Live Like An Artist
If you were told to produce your best work but that you would not be paid—or maybe you would, without any guarantee—most people would refuse outright. Yet an artist would accept the deal without hesitation. An artist loves the work more than the reward. For an artist, the idea of a reward appears only after the art is complete, as an afterthought of what to do with the creation.
Even if no one buys the work, the artist continues to create simply because he is in love with the craft. But this is not about art or artists. This is about doing the work without expecting anything in return. Our desire for specific rewards has blinded us to the shortcomings of our efforts. Almost all our effort today is directed toward the outcome we want, rather than toward elevating the quality of what we are doing.
We rarely consider the long-term consequences of our actions or the second-order effects that emerge from them. A road contractor builds uneven roads to maximise profits. A poorly constructed road can create bottlenecks, cause traffic jams, delay commutes, disrupt supply chains, and slow down ambulances. These are extreme examples, but the point stands: second- and third-order effects matter, even if the contractor chooses to ignore them.
It is impossible to fully visualise the butterfly effect caused by the smallest actions. We only know such effects exist. The only way to avoid negative consequences—or transform them into something beneficial—is to treat every action with integrity. When asked why one should do the right thing, my answer is simple: because it is the right thing to do. I believe in this principle. I try to act in ways that increase efficiency and remain ethically sound.
To me, it does not matter what the world is doing or what has been done to me. I evaluate each action objectively and ask one question: what needs to be done here? And then I do it. If someone harms me, I defend myself and may even retaliate. But if doing the right thing results in me getting hurt, I do not abandon integrity in my future actions. This is what I encourage others to follow as well.
This concept is difficult to accept if your worldview is shaped by what you can extract from the world. If your framework is built around maximising rewards, then the purpose and quality of your actions become irrelevant. We need to flip this switch and focus more on the quality of our actions while staying aligned with our goals. The rewards—big or small—will take care of themselves.
We need to live more like artists and less like businessmen. An artist constantly finds new ways to elevate his craft, discovers fresh perspectives, and reshapes his understanding of the work. But he never sacrifices quality for the sake of reward. Treat your life as a work of art, and you will fall in love with living.