The Dare Dreamer Movement by Julene Fleurmond

On DreaminSoul.com I interviewed Tony Snipes, a visual artist gives advice to other artists on discovering their creative purpose…

Author, speaker and ministry leader Tony Snipes helps today’s gifted artisans answer questions about their purpose and creative calling through his initiatives Art Lessons From God and Kreative Kingdom.

“What is it that you love doing that you wouldn’t even have to have anybody pay you for… That’s your passion…the beauty of it would be that if you’re pursuing that and you’re getting paid for it then it’s not even like work.” – Tony Snipes

Be sure to check out the resource links at the end of the interview including a free download of Tony’s audio resource “How To Identify Your Creative Calling: Your CALLING, Your CAREER, Your JOB…What’s The Difference?”

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Most everyone has asked these questions:

• Who am I?
• Why am I here?
• What should I be doing?

Artists in particular, from painters to musicians, may ask these questions regarding their gifts:

• Who am I as an artist?
• Why do I have this talent?
• What does God want me to do with it?

Tony Snipes, a gifted artist himself and founder of Kreative Kingdom, Inc. a non-profit faith-based art initiative, began asking these questions and created a resource to help other artists discover their creative purpose.

Tony’s project, Art Lessons from God delves into these questions of gifting and calling. The blog, workshops, books and other resources were created with the goal of helping artists and designers discover God’s purpose and plan for their artistic talent. Watch Tony introduce the site below:

Though the site is targeted toward visual artists it has much insight that could inspire artists of any type from writers and performers to musicians and filmmakers. Many of the topics explored can apply to a variety of arts, like “Anointed versus Talented: What’s the Difference?” to “Discovering a “God” idea vs a “Good” idea.”

Often in our society we acknowledge the “how” regarding talents of individuals but may not always consider the deeper questions involved with “why”. In this interview Tony Snipes discusses his background in the visual arts and gives advice to other artists in figuring out their “why” and God’s purpose for them:

Dream in Soul: Hi Tony, thanks for speaking to me today. Can you tell us a little about who you are: What is your background in art and your profession?

Tony Snipes: Well prior to going into graphic design and illustration I have been drawing and painting all of my life but especially kind of training myself to draw and sketch from my comic books as a kid. So I did a lot of drawing back then, and am professionally trained as a graphic designer – graphic design and illustration…that’s pretty much my professional background with art…

Visit my website Dream in Soul (www.dreaminsoul.com) for more updates and inspiration, and check out the latest posts from the site below:

DreaminSoul.com – Inspiration for the Spirit and Soul

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The world was changed by this amazing “visioneer” and entrepreneur. The fact that I’m typing this on my MacBook, and that Steve Jobs’ journey to starting Apple was one of the stories I was taught in my business class as a teen, remind me of the ways I’ve been impacted by his innovation as well.

I’m inspired by the words he shared at the 2005 Stanford Commencement Address:

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life…”
– Steve Jobs – Click Here for the Entire Speech Transcript

Also one of my favorites, the text to one of Apple’s most popular commercials and manifestos:

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. 

The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.

 About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They invent. They imagine. They heal. They explore. They create. They inspire. They push the human race forward.

 Maybe they have to be crazy.



How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels? 

We make tools for these kinds of people. 

While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” -Apple, Inc.

Corbin Bleu has been one of my favorite actors and performers since I was a teen watching him in High School Musical (you may even say I developed a slight crush back then – but I digress;). I love his approach to his work and how he doesn’t just label himself as a dancer, singer or actor but as an artist.

Here’s a quote I was inspired by from a recent interview he did after his stint at the Hollywood Bowl’s “Hairspray,” talking about music and how it connects us, and his advice to aspiring performers:

“I’ll never understand why…we can’t all feel free to sing whether good, bad, trained voice or not. When it comes to a profession, yes we should want the best of the best voices. But our society has made us feel as though if you don’t sing well, you shouldn’t.

“I recently visited Fiji and I experienced one of the most incredible things. Every person in the country will sing to you. They have native songs that everyone knows.

“For example there is a goodbye song, and every place I left in Fiji everybody sang this song to see us off. Music and singing are such inspirational and freeing tools. Everyone should use them!

“Words of wisdom for aspiring performers? Til the day we die, we are always learning. Who we become depends on how we apply what we’ve learned to better our lives. As performers, our position is to know and portray the lives of others. So the amount we can learn is multiplied.”

From an interview on Playbill.com

I’ve been taking part in CreativeLIVE‘s free online streaming courses, in topics raging from photography to Photoshop, for about a year now, and have continually been inspired! The latest course “Taking Care of Business” was taught by esteemed photographer Tamara Lackey who has paved a way with her photography studio, and who shared techniques for running a successful business and branding your uniqueness. You can watch the beginning of the course above to get a feel of it, and if you need direction in your own creative business, purchase the full course on the CreativeLIVE site.

I took in the course, pen in hand, scribbling down notes and pieces of creative wisdom. My favorite parts were the discussions about being yourself in business and presenting what makes you unique. Here are snippets of my notes below:

– Defining you is one of the hardest (but valuable) things you can do for your business
• What are you drawn to?
• What makes your soul shrivel inside? What makes you feel empty inside? Find someone else to outsource to
• What have you always thought that you could do that you haven’t?
• What are you really good at?
• When you’re about to do something but don’t because you’re afraid of how people will think of you, just do it. People will see you authentically! They’ll say, “Oh, there you are!”
• How much of you is about what other people think about you?

– The true entrepreneur is a doer not just a dreamer

– The War of Art
• A child does not always stop to think, be more childlike in your work
• Everybody faces resistance – especially artists – resistance tries to keep them from creating – wasting time

– “Don’t compromise yourself, you’re all you’ve got.” – Janis Joplin
– Your unique vision – not necessarily your strengths but your quirkiness – that’s what will draw people to you.

I really enjoyed this interview with beauty, fashion and celebrity photographer Matthew Jordan Smith which was part of the course, and filmed for Tamara’s reDefine Show, featuring creative people who are following their passions:

“Make sure you’re loving what you’re doing or you won’t stick with it…”
“You’ve gotta get out there and experience life and find your inspiration. When you get that and put what inspires you into your work that’s why nobody can copy your style, because your style comes from your heart and what inspires you…”

“…Once you’re in the mode of doing what you’re fearful of doing, the butterflies go away and it’s the best feeling ever…” – Matthew Jordan Smith

More About Tamara Lackey
Tamara Lackey is a renowned professional photographer, innovative entrepreneur, author, and web show personality. Her authentic lifestyle photography, from children’s portraits to celebrity portraits, is praised within her industry and published internationally. Tamara’s work has been featured in dozens of media outlets including Vogue, O – The Oprah Magazine, Town & Country, Parenting Magazine, Food & Wine, Men’s Journal, Professional Photographer Magazine, Rangefinder Magazine, NBC’s The Martha Stewart Show, ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, PBS’ Need to Know and NBC’s The Today Show.

Combining artistry with spontaneous authenticity, Tamara’s new web series, the reDefine Show, examines the inspiring stories of top-tier creative artists who make it work. Tamara’s interview style showcases her abiding interest in real conversations that share practical tips, innovative methods, and previews of the newest and most useful technologies on the market.

Visit Tamara Lackey’s Website

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars, to change the world.”
— Harriet Tubman

Love this quote; Harriet Tubman was one woman yet had so much impact on history and our world – proof of what just one dreamer and doer can do. What are we waiting for?

This design is available as a T-shirt or print from my Envibrance Dream Creations Store. Click here to visit the shop…