Beyond Shortcuts

Getting More Specific About the Purpose of My Book

This week, I had hoped to work through my original purpose statement, going through the various reasons I wanted to write a book for illustrators in the first place. I have been calling these reasons my Big Why.

The first of such reasons was to give others the leg up I wish I had when starting out. I really got stuck on what I meant by “leg up”. I tend to overthink small details like this to the point where it all breaks down and nothing makes sense. It’s like when regular, everyday words momentarily lose their meaning and become abstract sounds.

I actually believe that, rather than finding shortcuts, we often need to take the long way. That’s how we learn what really matters. It’s what truly shapes us. Having to learn the hard way is what makes us who we are.

This morning, still determined to crack this case—what I mean by wanting to give others this “leg-up”, or boost— I did some writing in my journal instead of here on the blog. I was a bit more free to just think on paper and not worry about my audience for a moment. Now, I think I have a bit more clarity.

It turns out I have indeed over thought things. There’s nothing more to my initial statement than this: I like helping people. When I have understood a concept or have become knowledgeable in something, I enjoy trying to help others do the same. Why? Because I can. Because it’s my gift. I enjoy doing things I’m good at. End of story!

Getting More Specific About My Purpose

I realized, this morning, that this notion of “giving others the leg up I wish I had when I was starting out” is both very obvious and not specific enough. Other than painting a favourable picture of myself, it doesn’t say much to say, “I want to help others because I like helping others”.

To be more specific:

I want to be a truly helpful resource to aspiring and working illustrators. It’s not so much that I want to give others specific information that I felt was lacking in my early journey. In fact, I actually believe that, rather than finding shortcuts, we often need to take the long way. That’s how we learn what really matters. It’s what truly shapes us. Having to learn the hard way is what makes us who we are. Taking the long way has shaped who I am. Whether it has made me a better illustrator, I don’t know. But I do know it has made me a better, more empathetic communicator.

Feeling Heard

I’m not sure I wanted a “leg-up” when I was starting out as much as I wanted the people I asked to just be helpful. I wanted to be heard. I wanted to be responded to. If I reached out to someone with a question, and they responded to me, I was deeply grateful. In contrast, when people I reached out to did not respond, whatever the reason, I felt that they were signalling to me that I was not worth their time. Knowing that people usually see all emails that come into their inboxes, I felt that ignoring mine was a deliberate decision; that somehow I didn’t matter to them. I felt ignored, overlooked, cast aside.

I’m not sure I wanted a “leg-up” when I was starting out as much as I wanted the people I asked to just be helpful. I wanted to be heard.

Now, today, with more messages coming into my own inboxes, whether in email, DM’s on Instagram, or via my Skillshare classes, I can definitely see how hard it is to stay on top of responding to each and every question. I see how my expectations of every person I asked for help were too high. I also understand that I have deeper issues of insecurity to contend with. My self esteem should definitely not be based on whether a stranger answers my messages! That being said, being a seeker, a self-learner, someone who reaches out, who understands what it’s like to covet the insights and guidance of experts, I have a deep empathy for others in a similar position. I know what it’s like to put yourself out there, only to feel like you jumped into a black hole of nothingness.

Rather than wanting to give others any particular insights in terms of how-to, I want to be the kind of person I wanted others to be to me. I want to be the kind of person many indeed were! I can name dozens of people who showed up in my life, who did answer my questions, who, through their time and attention, did give me incredible opportunities to level up. I am inspired by these people, and fuelled by my empathy (experience of people who were these’s opposites), to help others likewise. It’s not really that I feel indebted, or that I somehow need to pay it forward. My desire to kindly acknowledge others in a position I have been in myself is deeply rooted in my sense of how I think people ought to be to one another in general. To appropriate the Canadian Blood Services slogan, It’s in me to give.

I need to stress that being empathetic doesn’t mean responding to every single message that comes my way. I realize my expectations for others have been far too high in the past. Similarly, I cannot live up to everyone’s expectations of me. I will fail some. I need to protect my time and energy so I have enough to apply to the priorities in my life. But I do, honestly, try my best. I do my best to respond to every personal message and request that comes to me, even if it’s a short “like” (if that’s all I can muster) or a quick “thank you”. Often, I go beyond that. I also believe that hearing back from someone, even if the answer is “no” can be far more respectful than simply ignoring them.

My desire to kindly acknowledge others in a position I have been in myself is deeply rooted in my sense of how I think people ought to be to one another in general.

