Tag: courage

“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” ― William Faulkner Quote Art

May 30, 2016 / Kevin Chung / 1 Comment

“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.”
― William Faulkner

Print available on Storenvy.

[bctt tweet=”One of the greatest mistakes we make is becoming too complacent” username=”kevin_chung”]

One of the greatest mistakes we make is becoming too complacent. We get stuck in our habits and routines. We rarely drift far from what we know.

The only problem is, if you want to stand out from the crowd, you have to be willing to try something new and different. That doesn’t mean you should give up on what works, but it does mean you need to grow and evolve in your work.

Just look at some of the greatest artists and their artistic evolution:

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci dabbled in so many disciplines that people dubbed him a Renaissance man. He was not only a great painter and artist, he was also an architect, inventor, and student of science. He did not stick to painting even though that is what he is best known for, he broadened his studies to everything that interested him.

Pablo Picasso

Pablo Picasso changed his painting style so often that his work is classified in periods. His blue period consisted of somber paintings in shades of blue. His rose period was cheery with orange and pink colors. He also went through different styles from cubism, to classicism, to surrealism. Picasso did not let one style define him. He explored art that interested him.

Kanye West

Kanye West might be a controversial person, but his impact on music is undeniable. His first three albums all had a similar sound, but his later music evolved as he did. His albums starting with 808s & Heartbreak all the way to The Life of Pablo have distinct sounds and styles. He does not let critics or fans dictate the way he creates music. He explores the sounds that feel right in the moment.

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While many artists are content with creating the same work throughout their careers, artists who explore their creativity are far more interesting. If these artists were not willing to explore their curiosity, they would not live up to their true potential.

[bctt tweet=”If you feel stuck in the work you are creating, then you must change it” username=”kevin_chung”]

If you feel stuck in the work you are creating, then you must change it. You never know where your curiosity and creativity will take you. But you will never find out unless you are willing to give up what you know. You must be bold to explore new horizons. The only way to do that is by losing sight of the shore.

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Picture by Boss Fight

“Creativity takes courage.” – Henri Matisse Quote Art

October 31, 2015 / Kevin Chung / 0 Comments

“Creativity takes courage.” – Henri Matisse

Print available on Storenvy.

Whether you’ve been creative your entire life, or you are just now exploring it, one thing is true. Creativity takes courage.

As creatives, we spend our whole lives fighting against the system. Our parents tells us to stop drawing on the walls. Our teachers gave us bad grades because we didn’t do their assignment the “right” way. Our bosses are dead set in their ways.

Each day we live within the confines of the establishment. Most of us fall right in line. We feel stifled and held back by the people around us, but it doesn’t have to be this way.

[bctt tweet=”We can choose to be courageous. We can take the unbeaten path”]

We can choose to be courageous. We can take the unbeaten path. We can take risks without knowing how things will turn out.

Most of us choose to accept the status quo, but there are many people out there who have created their own way. Here are a few of the people I look to while trying to form my own path:

Tim Ferriss

Tim is one of the best known examples of someone who doesn’t let people dictate his life. He built and sold his own company after deciding he could maximize his time and delegate his work.

He has written multiple best-selling books including his seminal work The Four Hour Workweek, he has one of the top ranked podcasts on iTunes, and he is also an angel investor.

Tim has built a massive following around the idea of doing maximizing your efforts to get the greatest results and has inspired many people to do the same.

Lewis Howes

Lewis was fulfilling his dream as a professional football player until an injury ended his playing career. This injury devastated him. He was broken and living on his sister’s couch.

At that moment, he could have felt sorry for himself and accepted his place in the world. Many people would. Instead he embarked on a new path.

Since that moment, he has built multiple companies, he has created an extremely popular podcast, and he recently released his first traditionally published book about achieving greatness.

In that moment of weakness, instead of giving up, he chose to seek greatness. Now he is helping people seek their greatness too.

Maria Popova

Maria is the wonderful mind behind one of the internet’s favorite blogs: Brain Pickings. While most blogs on the internet explore very specific topics, Brain Pickings features Maria’s thoughts on culture, books, and any topic that interests her.

Brain Pickings started as a weekly email to seven of her friends. Now it receives millions of visitors a month. She has built that following by exploring her own interests, and is able to sustain her blog through donations from her readers.

Although she could be making much more money through ads, she chooses to make money through affiliate links and donations from her readers. This allows her to work on things she enjoys instead of working on things that will make her money.

