Taking Jobs You Love Vs. Jobs That Pay

“To labor in the arts for any reason other than love is prostitution.”
— Steven Pressfield, The War of Art

A friend and I were recently discussing artistic integrity. I had taken a job that paid well even though it didn’t feed me creatively at all. I wasn’t struggling with the decision — I had come to the conclusion that as long as a well-paying job is relatively easy and doesn’t take too much time away from passion projects, I’ll take on as many as I need to. His response was somewhat in agreement, though it made me think (as this person’s responses are apt to do). He said this:

Artistic integrity is a luxury granted to people who have the option of having it.

I had been thinking of artistic integrity in terms of just integrity, but that’s not true. Not needing to compromise your morality to do your work, I believe, is a right. Artistic integrity is a privilege.

Now, for the sake of expanding the discussion, let’s get away from thinking in terms of art and artists and think more generally in terms of creative freedom. After all, when discussing “artistic integrity,” isn’t that what we’re really talking about?

When can you have creative freedom?

Short answer: When you earn it.

People, especially young artists and entrepreneurs, like to look at superstars and successful multi-hyphenates as role models. I’ve seen plenty of amateurs who wanted legacies and empires before they had any clout or success whatsoever. It’s fantastic to have role models like that; HOWEVER, what gets lost is the fact that those superstars started within the system. Often this meant taking jobs they didn’t want.

“Before he did Born on the 4th of July, Tom Cruise did Top Gun. [Tom] Hanks fucked a fish before he did Forrest Gump…”
— Ari Gold, Entourage

Beyoncé can drop a surprise album and know it will do well… because she’s Beyoncé. Jackie Castro (a new artist for whom I’ve had the pleasure of doing some brand strategy) can’t just drop a full album without any promotion and have it go to the top of the charts. She’s not at Beyoncé level yet. However, the reason Beyoncé is able to do that is…