Because of my shortcomings, because I cannot personally help everyone who asks me to the extent they would hope (or that I would like to), I do things like this: writing helpful blog posts; answering common questions on my YouTube channel; teaching on Skillshare. I am doing all this to create a pool of resources and answers to questions that come my way. When people ask for help, I can point them to where I’ve already answered the question. My hope is that I never have send someone away empty handed.

Writing my book goes beyond just bound volume of my most frequently asked questions, though. Like my Skillshare classes and YouTube videos, and hopefully, like these posts, my aim is to create a resource that is imbued with empathy, that acknowledges both the beginning and the mid-career illustrator’s struggles. In my writing (and in all my “content”), I want to be a resource to working and aspiring illustrators and to embody these qualities:

• Real, authentic, honest. I don’t want to put up any smoke and mirrors. I don’t want to put on false bravado. I want to share with others as someone who struggles, has his doubts, and to be as realistic and down to earth as possible about what we’re doing. It’s not magic, it’s a job.
• Straightforward, clear. I want to make my most important principles as clear and easy to follow as possible. I want to empower others by showing the steps and mindsets that truly matter, and to do so both as thoroughly and efficiently as possible.
• Friendly, unpretentious. I want to present myself as a peer, not as some high-level guru or a “cool guy”. I see a lot of creative influencers online and on stages acting like they are somehow special. Even when a lot of these types of people say they care about people, in their words and actions, I get a different message. It grosses me out and kind of makes me sad. I want to remain as down to earth and humble as possible. Hopefully I can also be interesting and entertaining sometimes, but these are very much secondary to just being who I am, no BS.
• Demystifying. I want to break down seemingly complex or mysterious processes down to their essential steps, to show that things don’t magically appear through sheer talent or imagination. Far more important than innate ability is the comprehension of some first principles and the application of a consistent creative process.
• A Namer of Struggles. We defeat our enemies by knowing who they are. We overcome our struggles by naming them. Some of my most powerful insights come in the way of identifying key pain points and principles. When you give something a name, it sticks in your mind, and you can identify it when it shows up. Then you can use a set of principles or steps to work through that thing. When you can name something that intimidates or baffles you, suddenly it seems less intimidating.
• Accessible. While I cannot be all things to all people, my aim is always to be as inclusive as possible. I want people of all creative experience and ability to feel invited into my classes and content, not as an outsider, but as someone who could very well be on the inside (or perhaps already is). I have no problem making more advanced content, nor do I worry that some might not be ready for it, but always, I want to make people feel that it is possible, that if they come with the right mindset, they will get there. Whether a book or a class or a video on YouTube, I want people to come away feeling more informed and inspired, no matter who they are. (Short rant: I once saw a talk at an illustration conference that was so indecipherable and esoteric, it bordered on the laughable. But I was infuriated. Here was a group of people who travelled from all over the world, who paid a lot to attend, who took time off working, and they had to watch this completely indulgent, meaningless peformance. I was incensed. Thanks to people like this, I am even more fuelled to share ideas that truly matter and honour people’s time).
• Encouragingly Challenging. I aim to encourage everyone to meet their truest potential. I cannot make them succeed. I cannot struggle on their behalf. But I can try to identify the strengths of others and help them see it for themselves. I want people to feel a strong sense of ability, of confidence, of freedom to try new things, to bring personal insights and perspective to their work. I don’t want to just give fluffy, mostly meaningless cheerleading. I want to help people who truly want to be helped. I don’t just want to tell people they’re good just where they are, but that they have the potential to be so much more, and to keep striving for that.
• Empathetic. Always, I want to speak from the perspective of someone who understands the experiences and pain points of beginning and working illustrators. People need to feel understood and related to, not just preached at. I am not a guru, I am a fellow illustrator.

So this is my unpacking of what I mean when I say, “I want to give others the leg-up I wish I had when I was starting out”. I thought it would be more about the specifics of what, exactly, I wish I knew starting out. Instead, here, through writing it out, I realize more than anything else, I just want to be a positive presence in the industry, being the person to others I hope others will be to me. It’s not that I am good at doing this, but I at least understand what it feels like to be on the receiving end of arrogance. I know what it feels like to be sold BS from a conference stage when I expected something of more value. I respect other people enough to want to truly add meaning and value through my writing and speaking. Nor do I want to give shortcuts that short circuit the process of personal and artistic development. I want to show what I believe it really takes to make it creatively and professionally, and to do so without losing touch with what it feels like to be a beginner.