Srinivas Rao

Srinivas is the creative force behind one of my favorite podcasts: The Unmistakable Creative. This podcast features amazing interviews with everyone from artists to entrepreneurs to ex-cons.

Like many people, Srinivas thought he had to seek the traditional path to success. He went to business school and got a 9-5 job, but wasn’t fulfilled. So he hosted a podcast called BlogCast FM and gradually grew the podcast interview by interview. He then re-branded it into what it is today, the Unmistakable Creative. It is now one of the most popular podcasts for creatives.

Tina Roth Eisenberg aka swissmiss

Tina is one of the most popular designers on the internet. She came to the US from Switzerland and worked for several prominent NYC design firms.

In 2005, she started her popular blog, swissmiss, and ran her own design studio with clients including the Museum of Modern Art and Food Network. While building the studio she also started other side projects including Creative Mornings, TeuxDeux, and Tattly. These projects allowed her to drop all her clients to work on them full-time.

Chase Jarvis

While at San Diego State University, Chase had plans of going to medical school after graduating. A few weeks before graduation, his grandfather passed and left him all of his photography equipment.

Instead of going to school after graduating, he took a trip to Europe, where he discovered his passion for photography. While pursuing his Masters degree at the University of Washington, he licensed photos to REI, which allowed him to leave school and start up his own studio.

Since then, Chase has photographed for clients like Nike, Apple, Miscrosoft, REI, and Lady Gaga. He also launched CreativeLive which offers free classes for people who want to learn photography, design, and other creative topics, and hosts interviews with creatives on Chase Jarvis Live.

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[bctt tweet=”Be courageous and let your creativity guide you”]

Most of us believe we can’t pursue our creative dreams. We lack the conviction to step out of our comfort zones and do the thing we love most. Instead of letting your preconceived notions stop you, let them go. Be courageous and let your creativity guide you.

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Photo by Mike Kniec

“Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” Quote Art

March 9, 2015 / Kevin Chung / 13 Comments

“Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.”

Print available on Storenvy.

This quote is often misattributed to Winston Churchill. Learn more about its origins on Quote Investigator.

Success

Most people think success is a destination you can reach. “If only I was as successful as she is.” What you don’t know is, that person you look up to is thinking the same thing. We think “making it” is a tangible status you can achieve but it isn’t.

“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in and day-out.”
– Robert Collier

[bctt tweet=”Instead of thinking of success as a destination, think of it as a mindset”]

Instead of thinking of success as a destination, think of it as a mindset. Success as a mindset means always trying your best. It means moving forward despite the obstacles. It means learning from your mistakes. It means you are always growing.

Failure

[bctt tweet=”Failure is far from fatal, it is a way to learn from your mistakes”]

People think failure is the worst thing that can happen to them. They think failure is impossible to overcome. Failure is far from fatal, it is a way to learn from your mistakes.

Things fail for a reason. It usually comes down to a lack of foresight, a lack of preparation, or a lack of execution. Instead of seeing failure as an insurmountable obstacle, think of it as a lesson learned. What can you learn from your failure? How can you improve next time? After each failure, dissect what went wrong, and avoid doing it again.

“I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed”.

– Michael Jordan

[bctt tweet=”You need to think failure as an outcome rather than letting it define you”]

An important thing to remember about failure is it does not reflect who you are. People too often attribute failure to themselves. When things go right we feel invincible but when things go wrong we feel worthless. You need to think failure as an outcome rather than letting it define you. Your projects and goals can end in failure, but don’t attach that failure to yourself. It is hard to become better when you always blame yourself.

Courage

The most overlooked attribute of successful people is persistence. Anyone can be successful if they never face adversity, if things never went wrong. The true test of character occurs when things don’t go exactly as planned. During these moments you have two choices. You can pack your things up and go, or you can suck it up and find a solution.

So many people quit just on the edge of success. It is within their grasp but instead of staying the course, they choose to give up.

If you have done your homework and know your idea can work, you can’t give up. Did you know Walt Disney was fired from the Kansas City Star because he lacked imagination? What would happen if J.K. Rowling had given up on Harry Potter when so many people told her to? How much different would the world be if great people had given up instead of challenging themselves?

We live in the greatest time in human history. We owe it to ourselves to do what we love. So, the next time you feel like giving up, think of Walt Disney and J.K. Rowling. Think of the greatness they achieved and the gifts they gave to the world. You can give your gifts to the world too.

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Tag: courage

“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” ― William Faulkner Quote Art