Trust your taste: why top creators follow feeling over formula
Rick Rubin argues that creativity lives in feeling and your own taste rather than rules, and Mel Robbins' examples, from Jamie Kern Lima listening to her knowing to The Alchemist's inner treasure, point the same way. It encourages creators to experiment and judge by their own response instead of chasing what others say works.
What guides creative work, according to Rick Rubin? Show answer
Feeling, not intellect. You look for a feeling of excitement, enthusiasm, interest or curiosity in yourself and follow it.
What does Rubin call the single most important skill for an artist? Show answer
Understanding how you feel in the face of other voices without second-guessing yourself, and owning those feelings.
What is the two-dishes test? Show answer
If you taste two dishes you usually know which you want to finish. Rubin uses that direct preference instead of guessing how something will perform on social media.
How does Rubin handle a promising idea in the studio? Show answer
He avoids discussing it in the abstract, makes an actionable suggestion, tries it, and then sees whether it moves toward or away from what they want.
How does Rubin describe rules in art? Show answer
As scaffolding to be chipped away as needed. Sometimes they help and sometimes they don't, and self-imposed limits can force new solutions.
Why does Rubin warn against trusting a method that worked before? Show answer
Because it is just a way that happened to work that time. He says the same of experts' advice, which is based on their lives and data points.
What is Jamie Kern Lima's idea of knowing, as Mel Robbins relays it? Show answer
A still, small inner voice or gut feeling. She says every moment comes down to whether you listen to it or to the no's from the outside world.
Where do Kern Lima and Rubin differ on self-doubt? Show answer
Kern Lima says self-doubt lies and the gut is never wrong. Rubin says doubt, used as a balancing tool on the work, can push it toward a masterpiece.
What happened when The Alchemist was first published? Show answer
It barely sold in Brazil and the publisher canceled the contract. A second publisher took it on and it went on to sell 65 million copies.
What does Rubin say about social media feedback? Show answer
It is neither right nor wrong, just more information to use or ignore. You can only control how you relate to what you make.
Why can not knowing be an advantage? Show answer
Rubin didn't know which rules he was breaking, and Sara Blakely didn't know trade shows existed, so both did things others wouldn't.
What limits do the sources place on trusting your taste? Show answer
It doesn't mean ignoring all input, it doesn't replace hard work or deadlines for finishing, and it is not a guarantee against failure.