Creators Vs. Critics – The Happiness Gap

Go to any concert. Gather with any crowd and listen to a speech. Attend any book signing or art gallery opening.

And there you’ll find a lot of critics and very few creators.

You’ll always know who the creators are. They’re the people that are on the stage. They’re the people with their names on the dust jacket of the books. They’re the people whose signatures are at the bottom right corner of the paintings hanging on the wall.

And…unfortuanately, you’ll always know who the critics are.

They’re the people who can’t enjoy the event because they’re too busy finding fault with the creators and what they’ve created.

Critics are not happy in their criticism. They aren’t doing work that is inspired. They’re negative words won’t spur anyone to great heights of achievement. Their words won’t make anyone feel happy, loved, or uplifted.

So why do critics show up at events, just to tear down what is being done by the creators?

Here are a few thoughts.

The critic believes that his/her opinion is valuable and should be voiced. – The truth is, everyone has an opinion. There are more than 7 billion opinions on this planet. Because opinions are so common, they’re really not that valuable.
In their deluded mind, the critic can do better than the creator. – Not that they have tried to do better. They haven’t put in the time in front of a keyboard to write or endured thousands of hours of practice to get the music just right. They haven’t put themselves out there to be shot at by their critic buddies. But still, they are a legend in their own mind and think they know how to paint it better, write it better, sing it better, etc.
The critic’s upbringing and engrained viewpoints don’t allow them to fully appreciate the efforts of the creator. – This aspect is most often seen in the worlds of fine art and music. When someone is raised to appreciate the brush strokes and natural colors of traditional landscape oil paintings, they often balk at modern, conceptual art. In the music sphere, those who were brought up listening to one genre of music will likely have formed strong, negative opinions about other generes of music. In short, their deeply held opinions formed in their early years drive their criticism.
The critic’s jealousy won’t allow them to enjoy what the creator has produced. – Unfortunately, people generally think about themselves first. they look at the person speaking and say to themselves, “I could do that if I hadn’t given up on drama in highschool.” They look at a writer’s picture on the dust cover of a book jacket and think to themselves, “I can write too, but if I did write something, no one would publish my work.” They hear a singer and think, “I’ve got a good voice, I should be up there on stage instead of them.” — Jealousy is a powerful negative motivator for critics.
The critic doesn’t have the dedication to put in the 10,000 hours it takes to fine-tune their craft and become a creator. – Most of the musicians, artists, writers, and other creators in our world today were not overnight successes. However, nobody sees the hundreds of discarded canvases that weren’t good enough to sell. Nobody watches the budding musicians struggle through the endless hours of piano, guitar, and voice lessons. Nobody sits patiently for hours with the writer despondently staring at a blank page as he or she hopes for inspiration to strike. From the perspective of the critic, the creator’s success seems instant and undeserved – and is therefore worthy of their snide remarks and contempt.
The critic doesn’t have the courage to put themselves “out there”. – People in creative arts almost never have a problem with constructive criticism if the person with the instructive ideas can show them how it’s done. Creatives are used to being in classes, learning in lessons, and working with coaches. If you can get up on stage, pick up a paintbrush, or sit down to a keyboard and demonstrate how it can be done better, the creative is willing to listen. Why? Because they work each day to master their craft. Improvement is the name of the game. The problem with critics is they can’t demonstrate how it “ought to be done” because they don’t have the intestinal fortitude needed to put themselves in the spotlight. Ironically enough, they don’t want to be crticized. And so, instead of stepping up to the plate and showing the creator how to hit a homerun, they “boo” from the safety and anonymity of the cheap seats.

Of course, critics don’t reserve their unkind words and unhelpful attitude only for the fine arts. It really doesn’t matter what the subject is, they’re ready to complain about it. From the way the carpenter attached the railing to their front porch to the way their favorite football team is being coached this year, the critic is there to throw in thier two cents of uninformed nonsense.

Here’s the point.

You can be an unhappy critic, complaining about everthing that anyone else does. You can be grumpy and find fault. Or, you can put in the work, create something of beauty and value, and step out into the spotlight.

Creators are happy because they have the drive and privilege to create. They get to showcase what they do best.

I guess the sour-faced critic showcases what they do best as well.

Until next time, have a happy day.

The Happy and Helpful Podcast: https://anchor.fm/jason-homan/episodes/The-Happiness-Gap-Between-Creators-and-Critics-e17daue