We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Robert John Kley. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Robert below.
Hi Robert, great to have you with us today and excited to have you share your wisdom with our readers. Over the years, after speaking with countless do-ers, makers, builders, entrepreneurs, artists and more we’ve noticed that the ability to take risks is central to almost all stories of triumph and so we’re really interested in hearing about your journey with risk and how you developed your risk-taking ability.
Stop thinking; don’t wait to follow what you feel in your heart. By the time your brain catches up and realizes what happened, it will be too late… you can work out the details then. Thinking too much about anything is paralyzing. When you take a risk, you open yourself up to making your dreams into a reality. Of course, there may be setbacks and failures, but you will never know until you take a chance. I can think back on some of the risks that I’ve taken that didn’t work out, and there have been plenty of them! Yes, they were disappointing at the time, but in retrospect, they’ve led me down the right paths to achieve my true potential as an artist. The only thing to be afraid of when it comes to failure is never having taken the chance to fail in the first place. Some of the best ideas, stories, films, art, inventions, etc., are buried with the people who were afraid to take a risk. Things may not happen as planned, or they may turn out better than you ever could have imagined. There are no guarantees, but you can be sure the only thing that will happen by not taking any risks is nothing.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Music has always been my first passion. I still remember my first bass guitar as a teenager. I would sit in my room with cassette tapes and listen for the parts to play along to my favorite bands. One morning, after a study hall in school, three kids came up to me in the hallway and said that they needed a bass player and since I was the only kid in school that had one I was going to be in their band. One of them wrote his number and address down on a piece of paper and said, “We are practicing on Saturday; see you then.” That weekend, I went, and I will never forget the first time playing together with other musicians. I can picture the neighbors listening to the racket we were making, and due to the noise complaints, I can’t imagine it sounding very good, but for us, it was magical. That began a love for music I still have to this day.
In my early 20s, I took a few random college classes and needed an elective, so I took photography. The first time I saw a print appear in the darkroom, I knew that was something I wanted to pursue. I loved photographing people and started doing headshots for friends, which led to working with various talent agencies. From there, it grew to photographing fashion editorials/portraits for magazines, commercial work, and even filming music videos. I’ve been taking photographs for more than half my life, and just when I start to think I’m getting good, I learn something else. There will always be something to learn, and I think that holds true with any art form. The one strange thing I’ve learned is that of all the photos I’ve taken, the ones I never took I always remember the most. I can still see them in my mind perfectly. I have found a great balance between both music and photography. They have equally taken me to places and have allowed me to achieve things I never thought possible. I can’t imagine not doing either of them.
I’ve recently discovered a new love for still-life photography, especially flowers. I enjoy the whole process, from the initial concept to the finished photo. I find it therapeutic looking through antique stores for the perfect vase, searching for the right flowers and learning new ways of arranging and composing. I can sit for hours listening to music creating them. It’s a quiet, solitary way to work, and in some aspects, I prefer that. Flowers grow, they bloom, and then they fade away very much like people, except without all of the nonsense in between. I only hope to capture them as beautifully in photographs as they are in real life.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
When I look back at the things I’ve learned that have helped me along the way, it would be hard to narrow it down to just a few. There are obvious technical and marketing skills needed for any successful artist, as well as constantly practicing your craft. Being patient and persistent is key in developing as well. That being said, there are three straightforward things I’ve learned many years ago that I try to remember every day. Never make a promise when you are happy, a decision when you are sad, or speak when you are angry. I’ve found living by those simple rules can save you a lot of unnecessary headaches. There have been many times I’ve been in a wonderful mood and agreed to do something that seemed like such a good idea at the time or have been sad about a situation where I thought that selling everything and moving to the middle of the forest was the only solution. I’ve also been mad enough to say things that as soon as the words have left my mouth, I’ve instantly regretted them. I still fall short of these things more often than not, and I still sometimes think moving to the forest wouldn’t be a bad idea, but it’s a work in progress. Just like I’m always learning and growing as an artist, I will always be learning and growing as a human as well.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
The one thing I have found that keeps me grounded when I start to feel overwhelmed is walking. I walk anywhere from 6 to 12 miles on any given day. Not only is it good for your overall health, but I’ve also found it’s even better for your mind. It’s the simplest thing to do. There have been times I’ve started a walk stressed about something, and by the time I was done, I couldn’t remember what I was upset about in the first place. I prefer walking at night after a long day. Over time, I’ve taught myself where all the constellations and planets are during the different times of the year. Looking at them really puts things into perspective. There is so much out there that we will never understand. We are all here for such a short time comparatively. I consistently ask myself if there really is a purpose for anything? I don’t think we will ever know the reasoning behind any of it, but if we are kind, creative, live simply, and have faith, we are much closer to knowing than we think.
Contact Info:
- Website:
- www.robertjohnkley.com / www.rjohnkley.com
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