Proof to Product

444 | Don't Call It Art with Austin Kleon

June 2, 2026·32 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Today I am joined by best selling author Austin Kleon, the author of Steal like an Artist, Show Your Work, Keep Going, and his newest book, Don't Call It Art.This conversation feels timely because I've been hearing from so many people lately who are just feeling creatively exhausted. They've built businesses around something that they once loved making, but somewhere along the way the creativity started to be replaced by running the business.Those production schedules, the marketing plans, inventory, emails. All the things, right? Austin and I talk about that tension that a lot of people feel in this episode. How easy it is to lose the playfulness and the curiosity that got us into business in the first place.We talk about the pressure to always be professional, the fear of looking stupid or not knowing everything, and why staying curious actually matters so much as we grow our businesses and ourselves as creative leaders.We also talk about creating like children do. Experimenting, playing, making bad art on purpose, working with your hands, getting outside, taking walks, journaling.There's a really interesting conversation here about how creativity doesn't always come from sitting and thinking harder.Sometimes it comes from movement, from changing your environment, from using your hands or stepping away long enough for your brain to reconnect the dots in the background.Today’s episode is brought to you by our Proof to Product resource library. It’s where you can get your hands on our free resources to help you start, streamline and scale your business in your own way and at your own pace.GET FREE ACCESSYou can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/444Quick Links:Free Wholesale Audio SeriesFree Resources LibraryFree Email Marketing for Product MakersPTP LABSPaper Camp

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