What is the main message of An Audience of One?

The main message of An Audience of One is to create for yourself, not for others.

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The reading time for An Audience of One varies, but the Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.

Who is the author of An Audience of One?

The author of An Audience of One is Srinivas Rao.

Creativity

An Audience of One Book Summary - An Audience of One Book explained in key points

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An Audience of One summary

Name: An Audience of One
Rating: 4.3 (105 reviews)
Author: Srinivas Rao

Srinivas Rao

Reclaiming Creativity for Its Own Sake

4.3 (105 ratings)

23 mins

Brief summary

An Audience of One by Srinivas Rao is a thought-provoking book on creative fulfillment and the importance of cultivating a unique voice. Through examples and exercises, it encourages readers to reject conformity and pursue their passions on their own terms.

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Table of Contents

An Audience of One
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What’s in it for me? Discover great tips for embracing and making the most of your creative voice.

How long have you been kicking around that great idea for a book, movie or comic book? Or maybe you’ve always wanted to launch your own blog, start painting or simply learn how to play guitar.

Chances are, you have some creative impulse in you, but you might have some other voice telling you that you shouldn’t pursue your creativity because it’ll never make you any money. Maybe you even have a friend who’s laughed at your creative desires and called them a waste of time. After all, if you can’t make a career out of it, why bother?

Well, author and podcast guru Srinivas Rao is here to tell you why your creative self shouldn’t be concerned with what your friend thinks or, for that matter, what anyone thinks. Being creative is a reward in and of itself.

Rao points to an ironic twist: that once you stop caring about your potential audience, your creativity will probably become stronger, more personal and more engaging. Therefore, once you start creating for an audience of one, you’ll be more likely to win a big, devoted audience of many.

In these blinks, you’ll find

why picking up after yourself is good for creativity;
why you should be more familiar with your phone’s OFF button; and
how a certainty anchor can help you get things done.

A satisfying creative life is a matter of staying true to your voice and not seeking external validation.

If you have strong creative impulses, you might feel torn between the desire to stay true to your personal vision and the wish to create something with wide appeal.

Let’s say you recently talked to someone about a creative project – a book, say, or a painting or a new app – and the person’s first response is to give you advice on how to make your creation as audience-friendly as possible.

This sort of advice may be well-intended, but the truth is that you’re bound to be unsatisfied and ultimately unhappy when you create with the expectations of others in mind.

If you’re preoccupied with critical reviews, financial rewards or audience accolades, you’ll almost surely be miserable, since these are all extrinsic motivators – that is, they’re all responses that you have no control over. The ultimate results of your work, including how many people think it’s a masterpiece and how many find it boring, are not up to you, so you’re only going to be setting yourself up for disappointment by focusing on extrinsic motivators.

Furthermore, if you give in and change your work in an effort to make your work more “appealing,” you’ll likely regret these compromises to your true vision – especially if the advice doesn’t pan out and you don’t get those results you were after.

The greatest rewards of creativity are having a vision and then turning it into a reality. This is a process you control completely, and it’s one that comes with tremendous satisfaction and happiness in and of itself.

David Bowie repeatedly warned against doing work for “other people” and stressed the importance of remembering why you felt the personal urge to create in the first place. Bowie didn’t create to be famous; he created to better understand himself and to “do something artistically important.”

Or think of Daft Punk. The dance-music duo is so indifferent toward fame that they hide their identities behind costumes. And they’re so uninterested in monetary rewards that they spent their paycheck from a 2006 Coachella appearance on the performance itself, so that it could be the coolest show possible.

Ultimately, the real reward of having your creation be well-received is that it can make it easier for you to continue creating. And when you’re in it for how satisfying the creative process is, then there is no better reward than being able to keep doing what you love.

Avoid the myth of “making it” and create for an audience of one: yourself.

These days, there’s a lot of pressure to monetize your creative efforts. But creating for the sole purpose of money isn’t only unsatisfying, it’s often unsuccessful since there’s no strong personal vision being put forth. When you create for an audience of one, you’ll not only be happier, you’ll be increasing the chances that your work will ultimately attract a lot of fans.

Now, you might be thinking, isn’t that a paradox? Yes it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s false.

The ways to bring more of yourself to your work include trusting yourself, being present and cultivating solitude.

There are three primary ways of unlocking and embracing your creative side, and they’re all about listening to yourself and what’s around you. More specifically, there are three forms of listening: listening to yourself, listening to your environment and listening to others. All of these steps will allow you to bring more of yourself to your work and make it that much stronger.

There are different ways of listening to yourself, but the first step is to trust yourself and what you have to say.

To hear your creative voice, it’s also important to listen to your body.

Another important aspect of listening to yourself is listening to what your body has to say, since a healthy body goes hand in hand with a healthy mind.

Think of it this way: Being creative is about being productive, right? And to be as productive as you can possibly be, consideration needs to be given to your overall health and well-being.

To make your work the best it can be, give critical attention to the environment you’re working in.

After listening to yourself, it’s time to listen to your environment. This isn’t just about putting up some inspirational posters on your wall; it’s about your entire environment, including its sights, sounds and smells.

So let’s start with the physical space around you.

Take action to cut distractions and toxic elements from your day-to-day life.

There’s a good chance you’ve already read one or two reports warning you about the productivity-killing distractions of modern technology. But few of us are going to be throwing our phones away anytime soon, so the question remains: What can be done?

Fortunately, there are a variety of steps you can take to cut distractions from your life.

There are good habits you can adopt to boost your productivity.

Just as checking your email every five minutes is a bad habit, there are good habits you can use to boost your productivity.

One method is to use what’s known as a certainty anchor. This is a ritual that can help bring stability to your day, even if things around you are chaotic. Let’s say you have the ritual of brewing a cup of coffee and putting on your headphones before sitting down to work. This act of coffee and headphones will immediately bring focus to your mind; it signals that it’s time to work.

The best creative voices are ones that listen to others while remaining true to themselves.

Once you’re practised at listening to yourself and your environment, you can learn to listen to others.

As already mentioned, it’s important to stay true to your voice and create for an audience of one (yourself), but this doesn’t mean you should cut out all outside voices altogether.

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What is An Audience of One about?

An Audience of One (2018) takes readers on a deep dive into the day-to-day life of the creative mind. Author Srinivas Rao uses his own life experience, as well as plenty of wisdom from other artists and creatives, to explain why there is little happiness or satisfaction in a life spent trying to please others. Rao offers practical and scientific evidence that shows how a rewarding creative life is all about embracing the process and being true to your own vision rather than the expectations of others.

An Audience of One Review

An Audience of One (2018) is a thought-provoking book that explores the importance of staying true to ourselves in an age of constant comparison and external validation. Here's why this book is worth reading:

It offers a refreshing perspective on finding fulfillment by pursuing our own unique passions and creating for the sake of personal expression.
Sharing personal stories and insights from various creative individuals, the book illustrates the transformative power of embracing our authentic selves.
With its examination of the creative process and the challenges we face in staying focused and committed, the book provides inspiration and practical advice for overcoming obstacles.

Best quote from An Audience of One

The ultimate paradox of creative work is that what you create for an audience of one is much more likely to reach an audience of millions.

—Srinivas Rao

Who should read An Audience of One?

Artists and writers who’d like to be more productive
Entrepreneurs eager to get closer to their creative side
Anyone suffering from creative block

About the Author

Srinivas Rao is a writer and host of the popular podcast Unmistakable Creative, which offers insightful interviews with an array of creative minds every week. He is driven to make the world a more artistic place by helping people listen to their creative voice. His previous books include the best-selling The Art of Being Unmistakable.

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