Show your work

January, 2026

Show your work by Austin Kleon. The format is different from other books I have read. It is engaging and has fun graphics. While I'm not agreeing with all of this points, author gives actionable advice. I added my notes and highlights below. While I followed original chapter sequence for my notes, and I changed original chapter names to something that make sense to me.

Table of Contents

Use your voice

  • Be an amateur
    • The enthusiast pursue something purely in the spirit of love
    • They have little regard to become successful or fame, because they have little to loose
  • Moving from mediocre to good happens in steps. It happens as a result of doing something. If you don’t do anything you will not be good.
  • The best way to get started on the path to sharing your work is to think about what you want to learn, and make a commitment to learning it in front of others.
  • Only way to find your voice is to use it
  • Death is inevitable, think about it to get a perspective on things. Reading obituaries is a good way to remind about death

Pay attention to your process

  • Share your creative process with your audience
  • Starting out this is not easy, you have to have something to show. It means, you have to make stuff
  • First peace is scoop up residue of the work process and shape them into something interesting
  • It is about keeping track on what is going on around you

Own your content

  • Allocate more time to doing work than sharing work
  • What are you working on?
  • Share something every day, it could be an email, blog post, tweet, or YouTube post
    • The medium of sharing doesn’t matter, as long as you are sharing
  • Ask so what every time you publish your work
  • Ask yourself, “Is this helpful? Is it entertaining? Is it something I’d be comfortable with my boss or my mother seeing?”
  • Have your own space in the web, something that you control

Attribute others work properly

  • When you share something, if you didn’t create it properly attribute it
  • Attribution
    • What is this
    • Who created it & when did they created it
    • Why we should care
    • How did you found it
    • Where can we find more things like it
  • If you came across something and can’t give proper credits, don’t share it
  • Create a link to the original creator, make other peoples’ lives easier
  • When you find something you enjoy, celebrate them. Don’t feel guilty about things you enjoy

Tell Good Stories

  • The most important part of the story is the structure
  • Sometimes we have to do a lot of cropping and editing to make our story
  • Emma Coats fairy tale structure
    • “Once upon a time, there was _____. Every day, _____. One day, _____. Because of that, _____. Because of that, _____. Until finally, _____.”
  • Take a look into Dan’s Harmon’s story circle
  • Tell the truth about yourself and tell it with dignity and respect

Teach what you know

  • They (Franklin BBQ) explained that the technique of barbecue is actually very simple, but it takes years and years to master.
  • Teaching doesn’t mean you will get an instant competition
  • The minute you learn something, turn around and teach it to others. Share your reading list.
  • Teaching people doesn’t subtract value from what you do, it actually adds to it.

Talk about stuff you love

  • As every writer knows, if you want to be a writer, you have to be a reader first.
  • These artists acknowledge that good work isn’t created in a vacuum, and that the experience of art is always a two-way street, incomplete without feedback.
  • If you want fans, you have to be a fan first. If you want to be accepted by a community, you have to first be a good citizen of that community.
  • Make stuff you love and talk about stuff you love and you’ll attract people who love that kind of stuff. It’s that simple.

Learn to take a punch

  • Don’t define your identity with your work. it is something you do and not who you are
  • When you put your work out to the world you will get a lot of criticism, don’t take them personally
  • Consider turning off comments and let them contact you directly

Be ambitious

  • Don’t be jealous when the people you like do well—celebrate their victory as if it’s your own.
  • “Like This? Buy me a Coffee”
  • This is a very simple transaction, which is the equivalent of a band passing a hat during a gig—if people are digging what you do, they’ll throw a few bucks your way.
  • Have a mailing list
  • Be ambitious, keep yourself busy

Stick Around

  • The people who get what they’re after are very often the ones who just stick around long enough. It’s very important not to quit prematurely.
  • “In our business you don’t quit,” says comedian Joan Rivers. “You’re holding on to the ladder. When they cut off your hands, hold on with your elbow. When they cut off your arms, hold on with your teeth. You don’t quit because you don’t know where the next job is coming from.”
  • You can’t plan on anything, you can go about your work
  • Some time we have to walk away completely from our work to avoid burn out
    • Commute
    • Exercise
    • Nature