6 lessons I learned from Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
People are talented and if not, we have the capacity to learn and build it in us. But how and what would motivate is the question. Elizabeth Gilbert asked the same question in her book Big Magic. When you put forth the idea on the table you have to work every second of it mostly to see it play it’s game. However, do we have that courage is what’s been asked. The first step to get into creativity is to dump the worry about what the people would say. And certainly that would be the encouragement.Ideas are like people they don’t hang around if you keep ignoring them. They move on to a different human collaborator. It is one of the reasons why so many time we find people with same idea. In scientific way, it is called multiple discovery. As an example Elizabeth Gillbert mentioned how she couldn’t work on one idea that came and later the same idea had settled in Ann Pattchet’s box of ideas.
It’s Big Magic.
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
What I learned from this book are:
1. If being a writer is my dream, I got to write simple. It is obvious but what I should also remember is that all my work might not be loved and the best but it okay. One critic should not stop my pen nor should one best work. Best thing I could do to keep writing is to stop comparing my work with the ones I did and to the one others did.
As it has been quoted in the book:
“There is a top and that reaching that top and staying there is the only motive one has to create. These thinking assume that you must be constantly victorious not only against your peers but also against an earlier version of your own poor self. Most dangerously of all such thinking assumes that if you cannot win then you must not continue to play. I wish somebody had told them all to go fill up a bunch of pages with blah blah and just publish it and ignore the outcome.”
2. I used to write only when great thoughts appeared in my head and what I recently discovered is that it is a big NO. One should write even when the brain goes blank without ideas. Like in every relationship the other person wants to know if they are important or not. In the similar way your work wants to feel it too.
“If my plan is to sit around waiting for another such unadulterated and impassioned creative visitation, I may be waiting for a very long time. Genius sits around to see if we are giving our all and working whole-heartedly.”
3. This one is for people who are wondering if they should and shouldn’t.
“If you’re supporting yourself financially and you’re not bothering anyone else, then you’re free to do whatever you want with your life.”
4. Every moment when I feel like I am losing it, I complain about how people don’t, you know support the new artist or anyone who tries to do something. Why are there people who would only pull your legs. I used to, let me highlight that. But as Werner Herzog said, “Quit complaining. It’s not the world’s fault that you wanted to be an artist. It’s not the world’s job to enjoy the films you make and it’s certainly not the world’s obligation to pay for your dreams. Nobody wants to hear it. Steal a camera if you must but stop whining and get back to work.”
5. Everyone of us I born with right to give an opinion of rights. Certainly, when our work is out there complement and critics go hand in hand.
6. Last and the biggest thing I learned. Never demand your creativity or passion to pay for your whole existence. When we do so we are scaring it away. it is no issue to work or take job side by side while we work on our passion. A person should always have three goals in life: one that feeds your soul, another that makes the money and the last that keeps you in shape.
“There’s no dishonor in having a job. What is dishonorable is scaring away your creativity by demanding that it pay for your entire existence.”
Let me know if I missed out any and thank you for Reading.
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