The Odyssey of an Artist: What Sailing can Teach us About Navigating Web3
Painting is a strange business.
-J.M.W. Turner
In the last few weeks, the debacle of algorithmic stablecoin, TerraUSD (UST) and Luna, and other tragic events have prompted me to think about human resilience during the bear market and challenging times. Whenever things got difficult for me, I've referred to the lessons from my sailing days, especially navigating the ebbs and flow of entrepreneurial life.
So what does sailing have to do with being an artist and navigating Web3? First, navigating the unknown territory or choppy waters builds resilience and helps us think (and creatively) on our feet as the wind changes its course. Many of the idioms that we use today stemmed from maritime and nautical origins.
"TRIM ONE'S SAILS"
Meaning: Adapt or change to fit altered circumstances.
The role of artists also evolved and changed over the century. The emergence of Web3 allowed artists to incorporate the business component into their practice, which has been a foreign concept for traditional artists. For instance, the author of the above quote illustrates this thought. Renowned for his expressive colors, imaginative landscape, and turbulent seascape paintings, such as The Fighting of Temeraire (1899), J.M.W. Turner also struggled and became the part of the "starving artist" myth (more on my previous post of Death of the Starving Artist).
Despite his rise to success in the art world in the 19th Century, Turner was intensely private, eccentric, and reclusive, especially after his father's death. Turner's outlook became grim later in his career when his gallery fell into disrepair and neglect, and yet his art intensified. He sadly lived in squalor and poor health until the end of his life.
As Turner's The Fighting of Temeraire alludes to the end of the era of an old ship, the diagram on the left also illustrates the end of the "starving artists" narrative. The artists are no longer reclusive and passive; many independent artists in Web3 have been focusing their attention and energy on community building, engaging their audience directly.
When it comes down to the business of promoting, pricing and selling art, artists have been relying on art dealers, gallerists, agents, and auctioneers for centuries. However, Web3 ushered in more democratic and accessible ways to view, support, and collect art online. It gave us more flexibility, freedom, and anonymity sans intimidating or unwelcoming gatekeepers at the brick-and-mortar art galleries and institutions.
Although we don't have control over wind or external forces (e.g., the economy), we can always focus on the direction of our mission and goals and build a solid foundation rather than swaying to the noise. Just as the TerraUSD and Luna collapse have demonstrated, any endeavor built on hype or speculation is like a house built on sand.
2. "WHEN IN DOUBT, LET IT OUT."
Meaning: Over-trimmed sail generates less power even if it looks full. It also slows down the momentum when the sail starts to sag.
Although the statement above is the golden rule of sail trim, this applies to our indecisions in life. Most artists have challenges achieving their goals as they fixate on the details and get lost in their many ideas; they forget the bigger picture. Unfortunately, we're all guilty of these things, and the good news is that we can change our methods and practices to achieve our goals.
Many artists (and entrepreneurs) misunderstand perfection as high quality and high-value work. Unfortunately, perfectionism often leads to analysis paralysis and keeps us from moving forward with our goals and growth. The key to achieving success is consistency. It takes small, gradual steps to achieve significant results. Here are three ways to stay consistent and stay on track:
Readjust your focus on your goals (from above)
Break down big goals into smaller actions and take one task at a time at a given moment (multitasking does not equal productivity).
Let go of the fear of failure: in the words of Henri Matisse, "creativity takes courage."
3. "KEEP AN EVEN KEEL."
Meaning: Keep calm and carry on.
We don't have the magic crystal ball to predict the future or control the turbulent and volatile market. We can, however, sustain and secure our future through consistent work and unwavering commitment to our mission. Some of the most successful artists and ventures emerged during the most challenging times. All we can do is tune out the noise and keep moving forward with our mission and intentions.
Whether you're an avid sailor, artist, entrepreneur, or anything in between, it takes courage and consistent actions to create and build something different and beyond normal expectations. Yet, whenever we hit a roadblock or challenge, remember, we can always adjust our sails to reach our destination.