The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin – I don’t know what I expected when I read this. I thought it would be part memoir/autobiography, part life advice, part information about the creative process of making music.
Rick Rubin is a well-known, successful music producer who has produced countless hits and worked with some of the biggest names in music for over four decades. Naturally, I thought he would have some cool stories about the music industry and what it’s like working with everyone from rap artists, to pop stars, to rock and roll bands. However, it wasn’t about that at all and wasn’t the memoir I expected it to be.
It had a few personal examples that went along with what he was saying but he never mentioned anyone by name specifically and instead kept it as a vague anecdote that related to the subject he was on. It was an entire book about the creative process and the roadblocks you might encounter along the way, both internal and external. It was incredibly inspiring.
The overall message that I came away with was, just create. Don’t over think, don’t make it complicated, just make something. Try different forms of creativity. Find one you like and let your imagination run wild. And then try something else and go with that. Allow your childhood curiosity to engulf you. It doesn’t matter what the quality of the product is, just as long as you complete a project. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks (though he also gives advice on asking people for their opinion on your work and how to take both good and bad feedback).
Most importantly, don’t wait for the perfect idea or a divine moment of inspiration to come to you in order to start creating. It won’t happen, you’ll be waiting forever and then you will have created nothing. Put in the work, the practice. Build the habit and never stop. It can completely change your perspective on the world. I know it did for me.
