Vincent Van Gogh

Vincent Van Gogh, one of the most famous artists of all time, sold only one painting during his lifetime.
Was art a hobby or a career for Van Gogh?

Van Gogh never earned a living from his art. Rather his jobs ranged from unpaid assistant at a school to lay preacher/missionary. He never was paid as a fulltime artist, but created more than 2,000 artworks in a little more than a decade.

Was Van Gogh’s art a hobby or a career?

Would you consider your art, writing or whichever one of the creative abilities you possess a HOBBY or a CAREER?

What did you base your answer on? Whether you get paid for your what you create or not? The amount of time dedicated to your craft?

Post a comment below here as well as taking the poll:   

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Chad McMillan

I was eating lunch with an old friend the other day. We were swapping stories about our past and laughing at how we made it this far and how we ended up being the ‘creative’ people we are today. Later on, I thought back to our conversation and it really challenged me as to ‘why’ I do what I do.

If you haven’t read it yet, I suggest everyone get the book “Five Love Languages” by Gary Chapman. He demonstrates how everyone responds to others in light of FIVE love languages. They are: quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service, physical touch, and words of affirmation. Those are pretty much self-explanatory.

So, what does that have to do with ‘why’ I do what I do? Well, I took a step back and asked myself if I really enjoyed graphic design. As the VP, Creative Director at Showcase Marketing, you would think I would be in love with design. But, it would surprise you to know that that’s really not what drives me. There is an underlying reason why I do what do.
Years ago I interned at a small college that offered several on-campus and correspondence classes. They were in need of someone to take the manuals and do a better job making them look professional. So, I bought a computer when I was 20 years old and did my best to help them out. I learned fast and people were amazed at what I could create on a computer. They constantly told others what a great job I had done and how creative I was.

You see, what drove me then (and still drives me!) is not so much a passion to create something new, but it fulfills my love language (words of affirmation). I realized that the ACT of creativity fulfills a NEED I have. If no one ever commented or affirmed me or my work would I still do what I do? The answer is, “probably not.” A good way to think about this is to imagine yourself doing the things you love doing…but imagine you doing it by yourself. If you’re a chef who loves to cook would you still love it if you were always locked in the kitchen and you never got to hear what others think about your food? Would you be fulfilled? The truth is, your love is not cooking. The ACT stimulates the NEED you have.

The reason some of you may have lost your passion for what you do in life or on your job is probably NOT because you lost love for that, but because at some point it stopped feeding the real reason you do what you do.

So, ask yourself, “Why do I do what I do?” If you’re honest with yourself, you probably will realize that a NEED you have drives the ACTS that you do. It might tell you a lot about yourself.

It might also cause you to rethink what you do.

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Catherine the student

Catherine went from participating in our ART SLAM LIVE™ Ad Design Course (created by Greenville Technical University’s Ad Design staff)…

…To WINING the challenge and internship with Showcase Marketing…

…to LANDING a Full Time job as a Brand Developer with Showcase.

Below is how Chad McMillan, Vice President of the company announced  it:

“Our creative team has been in search of an incredible designer to add to the team and relieve workload in the back for some time now. We have interviewed and worked with COUNTLESS

Catherine the Brand Developer! (Click to Expand)

individuals, but no one really stood out and fit the profile of exactly what we needed…until Catherine came along. As you know, she won the ArtSlam competition hosted by Greenville Tech that was sponsored by Tony Snipes (ArtSlam Founder) and Showcase this past year. Her designs were by far the best of the competition. As a result, her classes were paid for by the school and she was awarded an apprenticeship position with us. She’s been here part time (8-10 hours a week) for the past 3 months and she has demonstrated that she DEFINITELY fits here both creatively AND culturally. We have been blessed to have her here at Showcase and couldn’t imagine a better fit with the team.

So, last week we extended an offer for her to come on full time with us after she graduates next month and I’m happy to let you all know that she has accepted and begins full-time employment Monday, June 4. So, please let her know how excited you are to have her here. Excited to see how this year is shaping up for all of us!

Catherine's winning design.

Congratulations Catherine! Welcome aboard.”

Great job, Catherine! We are both proud of you and excited with you concerning the new opportunity!

Special thanks goes to the following for making the program a success:

Shane Howell, Dept. Head- Visual and Performing Arts, Greenville Technical College
Bob Lanning, Adjunct Instructor – Graphic Design, Greenville Technical College
Chad McMillan, VP of Showcase Marketing
Devin Smith, Interactive Designer/Developer at Jackson Marketing Group

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Sandra Renrick:

What did she launch: Her first blog.
How did she finally do it?
“I started thinking about launching a blog a couple of years ago. I bought several books including Blogging for Dummies. I read the books, but I still failed to take any action. I was spurred into taking action by listening to Tony Snipes. Tony got me to see that I didn’t have to have everything figured out. All I had to do was to sit down and to write. I actually started writing articles for my blog before I thought of a name for it. I also decided in advance to go with a Word Press template.”

Jack Surrett:
What did he launch: Blog and Facebook page
How did he finally do it?
“The coaching we received from Tony was extremely helpful in three ways. First, he
encouraged us to let our passion take us where we want to go. Then he gave us detailed instructions on every step it took to get our blog up and running. And he kept us accountable with homework and deadlines.”

Julian Nixon:

What did he launch: First, his blog, then his self -published book.
How did he finally do it?
“Something that helped me was making sure that my goal/idea was defined to the point that it was believable–especially to ME. As long as my idea was broad it was “too big” for me to do and I sat on the side of the road waiting for my dream to come true through someone else. But when Tony helped me to realize that there was no longer a need to (further) simplify–that I had completed that task–then my determination became unstoppable. Now I am working on my second and third project.”

Need help in launching YOUR creative project, idea or even creative business concept? Reach out to me here or via email and we’ll discuss: tony@artlessonsfromgod.com

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The trend from your feedback was that you have no shortage on creative ideas, but the discipline and follow through needed to complete those ideas were always missing.

I’m a recovering procrastinator, and I needed to practice hard hitting, practical steps to finish my creative endeavors.

So here are 7 “In Your Face” tips I recommend:

1. Shut Up (yeah, I said it.): Stop talking about “I’m planning to…” or ” Here’s my vision…” or ” I’m thinking about launching…”. Don’t start talking until you can tell someone  how cool the last project you just wrapped up is.

2. Start Small: Don’t try to launch the book or graphic novel until you launch the short story. God teaches us that when we are faithful over the seemingly small things, He’ll set us over more. (Matthew 25:21)

3. Quit Being a Perfectionist: Launch now with what you have. Just like Hollywood, you can get better during the sequel…get the first movie going NOW!

4. Write It Down and Date It: This allows you to see what you’ve written once you get down the road and to see if you completed it. The date emphasizes if you’re wasting your time away, or better yet, if you are progressively accomplishing goals.

5. Know When You’re Most Productive…and when you’re not: If you know there’s a time when you’ll get most distracted and interrupted, find a better time.

6. Stop Working Alone: Accountability:Once you start involving others such as fellow artists, sponsors, clients, etc, it becomes bigger than you. You have others that are counting on your follow through.

7. Acknowledge Your Age: Once I began to realize that God placed me on assignment, I also realized that I had a finite amount of time to complete the mission. I’m getting too old to always be in the same place I was 6 months or a year ago with no growth to show for the time.

TAKE THE ORIGINAL POLL:

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