Consider this : Turn a deaf ear to those who say the path of art is hard. Doing something you don’t love is a much harder path.

Dear Emma,?

    1. Never forget the joy you first felt when you discovered art.
    2. Find a few people who believe wholly in you and protect these relationships with all your might.
    3. Don’t ask everyone you know for feedback. Creativity is subjective, and your art will find its tribe.
    4. Your dream has its own heartbeat. Listen for it.
    5. It’s a DIY world, but you can’t do it alone. Build your team as wisely as you would choose typefaces or words for lyrics.
    6. Embrace your place on Earth as a creative. Give thanks you were given this gift to share.
    7. Turn a deaf ear to those who say the path of art is hard. Doing something you don’t love is a much harder path.
    8. Study the patterns of your mind and honor your needs for time alone to create.
    9. Accept that not everyone will “get” what you are doing, even those close to you.
    10. If you ever doubt the value of your gift, imagine a day without sound, music, art or design.
    11. Remember that rejections are the building blocks of success.
    12. Don’t measure your success. Your steps will often be infinitesimal.
    13. Admire those who have walked the path you are on, and know it is a shared path.
    14. Concentrate on the square you are standing in right now. Tomorrow it will be a new one.
    15. Don’t compare yourself to those you admire. Babies learning to walk aren’t compared to long-distance runners. Each is on his own path to movement.
    16. Make your evolution your priority. You grow through change.
    17. Moments of fear are often signals of change on the horizon. Listen carefully to them.
    18. Learn to let go. You can’t control how people react to you. You can only control how and what you think about yourself.  
    19. Edit out those people who instill fear, doubt or negative thinking into your world.  
    20. Remember to look back at how far you have traveled. If you only see the mountains ahead, you will forget those you have already climbed.
______________________
I gave a longer version of this advice to my son Pete as left for Berklee College of Music last year. The complete “90 Things I learned Along My Path to Creativity” is here: http://onecoolfreeidea.com/?p=554

-Deb Walsh  

I love this. I am particularly fond of numbers 1-20. Many thanks to Deb for sharing this.