Seth Godin’s Linchpin is one of the two books I recommend most often to clients in search of career advice (the other one is Ignore Everybody by Hugh MacLeod). So I thought it was a great idea when fellow creative coach Cynthia Morris suggested we do a free podcast about Linchpin and its implications for people pursuing a creative career.

Next week Cynthia and I are going to record the call, probably about 45 minutes long, and make it available for free download here and over at Cynthia’s Original Impulse blog. We’re also preparing a worksheet full of coaching questions to help you take action on the challenges Seth describes in the book – again, this will be a free download.

We want to make the call and worksheet as useful as possible for you, so if you have any questions about the book or the challenges of pursuing a creative career path, please leave a comment below or zip me an e-mail and we’ll do our best to offer some useful suggestions – and questions.

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Image by digicla

This article is part two in Cynthia’s series on making feedback a positive and empowering part of the creative process, following on from How to Ask for Feedback (without it Blowing up in Your Face).

“You’re not always funny. Sometimes you go on and on and on and I just fast forward.”

This was only some of the feedback I received from a close friend. The rest of her comments about my web TV show felt like a physical blow. Her words stung me and I was no longer able to think, speak or interact properly. Our pleasant picnic was ruined and I left feeling shattered.

But I’ve been writing and making art for nearly twenty years now, and this wasn’t the first time I’ve received criticism that wasn’t kind. You’ve probably faced inept feedback as well. If you’re putting your work into the world, chances are someone has shared comments that may be well-intentioned but come across as an attack.

How to cope with feedback that is harsh, negative, or even mean?

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Drawing by Hugh MacLeod

Last month I wrote a piece at Wishful Thinking called Why Artists and Creatives Have an Unfair Advantage at Internet Marketing, which generated a fair amount of buzz. So when it was my turn to be interviewed by John T. Unger for his Art Heroes Radio podcast, we took that as our cue.

Pop over to John’s place to listen to Why Artists Have an Unfair Advantage at Internet Marketing: a Conversation with Mark McGuinness. John was his usual laid-back and charming self, and we had a lot of fun talking about the opportunities for artists and creatives on the web right now – as well as the pitfalls and how to avoid them.

If you have any thoughts on the issues we discuss, please leave a comment over at Art Heroes Radio.

Image by treehouse1977

Once upon a time there was a boy named Milton H. Erickson, who lived on a farm in Wisconsin. Walking home from school one day, he and his friends were overtaken by a runaway horse with a bridle on, covered in sweat, that bolted into a farmer’s yard.

The farmer didn’t recognise the horse, and there was nothing on the saddle and bridle to identify it. The others were at a loss for what to do, but Milton took the lead, asking them to corner the horse so that he could mount it. Once in the saddle he shouted “Giddy up!” but held the reins loosely, so that the horse, not the rider, decided which way to go.

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This post is part of the Break Through Your Creative Blocks series.

If you have a creative block you’d like some help with, tell us about it – details in the first article in the series.

There’s a moment in the movie Lost In Translation where Bob (Bill Murray) is explaining to Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) how his relationship with his wife changed after they had children. “The day they arrive,” he says, “your life, as you know it, is gone, never to return.” Whether or not that’s true of life in general, it can sometimes feel as though it applies to your creativity.

The magic ingredients of the creative process are things like focus, concentration and plenty of time to daydream, read books, watch movies, go out to theatres, galleries and other inspiring places. And these are precisely the things that are in short supply the moment you become a parent. Your little bundles of joy become the most important thing in your life, shunting everything else into second place. Once you get on the seemingly endless treadmill of feeding, changing nappies, washing clothes, shopping, school runs, helping with homework and a thousand other things, it can feel like you will never have enough focused time and energy (let alone sleep!) to create outstanding work ever again.

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