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Copying is about reverse-engineering.

Austin Kleon

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Austin Kleon
Age: 41
Born: 1983
Born: June 16
Author
Musician
Visual Artist
Writer
Ohio
United States
Reverse
Copying
Engineering

More quotes by Austin Kleon

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Find the most talented person in the room, and if it's not you, go stand next to him. Hang out with him. Try to be helpful. If you ever find that you're the most talented person in the room, you need to find another room.
Austin Kleon
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Become a documentarian of what you do.
Austin Kleon
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Do good work and share it with people.
Austin Kleon
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We're always being told 'find your voice.' When I was younger, I never really knew what this meant. I used to worry a lot about voice, wondering if I had my own. But now I realize that the only way to find your voice is to use it. It's hardwired, built into you. Talk about the things you love. Your voice will follow.
Austin Kleon
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The more good ideas you collect, the more you can choose from to be influenced by.
Austin Kleon
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Not everybody will get it. People will misinterpret you and what you do. They might even call you names. So get comfortable with being misunderstood, disparaged, or ignored -- the trick is to be too busy doing your work to care.
Austin Kleon
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When people give advice, they're really just talking to themselves in the past.
Austin Kleon
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Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star, don't ever use any of those terms in your bio. Ever.
Austin Kleon
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Inertia is the death of creativity
Austin Kleon
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The minute you learn something, turn around and teach it to others.
Austin Kleon
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Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend some time in another land, among people that do things differently than you. Travel makes the world look new, and when the world looks new, our brains work harder.
Austin Kleon
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Marriage is two people in love standing in the same bathroom
Austin Kleon
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Don't worry about doing research. Just search.
Austin Kleon
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Eat breakfast. Do some push-ups. Go for long walks. Get plenty of sleep.
Austin Kleon
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If you’re worried about giving your secrets away, you can share your dots without connecting them.
Austin Kleon
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So go on, get angry. But keep your mouth shut and go do your work.
Austin Kleon
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Enjoy your obscurity while it lasts.
Austin Kleon
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The artist is a collector. Not a hoarder, mind you, there's a difference: Hoarders collect indiscriminately, artists collect selectively. They only collect things that they really love.
Austin Kleon
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Be boring. (It’s the only way to get work done.)
Austin Kleon
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Amateurs know that contributing something is better than contributing nothing.
Austin Kleon