THINK PROCESS, NOT PRODUCT

 Hello friend!

Am reading 'Show Your Work!: 10 ways to Share Your creativity and get discovered', by Austin Kleon. The first chapter was focusing on the fact that you don't have to be a genius to do something or to get your ideas into practice or change the world in any way. All you have to do is do what interests you, work at it and be a learner for life. An amateur. Always open to new ideas. 

I just read the second chapter of the book. the main title is the one for this post, Think Process, not Product. It starts with the author saying that you have to take people behind the scenes. People are used to looking at the product of the work with  no idea of what went through the process. It does one good if the process is documented and shown. People appreciate the outcome more because in a way, they are able to relate to it and it follows that, in order for connection to happen, like Brené Brown said, we have to allow ourselves to be seen-really seen. We have to let our work out there if we are to have it seen by someone. Who know, it could bring so many opportunities. 

The process however can be messy. You might want to quit. I was reading a self written obituary this morning of Jane Catherine Lotter. I loved a sentence of hers that i will put right here, 'obstacles in the path are not obstacles, they ARE the path'. I will leave you to ponder on that. enjoy the process!

Sometimes people don't get their work done because the process of getting to do it takes long. Far too long for them to see the results that they get impatient and stop. If what they are doing is not amounting to anything, they don't want to do it at all. Its like they want to grow from a baby who is barely crawling to a ten year old who loves to experiment. 

Thinking process than just product helps you enjoy as you go and you get to find the product even more rewarding. Think about something you ever worked on. Anything. You had to come to the end of it by doing a step at a time and making sure you do it well. Or think about how you learnt to write, with the alphabet letters first, then connecting letters to make words, them then sentences and then well, you can read a lot now!You should get to celebrate the little successes you have otherwise the big ones wont mean much. Define what success is to you and follow through it making sure you are comparing yourself to the former you than to others. Sometime back, maybe success meant doing well at some problem, or hitting the gym 4 times a week. What is it now? Whatever it is, just remember, documenting your work in the process of making say art, should not be forgotten. With time, you will appreciate the progress and where you have come from a lot better.