Why Bad Ideas Matter (and Amazon Best Sellers Don’t)
How failure, book sales, and success connect.
Creative Sparks with Kevin
Quick, no pressure insights and inspiration to help you push past perfectionism, stay true to your vision and market your work authentically. Delivered weekly on Fridays.
Stop Worrying About Being an Amazon Best Seller
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
One of the biggest issues with the Amazon best seller list is there are so many categories you can rank fairly easily. You can also make your book free which games the system into getting you to the top. But do they these things really help for book sales or help you make a living selling your books? Wrote by Me helps writers by allowing them to directly sell to and connect with their customers.
There’s No Such Thing as a Bad Idea
Love the thought of creating a Bad Idea Generator. It’s not only fun to see what terrible ideas it spits out, it gets you thinking about why they are bad ideas. It’s also a great way for Roof Rider Design Co to get attention because I had no idea who they were before finding this tool.
Here are some of the bad ideas I got:
Blanket that always falls off
Elevator that only stops halfway
Mirror that swaps your nose size
Why Your Dream Job Doesn’t Always Stay a Dream
Kayla Kleinman was working at her dream job for Bookshop.org as a social media manager, but like many of us burned out. So now she’s documenting her journey as a full-time content creator. Listen to this unfiltered podcast episode about her decision.
If you’ve ever felt burnt out, or wanted to make a big change in your life, you can definitely relate to Kayla’s journey. You can check out parts two and three of her journey to see what’s happened since she quit.
Nonprofit Mission: Impact
I am part of a wonderful group called Feminist Podcasters Collective, run by the wonderful Becky Mollenkamp, where we promote member podcasts. This week we are spotlighting Nonprofit Mission Impact hosted by Carol Hamilton. The podcast is for nonprofit leaders who want to build a better world without becoming a martyr to the cause. If you run a nonprofit or know someone who does, check it out!
In Case You Missed It
This Week’s Creativity Card
Success means something different to everyone. It even means something different to ourselves over time. Don’t look towards others for your definition of success. Look inwards and define it for yourself.
My response
Success is such a funny thing. The goal posts are always changing and we often fail to realize how much success we’ve had.
When I was just out of college, my definition of success was to be able to own a house and have a loving spouse. Now that I have those things, my definition of success is to work for myself and build a lasting legacy of helping others. I’m sure in a few years it will change again.
The thing about success is, we are constantly working towards our goals but not celebrating them nearly enough. Every time we make progress on our goals we should celebrate. It doesn’t have to be anything big, even a nice dinner at a restaurant you don’t usually go to would work. Thanks Amie McNee for that idea!
Just look back through your past and notice at all the progress you’ve made. You ARE successful. Don’t let failure get you down. Everyone faces roadblocks. Those who move on despite those obstacles are the ones who find success.
How has your definition of success changed? What is your current idea of success? Let me know in the comments!
💡Fun Fact: By the way, I have a digital deck with over 600 creative prompts covering everything from curiosity to burnout recovery. Want to help test more? Let me know in the comments!
If you have any ideas for creative sparks leave them in the comments. I’d love to hear what’s sparking your creativity right now.
Until next time, stay motivated and stay creative.
— Kevin
My definition of success changes a lot, whether that's good or not, I don't know. As a younger man, I thought that monetary riches would 'sort me out' and then I could do things that I love, but instead, that kept me stuck. There is so much info out there that defines success for us that we forget what we actually want to pursue. So for me now, I want to do art full time, whether that's through a combo of different types of income to support, I'm now open to that. Like Shagun Singh has been saying, all artists' paths differ, and one artist might have a part-time job, while the other might solely rely on grants for income. I've never thought of grants to provide income!
So, to sum up, success to me is spending my work week doing what I love, so I can have headspace to be with the people I love, fully! (Currently, my day job zaps my energy).
Thanks, Kevin, great post!
Thanks so so much for the shout out!