“The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with One Step.” Lao Tzu
There’s no such thing as an overnight success or a lucky break. (I’ve found one exception – read it here.)
Most successes are achieved slowly, over time, and then at some point you arrive to your goal.
I liken the path to success as a long row of dominos, neatly lined up. Each one represents an accomplishment or a desire. The last domino in the very back is the big one – it’s what will happen when we can finally say “I’ve found success.”
For you, that big domino may be the day that you are accepted into the finest gallery in New York City. Or it could be when you reach a certain dollar amount in sales.
In front of that big domino are all the other accomplishments, desires and skills that you need to knock down first. And they are all essential to the path of an artist.
Some of the dominoes that my husband, Drew and I have knocked over in the past two decades have been (in this order):
Getting the commission to create artwork for the Pipeline Masters; selling a painting for $14,000, producing a popular DVD, beating stage fright, giving seminars at major trade shows, nailing a “how to draw” book deal with the #1 Art Book publisher in the U.S., and getting a license deal with Converse shoes for a line of cool Drew Brophy chucks.
Some of the big dominoes that remain on our list:
A coffee-table book publishing deal; sell a painting for $50,000, have Drew learn new painting skills under a master painter, and get our “Paint This” T.V. show on the air.
Being in the art business for almost twenty years has really allowed us to look back and see how every little achievement has led to the next.
In the beginning, you don’t realize the importance of the succession. But as time goes on, if you stick with it, you’ll see how one domino knocks down the next, and the next.
Many people switch paths when the dominos aren’t getting knocked down quick enough.
And then they start something new, which also fails, because they quit that before it finds success as well.
Stay on one path, don’t turn back, and trust that it will happen if you stay committed, passionate, and steady.
Understand that designing a life of creative success takes time.
“I know, I know”, you say. But most of us humans don’t have patience. We want to see results NOW! We don’t want to wait for the gallery to call, or the money, or the recognition.
But try this: sit back and relax. Be patient. Watch the dominoes fall gently. In a few years, you’ll look back and see just how much you’ve done.
And know that when you reach that final big domino in the back, you’ll already have set up new dominos, bigger ones, and loftier ones.
And that’s part of what makes this life so exciting. The possibilities are endless and ever growing.
Maria xxoo
PS: I live for comments from you, my reader. I’d love to hear what dominoes are lined up for you. Or about the ones you’ve already knocked down. Please comment!
My big domino is to get my book published. All the smaller dominoes before it: Finish the book, get an agent, create a winning proposal for publishing companies, then keep presenting it over and over again until I get a deal.
Thanks for the post. It’s encouraging me to stay on course!
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Good perspective on being patient and not taking for granted each step of the way. As an art hobbyist, I’m on the domino of embracing the stories and ideas coming from within and making them come to life as art pieces. Next will be developing the confidence and courage to believe in my art and sharing my story with others. Eventually, like to have art showIng(s), t-shirts for fundraisers &/or for sale and a themed book.
Thanks Maria for more of your insight!
Great post! I love the Dominos analogy. I often find myself getting impatient with my art career, but I’m lucky enough to have a great husband who has the patience to point out my accomplishments and encourages me to keep going. I’ve also noticed the more people I share my work with, the less likely I am to give up.So I keep moving forward, knocking each Domino down. 🙂
I was hoping this would have a little more meat to it. like sharing about how you felt like there was all this energy being expended without any successful result and then you stuck with it and a domino finally fell and then other dominoes fell from that and it is in looking back that you see how pushing through the muck of getting one particular domino to fall, that others fell perhaps a little more easily (not forever mind you, but at least a burst).
and how do we tell the difference between tilting at windmills and keeping at our artist work – leaning on that one domino before it falls?
Very inspiring and hopeful article. We are teaching and producing pastel wildlife paintings on velour paper. Our next big domino is a demo at a major art convention in November. I am the promoter. My sweet bride is the artist. We both have goosebumps about the upcoming event. We have been teaching for 16 months are are looking for the next big domino. Thanks for the great inspirational information! Our highest painting to date is $1,550. Are goal is $5K. How did you get to $50K? Thanks Again!