Monthly Archives: September 2011

Don’t Believe Your Own Thoughts: What Can An Artist Learn From Mark Twain?

Posted on September 26, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

Don’t Believe Your Own Thoughts: What Can An Artist Learn From Mark Twain?. This is a really insightful article into a mistake we are all prone to making.  I couldn’t have said it better myself.  If you think you can’t … Continue reading →

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The Power of Intuition

Posted on September 24, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck and has feathers like a duck…it’s very likely to be a duck.  This truism speaks to an observation about the difficulty in hiding the obvious facts … Continue reading →

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Ten Thousand Hours of What?

Posted on September 24, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

It has been said that it takes ten thousand hours to become a virtuoso at anything you choose to pursue.  That’s an interesting number.  If you work at something for eight hours a day, that’s one thousand, two hundred and … Continue reading →

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How Can Artists Add Enough Value?

Posted on September 24, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

They say that if you have no money, it’s because you aren’t adding enough value to other people’s lives.  That might be true, or it might be that they have no money to give you, or alternatively it might be … Continue reading →

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Fail Gloriously

Posted on September 23, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

We’re all afraid to fail.  Nobody particularly likes the humiliation or the shame, but why do we react that way?  We’re taught to regard failure as a moral or character defect; irredeemable and incorrigible.  Failure is supposed to lay bare … Continue reading →

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Contribution Is The New Consumption

Posted on September 22, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

Ever noticed how difficult it is to stick to your plan, as soon as you get onto the Internet.  There are so many diversions and distractions, that it’s all too easy to become a simple media consumer, even though you … Continue reading →

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The View is Worth the Climb

Posted on September 18, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

This is what keeps us all going, as artists.  We know that there is a peak to be reached and that when we get to that peak, the view will be amazing.  We also know that it’s a momentary experience.  … Continue reading →

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Three Astonishing Albums from a Parallel Universe

Posted on September 16, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

It’s an exciting time for music fans of a certain age.  Several long-awaited albums by some of my favourite artists are due imminently, yet never before has the music industry seemed so hesitant or tentative about actually releasing an album … Continue reading →

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Overcoming Your Own Taste

Posted on September 15, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

Your own taste can lead you to think that your early work doesn’t live up to the standard that your taste demands.  That can be so discouraging that you quit.  Don’t quit.  The more work you do, the closer your … Continue reading →

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Why are Fans Fans?

Posted on September 11, 2011 by tropicaltheartist

Fans are fans for many reasons.  As an artist, it can be interesting and instructive to try to imagine why anybody might even want to be your fan.  You might not want any fans, or you might want lots of … Continue reading →

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