Monday, September 28, 2009

Guiding hands


Over my lifetime, there has always been someone there to lend a guiding hand. They seem to come into your presence just when they are needed. Or perhaps, you happen to instinctively put yourself next to them when you need their wisdom.

In this particular case, I seemed to be chasing around in circles. I thought that I was doing all the right things. Submitting applications, getting my name out there, you know the drill. But all that I seemed to be doing was spinning my wheels. I ran into Jack Sures, a professor emeritus of ceramics from the University of Regina. Jack has a well earned ceramics pedigree a mile long. So I put the question to him, what was I doing wrong? His answer was simple, "its all about the work."

I went home and thought about it. I come from a business background. While I was doing all the right things on the business/marketing end, I had forgotten that in the end, it is all about the work. Mediocre work promoted, is still just mediocre. I vowed to put the effort into producing work of merit. Work that I could be proud of, that pushed boundaries. I promised to step outside my comfort zone and try new things. To grow artistically every day.

I am grateful for a few words kindly shared that significantly changes one's outlook.

No comments: