Mozart Wrote Dinner Music

From Ramen Noodles and Instant Coffee to Instant Messenger and Twitter, it seems we just can’t speed things up enough. Fast doesn’t cut it anymore. Today it has to be instant.

Do you like to get things instantly? Netflix has had Instant Viewing for over a year now. In fact, they’ve taken the ‘thinking’ out of instant also. They will tell you what is the right movie or TV show ‘for you’ to watch. And of course, you can watch it without commercials. Do you sometimes fast forward through it too? How “instant’ can you be? What if you could watch the whole show… in an instant?

Let’s go back to that idea of “thinking”. Do you know anyone who “thinks”? Come to think of it, I know a lot of people that do. But I worry that many don’t. There is one thing you cannot speed up or have instantly, and that’s thinking.

When was the last time you stopped what you were doing… to think? Have you ever taken a day just to think? What about a month, or a year? How many out there have taken a sabbatical? Teaching is a career in which people take sabbaticals. I used to think it was because they needed a year off from all the annoying kids, but it was actually intended to be for thinking. To experience new things. To travel. To open your mind.

I recently saw a clip from a TED conference about sabbaticals - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNuOmTQdFjA. In the video, the designer Stefan Sagmeister analyzes our work lives and describes how he closes his company every 7 years, for a 1 year sabbatical. In this year off, he thinks. He experiments and tries things that are not necessarily part of his day to day. As he describes it, this time informs and influences his process moving forward.

Process. It’s the process of doing that allows creativity to grow and ultimately, be successful. Sure, the result, those final brush strokes that make the painting perfect can happen in a minute or 2. But what about all the time & work, the process it took to get there? Those brush strokes and choices would not have happened without a process.

Improvisation is instant. That’s what makes it so exciting. But remember, anyone who improvises well has spent a lot of time practicing – a process in itself. Another example of why the ‘process’ is so important.

As each year passes, it seems we are expected to do more and do it faster. But we need to realize how important the process is and to enjoy the process. The author Greg Anderson wrote “Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing the activity but in doing it”.

Can you enjoy the process? Can we all acknowledge how important the process is?

As creative people and owners of creative content, how do we value what we do? You know what I mean – how do we put a price on it? If you own a restaurant, the menu clearly shows the cost of each item. If you’re a doctor, your fees are probably set by insurance companies. If you own a gas station, the price is based on the oil market and various taxes.

If you’re a creative person – an artist, a writer, a composer, a director, and so on… your fees may be more subjective. Some organizations, guilds or unions may play a role in establishing rates, but many people make a living outside of those groups. Knowing the value of your marketplace and what you do, becomes very important.

I recently saw it phrased like this. A producer asked (literally) “Am I being an asshole if I ask a film festival to waive an application fee”. The answer, presumably from one who knows, was “yes”. She goes on to make the point – “You’re basically saying, can I get this for free? and… I don’t think you’re worth the fee you’re asking” – in fact, you’re not worth anything. I think you can quickly see where this thinking leads.

Aside from supply and demand, our fees are influenced by those who have come before us. Colleagues who have established rates, or unions and the like that have worked for years to ensure wages and fair treatment. Those in demand, with a proven track record will command higher fees than those without. It is important to consider the value of what you do and charge an appropriate fee.

There will always be those that will work for little or no money. Hey, we all have to start somewhere, right? But as your career moves along, you should be charging a fair fee for your work. Otherwise, how are you going to live? This has been the natural order of things for some time in the creative arts. You do some jobs for little or no money, develop a reputation, and gradually you start to make a living at it.

More often, lately, I have heard of large companies/corporations asking their suppliers to ‘give it away’ – in some cases, for free. Some major broadcasters asking well established publishers and composers to cut their fees by up to 90%. What would happen to that industry if suddenly everyone did that? You can imagine where the value of those copyrights would go.

There are always exceptions, good causes and family or friends to help out in need. And then there are the occasional ‘budget challenged’ projects we’ll all take – because we want to. But if an entire industry were to move in the direction of ‘free’, everything you worked for, and all the work of those who came before you, would be for naught. It is very important to understand the value of what you do. If you don’t know, you should ask a colleague. It’s important to educate others and receive a fair wage.

Are you willing to uphold the value of your work?