The Practice Book Summary - The Practice Book explained in key points
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The Practice summary

Seth Godin

Shipping Creative Work

4.6 (141 ratings)
25 mins
Table of Contents

    The Practice
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    Trust yourself to find your own path to a creative practice.

    Don’t ever tell yourself, “I can’t be creative.” You can. And, in fact, you already are. Every time you’ve doodled in the corner of a notebook or hummed a song in the shower, you’ve expressed yourself creatively. 

    You have the capacity for creativity and for transforming your raw creative ability into professional practice. But be prepared: the route to establishing yourself as a creative professional can be tricky to navigate. There’s no predetermined roadmap to professional creative success.

    As the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita, puts it: “It is better to follow your own path, however imperfectly, than to follow someone else’s perfectly.”

    The key message is: Trust yourself to find your own path to a creative practice.

    So how do you find your creative path? Your path lies in your process. Trust in your process, and your path will manifest itself.

    But that trust might be hard won. Ours is a world that values outcome over process. We don’t judge a plumber’s work by the quality of its process; we judge it based on whether or not the toilet still leaks. Sadly, many apply this same attitude to creative endeavors. We judge the success of a book by the copies it sells, the success of a musician by how many stadiums she can sell out. 

    But fixating on outcome can lead creatives to make shallow, market-driven choices. The fact is, there’s no such thing as an outcome without a process leading up to it. To find your authentic creativity, focus on your own creative process, which naturally will be different than anyone else’s. By trusting in your own unique process without placing value on its outcome, you’ll discover your path. 

    Of course, it’s sometimes hard to trust process. You might feel the guitar notes you’re strumming will never meld into a harmony, or the sentences you’re jotting down on your commute will never amount to a book. Even the most established creative practitioners confess to feeling overwhelmed by self-doubt. But here’s the good news: Your feelings don’t matter. Your actions do. 

    Unlike our feelings, our actions are within our control. So, do your process, even if you feel like you can’t.

    Trust in yourself; trust in your process. Sometimes your process will result in a good outcome. Sometimes it won’t. But every time you recommit to it, you recommit to uncovering your creative potential. 

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    What is The Practice about?

    The Practice (2020) is a handbook for both creative professionals and creatives looking to professionalize. Author Seth Godin busts the myths that creatives are lone geniuses and creativity can’t be taught and offers practical tips and insights for bolstering creative confidence and deepening creative practice.

    Who should read The Practice?

    • Creatives who want to turn their passion into their profession
    • Creative professionals who want to get to the top of their field
    • Anyone who’s struggling through a creative block

    About the Author

    Seth Godin is a writer, entrepreneur, podcaster, and teacher, as well as a world-renowned expert on creativity and creative entrepreneurship. He’s the author of 19 best-selling books, the founder of the acclaimed Akimbo workshop platform for creatives and entrepreneurs, and the globally popular 30-day altMBA course.

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