who to copy. Second, you have to figure out what to copy. Don’t just steal the style, steal the thinking behind the style.

6. Write the book you want to read (this I particularly love). Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use — do the work you want to see done.

7. Practice productive procrastination. You want to do nothing, go ahead and do that. Take time to mess around. Get lost. You never know where it’s going to lead you.

8. Enjoy your obscurity while it lasts. There is no pressure when you are unknown. You can do what you want. Experiment. Use it. You’ll never get that freedom again once people start paying attention, especially not once they start paying you money.

9. Always carry a book, a pen, and a notepad. You never know when the inspiration would drop.

10. Life is a lonely business, often filled with discouragement and rejection. Validation is for parking. Get used to getting the work done without anyone clapping for you.

The new year is a perfect time to read more books. Share some of your favorite reads in the comment section that will inspire someone as we all embark on a new adventure.

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