The 4-Hour Flower-Power Artist

“It isn’t enough to think outside the box. Thinking is passive. Get used to acting outside the box.”~Tim Ferriss

Artist-child of the sixties that I am, I’ve had fun this week reading The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss—prompted by one of my kids. As an artist/writer, I hardly consider what I do to be “work” though I work very hard at it. I haven’t had a job since I was 26. That’s when I quit regular employment to be an artist. And, yes, there have been plenty of moments of stress, financial uncertainty and creative doubt. Where will this go? And what’s possible? I’ve come to believe, through long study and experiment, that anything is. Think Tim Ferriss might too.

Ferriss contends that finding a muse, some essence of something, that we can sell over and over while we do other things for fun is the way to go. Interesting. He created and sold a vitamin mix then quit to travel the world and through various disciplines was able to continue to make a fortune from his original business. Nice. Now he makes money from writing. Even more interesting. So, what might this mean for we artists and writers?

Andy Warhol was onto Ferriss’s idea in the sixties with his multiples. He even hired folks to make his prints freeing up more of his time. There are all sorts of ways of being artists, of course. All are to be encouraged—no right or wrong. That’s part of the paradigm shift away from the Culture of Complaint and Judgement to creative freedom for all. But, most important, is finding our muse—what we’re meant to do. And how we envision being artists on a planet in peril. So many ways~from making paintings to public and internet art. We can choose our muse.

A big shift came for me when I wrote my book, The Confident Creative. It was a whole new way for me of sharing something I really care about—the idea that everyone is creative at their core and can connect with this consciousness. And that it matters for our world that we do. Not quite the success of Ferriss’s book but I’m still really happy that it’s sold thousands of copies. And I’ve heard from so many great people. It’s been a new way of sharing my muse and I’m now writing another one.

In the sixties, we tried out so many things—tested them. Free love. Women’s liberation. Racial equality. The world changed. In art, Andy Warhol nailed Ferriss’s idea with his posters—mass-produced works. He even hired folks to do the work—exactly what Ferriss is talking about. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones and tons of other musicians figured out how making music can create energy and change society. Some experiments worked. Some got derailed by excess or the sense of limitation that lots of folks struggle with. But, if we’d not gone to the edge, not jumped in, we wouldn’t know where the edge is or how to fly. We’d be less free in all sorts of ways.

Hard times now. At the same moment as our economy crashes, imposing what seems like unendurable limitation on so many, consciousness is also rising. New ideas, new possibilities. And in a sweet reversal this week, a few hundred people left the internet and marched on Wall Street, the old-fashioned way. A fantastic creative act that has focused attention on corporate injustice all over the world. A few bold souls. So many ways to be artists. Flower power. The next round.

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On Sunday, October 23rd from 10 am until 5:30 pm I’m leading a workshop in the Boston area—

Drawing Out Creativity

Exploring how to connect with our muse.

A few spaces left!! Learn more and sign up here! Now is the time!