Art is often criticised for seeming too easy, too obvious, too replicable. “If I even half-think I could make that, why should I care that someone else did?”

But this way of thinking misses the point. The value of art doesn’t lie in the difficulty of the process. It lies in the fact that the piece was created at all.

For some reason, taking action is undervalued when it comes to making art. There’s a broad belief that idea generation is the hardest part. But this isn’t true. People have millions of creative ideas every day, but less than one percent ever come into existence. Just think about all the concepts you’ve had bouncing around your mind for years without ever acting upon them.

In this sense, completion is the miracle.

Here’s why powerful art feels familiar: the strongest ideas are designed to be accessible. They’re supposed to make us question whether we could have made them ourselves. This isn’t a weakness, it’s their memetic power.

This is the difference between resonance and recognition. Recognition says “I’ve seen this before.” Resonance says “I’ve felt this my whole life.” Recognition relies on previous existence, resonance does not.

This week, actively seek out a piece of art that makes you think “I could have made that.” Instead of dismissing it, create your own version. It doesn’t have to be an exact copy, just aim to interpret the same impulse. When finished, reflect on the true distance between “I could have” and “I did.”

Notice what shifts.