Gifted Underachievers

After a hectic few weeks (lifetime, really) the Gifted Underachievers gave in to their underachieverness and are taking a week off for calm reflection.
But with soooooo much wonderful content over our TWO YEARS!!!!!! we couldn’t leave a total void.
Our interview with wildly achieving Burlington, Vermont, artist Kath Montstream (first aired on October 7, 2024) was a ton of fun and filled with lots of wonderful stuff:
02:00 Resilience and persistence
05:20 Art as savior
08:02 Becoming an artist - 10,000 hours
12:00 Marketing, shows, and feeding the dragon
15:03 Mentorship is instrumental
20:42 Not to mention courage
21:31 Failing is part of the process
25:46 Inspiration needs to find you working
27:14 Getting into your process & working to music
32:28 The Red Hot Chilly Dippers!
34:42 Pechakucha and photographing dips
36:15 [A merch bargain is struck]
37:49 The power of personal marketing & current show, The Color of Snow
47:27 Business model, commissions, freedom, and the value of experience
53:02 Mother Mary in prayer
55:03 Kath’s not-so-delusional ambition
57:08 Exploring the next thing that hits you over the head
We will be back with fresh new content next week!
In the meanwhile, Kath will add light to your day.
Sincerely,
The Underachievers
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Here in the GU Clubhouse, we’ve gleaned and gathered incredible wisdom from our creative guests, whom we fondly call the Gifted Achievers. We’re putting this wisdom into a series of handy guides so listeners can study how to make a good living doing what you love. Click the coffee cup below and you’re on the list! The first 20 coffee angels will get a free guide!
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For Further Exploration:

The Color of Snow, Kath Montstream and her daughter Charlotte Dworshak’s exhibit in honor of Kath’s dad, is at Montstream Studios til November 2, 2024: https://www.kmmstudio.com/129 St. Paul Street, Burlington, VT.
So many great works!


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit giftedunderachievers.substack.com

James comes out of the marketing wing of the Gifted Underachiever clubhouse feeling disillusioned. The marketers are coming up with catchphrases, but they’re not producing anything. He wants to know, “What makes my creative work matter?”
Pat can sympathize, but she’s got no real answers except that while you’re creating something, it has to matter to you.
We do many projects that never achieve monetary success—that’s the nature of the industry. But Pat believes that the project has meaning, as long as it matters to you while you’re making it. You just need to keep creating things (and sometimes find another way to pay the bills). Once your project is out in the world, you discover whether it matters to others only if it finds its audience, makes money, wins awards, or gets some other kind of attention in the marketplace.
We talk about the continuity of themes throughout a career and other ways you can look at the meaning of your creative work.
Questions for Listeners:
* What themes keep surfacing in your creative work?
* Can you attribute them to anything in particular, in your past or just an obsession you have?
* Do you know of any famous creatives whose projects are wildly different in theme or content?
Buy us a Coffee and Win a Book
Here in the GU Clubhouse, we’ve gleaned and gathered incredible wisdom from our creative guests, whom we fondly call the Gifted Achievers. We’re putting this wisdom into a series of handy guides so listeners can study how to make a good living doing what you love. Click the coffee cup below and you’re on the list! The first 20 coffee angels will get a free guide!

For Further Exploration:
Cherry Jeffs: How to identify themes in your art to create meaningful work:
https://www.cherryjeffs.com/discover-themes-in-your-creative-work#
Orla Stevens: How to look at seemingly separate projects and uncover connections in your art:
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If you’re not already a subscriber, we’d love to have you in the GU Clubhouse. Free, no spam, unsubscribe any time.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit giftedunderachievers.substack.com

Yes, even bright, well-intentioned people can display an uncharacteristic ability to ask dumb questions. We do it at work and at home. (And if you do that of your teenaged children, you know what the punishment is for a dumb question.)
In fact, at one of James’s first ghostwriting gigs, the editor’s biggest question was “would you be afraid to ask dumb questions?”
James said, NO! And he was hired.
In this segment, the gifted underachievers discuss why they (and every creative) must be fearless about posing the questions that other people might think are not very bright.
Questions for Listeners:
* What is the cringiest question you ever asked?
* As a creative, how do you fearlessly ask questions that might seem obvious?
Buy us a Coffee and Win a Book
Here in the GU Clubhouse, we’ve gleaned and gathered incredible wisdom from our creative guests, whom we fondly call the Gifted Achievers. We’re putting this wisdom into a series of handy guides so listeners can study how to make a good living doing what you love. Click the coffee cup below and you’re on the list! The first 20 coffee angels will get a free guide!
For Further Exploration:
Dumb Questions for Artists
Thanks for listening to Gifted Underachievers! This post is public so feel free to share it.

If you’re not already a subscriber, we’d love to have you in the GU Clubhouse. Free, no spam, unsubscribe any time.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit giftedunderachievers.substack.com

Well, we’re not proud of this, but here in the Gifted Underachiever Clubhouse we’re starting to believe we might never blossom into our full creative potential.
James has delusions about being a giant bead head (an artificial nymph fly-fishers use). After all, if you’re going to be a nymph, you might as well be a giant fake one.
In this short segment, we ask ourselves, do we have what it takes to become butterflies? Or are we just immature bugs forever?
Questions for Listeners:
* Do you think we’re being pessimistic about our creative potential?
* Or are we truly nymphs?

Buy us a Coffee and Win a Book
Here in the GU Clubhouse, we’ve gleaned and gathered incredible wisdom from our creative guests, whom we fondly call the Gifted Achievers. We’re putting this wisdom into a series of handy guides so listeners can study how to make a good living doing what you love. Click the coffee cup below and you’re on the list! The first 20 coffee angels will get a free guide!
For Further Exploration:
The Prince Nymph
The New Fly Fisher – a life of nymphing
Thanks for listening to Gifted Underachievers! This post is public so feel free to share it.

If you’re not already a subscriber, we’d love to have you in the GU Clubhouse. Free, no spam, unsubscribe any time.



This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit giftedunderachievers.substack.com

Trump and Republicans decimated funding for the arts in the US with immediate impacts to creatives. This is a loss not just to artists and other creatives but society as a whole. We are a not a better country for this.
And yet, creatives are doing what we do best: Adapt.
There are signs that a range of creative businesses are adapting their business strategies and planning to adjust to this loss of funding and, perhaps, make these businesses stronger in the long run. This could, too, lead to a stronger arts and creative economy.
Let’s do more than hope. Let’s be part of the solution.
Questions for Listeners:
* Did you lose a US-based grant?
* How are you adapting?
Buy us a Coffee and Win a Book
Here in the GU Clubhouse, we’ve gleaned and gathered incredible wisdom from our creative guests, whom we fondly call the Gifted Achievers. We’re putting this wisdom into a series of handy guides so listeners can study how to make a good living doing what you love. Click the coffee cup below and you’re on the list! The first 20 coffee angels will get a free guide!
For Further Exploration:
Why Most Arts Fundraising Fails—and What Actually Works
How Artists Break Free of the Starving Artist Myth
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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit giftedunderachievers.substack.com