This time, it’ll be short. I’m generally a long-form kind of guy. Not because I think I am worthy of more of your time. No. I just don’t know how to convey my ideas in short, but effective, bursts. I admire those who can. It is an art.
Anyway, I have projects to finish, so I have to keep it brief. Writing a long piece is satisfying in some ways but exhausting in others, for me and also for you, I think. None of that today.
Rain, Steam and Speed by J.M.W. Turner, 1844
I’m going to donate the extra time that comes with writing a shorter post to some unnecessary creating, design stuff probably. Todd Henry talks about the importance of unnecessary creating at the Accidental Creative.
He explains it better than I do, but here’s my take: it’s about creating stuff for the celebration of the thing itself, whether or not doing so has any long-term benefits. Now that I think about it, that’s what gets me excited about writing and sketching and playing with videos and graphics, when I’m not worried about finding work or gaining respectability or finding validation.
It’s my small way of being a little less corporate today. I’m going to play with stuff that I don’t have to do in a strictly business sense, but on the other hand, it’s something I absolutely need to do. Do you know what I mean?
I try to do this, too. It’s tough, isn’t it?
It’s like writing music that no one might ever hear but yourself — the pure delight of your own melodies and harmonies keep you going and often end up being your best work.