Lifechanging Book: The Creative Act, A Way of Being, by Rick Rubin

Favorite Takeaways:

• One reason art resonates is because human beings are so similar. We’re attracted to the shared experience held within the work. Including the imperfection of it. We recognize some part of ourselves and feel understood. And connected.

• Expressing oneself in the world and creativity are the same. It may not be possible to know who you are without somehow expressing it.

• A river of material flows through us. When we share our works and our ideas, they are replenished. If we block the flow by holding them all inside, the river cannot run and new ideas are slow to appear.

• Zoom in and obsess. Zoom out and observe. We get to choose.

• We have stories about ourselves, and those are not who we are. We have stories about the work, and those are not what the work is.