Ross King is author of the book The Pope's Ceiling. It tells the story of just how Michelangelo managed to paint 12,000 square feet of ceiling with little or no experience as a painter. I think there's a dangerous belief in creative work. And that is the belief that certain artists are simply gifted, and that that alone explains their greatness. It's easy to look up at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and conclude that Michelangelo lived up to his reputation as the "divine one." That he wasn't human. That he was actually a god of sorts. Today, we'll talk about the process that Michelangelo actually took to complete this seemingly impossible masterpiece. In this conversation, you'll learn: How did Michelangelo curate his reputation as a "divine" painter. He really wanted people to believe that, and he shaped that perception. Michelangelo started painting the ceiling with little or no painting experience. He knew he would have failures along the way. How did he turn his failures into success in the project? Even though Michelangelo didn't have experience as a painter, he had built up a bag of tricks to draw from. Learn how he used his other experiences to make his first attempt at painting a success. Join Love Your Work Elite Support the show, get early access to episodes, bonus masterclasses, office hours with me, and a discount on the Love Your Work T-shirt. Sign up at lywelite.com. Feedback? Questions? Comments? I love to hear anything and everything from you. Leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Tweet at me @kadavy, or email me david@kadavy.net.     Sponsors http://skillshare.com/loveyourwork http://storyblocks.com/loveyourwork Show Notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/michelangelo-creative-process/