Distracted by Attention

Artists, in general, are some of the most powerful creatives in the world. Yet, unlike architects, contractors in construction, engineers, and businessmen, artists, in particular, are often distracted by the idea of fame in contrast to the reality of the lack of equity in business they willingly ignore to be loved by strangers. I don’t personally know anyone in the world who would take criticism over being accepted, so I can understand firsthand where most artists are coming from conceptually. Where this common artist mindset is unhelpful is when it goes to such an extreme that the artist forgets that they are the power in the marketplace of art, not the distributor.

While the distributor is absolutely key — like a ticket sales entity is to a show — the show/venue is of more value based on the unique product offering of the artist. Distributors/middlemen have their place in many different industries, as that idea has its positives. But when the middleman becomes the majority man, there is, ironically, nothing left in between. When it becomes more advantageous on the distributor’s side than the creator’s, therein lies a fundamental issue in leadership and knowledge.

While it’s clear most people love being famous from the beginning of history, only a small minority have a rooted mindset of risk management. The level of risk must always be measured with reward in anything, but…