The Art of Asking: How I learned to stop worrying and let people help
And so you will take the coffee, because the truth of the matter is that your acceptance of the gift IS the gift. And if you’re not in a hurry, you will also draw the barista a picture, or draw a picture for his friend who’s a huge fan, or tell her about the Ben Folds song.
Amanda Palmer • The Art of Asking: How I learned to stop worrying and let people help
We tried to set up an arm of The Brigade in every city; you just had to volunteer over email—to do basically anything—and I’d grant you a guest-list space. We paid with the usual currency we had on hand: T-shirts, CDs, backstage beer, shout-outs from stage, tickets, love. I announced any local shows or art openings from stage if a member of The
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Every artist and entrepreneur I know has a story of a mentor, teacher, or unsung patron who loaned them money, space, or some kind of strange, ass-saving resource. Whatever it took.
Amanda Palmer • The Art of Asking: How I learned to stop worrying and let people help
After dinner, Indiana drove me to my ninja gig, which I’d been twittering and texting into existence for four hours straight: I’d twittered back then texted the guy who knew the bar owner who was keen to host the gig, I’d twittered then texted the person who was willing to loan a keyboard, and I’d twittered everybody in the world to please tell
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It was about the value coming from the taker of the flower, the hearer of the song, the heart of the beholder. Being painted white and standing on a box, the crowdsurfing, the Kickstarter, ringing a stranger’s doorbell in the middle of the night: I no longer see these things as risk. I see them as acts of trust. I think the real risk is the choice
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Not signing or hanging out after a show is like taking someone home for a one-night stand, having passionate sex with them, and then watching them, from the bed, as they get dressed and leave right after the orgasm. I need the postcoital cuddle, the bit where you spend the night spooning, looking into each other’s eyes with a confirmation that,
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THINKING OF A NINJA GIG AT TED! WHO’S GOT IDEAS?
Amanda Palmer • The Art of Asking: How I learned to stop worrying and let people help
I have no interest in Doing It Myself. I’m much more interested in getting everybody to help me. I think a better definition might be UWYC: “Use What You Can.
Amanda Palmer • The Art of Asking: How I learned to stop worrying and let people help
Early the next morning, I hurried back to fix them all breakfast before they drove off to the next tour stop.