Dear Artists:
If you’ve ever painted a painting, written a blog, bootstrapped a small business, mentored a student, volunteered for a non-profit, sung at an open-mic night, or shared your art in some way, shape or form, you’ve probably asked yourself ”does what I’m doing actually matter?”
My answer is an emphatic YES!
I’ve been writing a blog called Startups and Burritos for about nine months now. In these nine months I've only gotten a total of 29,656 of visits. By no means are these gaudy numbers. I’m certainly never going to become the next Seth Godin or make a penny from my blogging. So why keep doing it? Well, last month I got a couple of emails from readers that totally made my day. I got the satisfaction in knowing that something I created made a tiny, little dent in someone's universe. That's an incredible feeling. And for me, that's more that’s enough.
This one came from my friend, Brittany Graunke of Zealous Good.
Just wanted you to know, reading your blog post on mantras is homework for the ZG team! Read it last week on Startups and Burritos and it really made me think. Anyways – just a quick thanks for being awesome and having so many very helpful blog posts (in addition to being a cool, awesome person).
Have a great memorial day weekend!Britt
Just want to say thank you Ethan for being such an awesome source of inspiration and such a good person to boot – your example is keeping me chugging forward with hope in getting my business off the ground! I really appreciate it. Thanks for being so wonderful!
When you open yourself up and share your art with others, it may not always be readily apparent to you, but what you’re doing matters to someone. Keep doing it!
On the flip side, if you’re somebody who has enjoyed, appreciated, or benefitted from a piece of art that someone has shared with you, let them know how you feel. Chances are they had no idea their work had any impact, and your feedback will make their day.
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For further reading on this topic, check out Startup Metrics: Why Early Stage Startups Should Measure Hugs Instead of Revenue
