Every Sunday I put out a blog post about topics related to my way of life, photography and personal development. I also publish a podcast twice a month in which I document my journey of building a creative business from scratch – a kind of business journal, so to speak.
When I get the stats come in a few days later and I can see how my output preferred I often read:
- 0 Views
- 0 Clicks
- 0 Subscribers
This hurts. I know that consistency is king, but it is discouraging when you read these numbers for weeks and months. Why bother, I ask myself?
From five years of shooting with models I have collected a couple of images that I am really proud of. Most of them are sitting on a hard drive collecting digital dust.
A friend of mine asked me: Have you ever considered to exhibit them?
I have. But at the moment it doesn’t make sense for me to do so. Why? I remember my high school years when I played in a band. We had put some songs together and I wanted to perform them in front of an audience so desperately. We asked our friends if we could play at their party, applied at local festivals and clubs. Finally, we managed to get a gig: We opened for a band that had already some following. That was the only gig we played.
Later in my life I tried to organize an art performance together with my wife in Berlin. To find a venue where we can perform wasn’t that hard it was only a matter of how much we are willing to spend. The hard work was to find people who were interested in what we were doing. We performed in front of 3 or 4 people sometimes. That sticked with me. And I think I am in the same position now. Still trying to build an audience.
It is a marathon – I heart that phrase a couple of times before. Those of you who are into running know this: The moment when you hit the wall, when you are willing to give up and everything you do doesn’t make sense anymore.
The only thing that helps me to push though these moments is a practice: The habit of showing up, not because I hope to get some reaction but because it is Sunday.