Rereading “Show Your Work!” by Austin Kleon

I first read Austin Kleon’s Show Your Work! in 2022. I re-read it recently, and the same content resonates with me even more.

With the current social media trends, I can’t help but feel everything is for monetization. You need to be strategic about what and when you post to make the most of the algorithm. And that makes me hesitant to even get started since I don’t think I can manage it with my busy lifestyle. The more strategies I learn, the more paralyzed I become.

Show Your Work! reminds me of the good old days when we mostly wrote to document our lives and/or share our passion with like-minded people. We were proud of being amateurs. We shared our learnings and supported those who shared the same hobbies.

I forgot I can still do the same today.

I can create just for fun and document my learnings for my own future reference. I should write for myself rather than for views/likes on social media. This is so much better for my mental health.

I will just create. Write about what I’ve done. Observe how much I grow. See how far I can go.

And if anyone participates in my journey along the way? That would be a delightful surprise.

Update on 2025-11-19: I love this book so much that I purchased another copy in Chinese :)