Today, I spoke with Hugh MacLeod, who is a cartoonist and the author of Ignore Everybody. In this interview, Hugh briefly talks about his new book, how he got started drawing on the back of business cards, some creativity tips and how to inspire people with your ideas.
Hugh, can you explain the title of your book, “Ignore Everybody”?
I believe that nobody can tell you whether you’re idea is any good or not, especially in the beginning. All you can do is soldier on alone…. ignoring everybody.
What got you started drawing on the back of business cards and how did you turn it into a business?
I was sitting at a bar one day, and realized that I had forgotten to bring along my sketchbook. So I grabbed the next best ting available- some business cards. The rest is history…
A lot of people think that if you build something, people will just come. Why is this false?
It’s not always false. It’s not always true, either. But one should be prepared for either outcome.
What are your top three tips for being more creative in all that we do?
Three tips? Three nouns: Talent, discipline and stamina. Especially discipline and stamina.
How do we inspire other people with our ideas?
By executing on them. The more unlikely it is to succeed at the beginning, the more adversity that is overcome in the process, the greater the triumph, the more people who will be inspired.
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Hugh MacLeod is the author of Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity. He is a cartoonist and professional blogger, known for his ideas about how “Web 2.0″ affects advertising and marketing. After a decade of working as an advertising copywriter, Hugh started blogging at gapingvoid.com in 2001. He first started off just publishing his cartoons, but as time wore on he started blogging about his other main interest i.e. marketing. Since mid-2006 Hugh’s main occupation has been helping a small South African winery, Stormhoek “rise above the clutter” in the wine market by using Web 2.0 tools to get the word out.
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“Ignore Everybody” must include myself. Unfortunately, I’m the only one of the people I know, who tells me that my writing is worthless, at times. What to do? Show discipline and stamina and keep soldiering on in an out-of-mind experience…no, really. Thanks for this encouraging post.
Talent is the key, discipline would be the transmission, and stamina would be the engine as I see it. One thing missing. You ain’t going anywhere without passion. The whole vehicle of success has to be fueled by something.
Most people believe that passion is singular to one idea or topic. I don’t buy into that crap one bit. I believe if a person really looks at what they’re capable of, they can find passion in endeavor they attempt.
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I absolutely agree. Ignore Everybody, is an excellent piece of advice to go for what someone is dreaming to achieve. and thanks for the 3 tips: talent, discipline, stamina. those are easy to remember.
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It’s an interesting piece of advice, Ignore Everybody.
Really keen to track the progress of Stormhoek as it bears some similarities to my business with the same geographical and ‘physical’ product challenges