Creators, Performers, and Art

In my posts, I talk a lot about the two different kinds of producers: creators and performers. And while I have a sense of what these two terms entail, I am still not fully clear on how to explicitly define them. To make things more complicated, there are examples of both that (at least short-term) are more readily classified as consumers.

Of those who ultimately produce more than they consume, the most important are the artists. However, art is difficult to define as well. It is not inherent to any medium or activity, but is possible anywhere that people are involved. Art is the capturing of the utterly human. It requires emotional labor, cannot be done [directly] for money, and resonates with something timeless and unifying in the human spirit.

It is by way of this definition of art that we can seek to find the border between creating and performing. Creator-artists are inspired to capture the human spirit in their art. Performer-artists are driven to use what has been captured in new and innovative ways. Whatever a creator captures well has the power to change the game—to level the playing field. Performers seek to be the first to understand the change and its advantages—to be the first to unlock the next level.

Between them there is a shift in the balance of focus between composition and execution. Creators concern themselves with the "what?" of their respective fields. They seek to change or create new forms—to redefine. While performers concern themselves with the "how?" of their chosen game. They seek existing knowledge about the truth of reality in order to fully utilize its functions.

The point of discussing these two terms is not to say one is better than the other. Quite the contrary, we need both equally. It is ideal to say that we ought to work in creator-performer duos (one-to-one), but the reality is that no two artists are equal in productive output, and therefore it is more realistic to think in terms of small groups including balanced productive output.

Ultimately, the point is to help you find your purpose by first identifying your drive. When you know which type determines your motivation and to what extent, you can more effectively find your fit in society with all its available prosperity.