Love this essay from Adi Shankar. Fresh POV, undeniable truths, real motivation and inspired perspective.
An excerpt:
Understand and Believe that Art is Important
Art gives our lives context. It helps us understand the culture that makes us who we are. And, if you are lucky, one day you may be able to shape the culture that influenced you. If you claim to be an artist, but you’re motivated by money… You’re a douche.Do What You Love. Period.
Friends, parents, educational institutions, and marketing companies all seem to really enjoy telling people what they should want out of life. Fuck them. Figure out what you want and do that. Don’t sacrifice your integrity early on for a paycheck. It’s your life, and you are beholden to no one. Living your life according to what’s cool at the moment is the ultimate form of servitude.Hint: If treading water doesn’t feel like drowning, you’re not doing what you love.
Don’t Be Discouraged by People Who Don’t Believe
A fatal flaw in the human condition is that even if there is a great likelihood that something is true, we don’t want to believe it. A potentially fatal flaw for many creative people is to be brought down by the doubts of others. People without vision will likely never believe that things can change. But once it happens, no matter how great the tectonic shift, they are quick to accept this new reality as the one true reality. Anyone who has ever set out to do something even slightly outside the norm has been mocked, questioned, and ridiculed. Realize that people’s doubts aren’t a reflection on you, your abilities, or your ultimate outcome. They are just upset at their own lack of imagination and inability to step out of their comfort zone, and you become a walking reminder of those insecurities. Ignore the haters.
read the whole thing here:
Frankly, My Dear Starlet... 
Reblogged this on Operation: Hollywood.
“There come a time in your life when you gotta stand up! Reach for the sky. Don’t loose, try, cause you can’t give up. There ‘ll be some fakers, there’ll be haters, you’ll see. When it gets hard remember you are the one they see. You are a burning star, you give what you want. Just keep on shining, keep on rising, remember you are a burning star. You have the fire, you got what it takes, rising through the sky, don’t let them deny it, they are the liars, keep reaching higher. Don’t let them hold you, they don’t even know you, they just want break you down to make you give up. Make them into believers. Follow your dreams, world is your kingdom”. From the song “Burning star”. Or just to say things faster: Navy Seals motto “the only easy day was yesterday”! INVICTUS 😉 trust your skills! Ps All true but sometimes we also would need a support. No man is an isle. And it may be hard and hurt to keep standing alone. We can’t always fight. So maybe before cutting people away from our life we could give it a try and have a talk. Follow your instinct and never believe what you are told, but double check 🙂