Work Ethic and Attitude

Peter Grant has an interesting post over at The Mad Genius Club this morning - Is talent useless in isolation?  - wherein he talks about talent and work ethic and posts a list of ten things that require no talent at all.  (Since I have no rights to the graphic, you'll have to go there to see it.)

Personally, I think the list can probably be shortened to two things - work ethic and attitude.  Those pretty much covers all the other things.

Being on Time?  Work Ethic.  Effort?  Work Ethic.  Doing Extra?  Work Ethic.

Energy?  Attitude.  Passion?  Attitude.

I think Being Prepared is both Work Ethic and Attitude.  

Anyway...

One needs Work Ethic and Attitude (a positive one... not just an attitude, which too many people have these days), to succeed at anything.  Want to write a book?  Set your ass down and write it without getting distracted or taking for freakin' ever and that's WE.  And if you're positive about the process, you'll get it done.

This year, I'm failing on pretty much all counts.  My Work Ethic and my Attitude are both tanking.  Not sure how to get past that.  I could probably ramp up the WE if the A wasn't so bad.  And I'd probably have a better A if the WE was chugging along.  Vicious circle.

How does one get both?  Well, if you don't already have them, you might be in trouble.  If the building blocks weren't already there, it's a long row to hoe.  If you had them and then lost them?  I suspect, in my case, it's going to be a 'fake it 'til you make it' thing.  I need to fake the attitude, so I can get the work ethic on track, and then maybe the attitude will fall in line.

And I have to fake it, because as long as the sales stink, so does the attitude.  Woohoo, I'm working on another book that won't sell!  Umm, yah.  So, I need to be like Woohoo!  I'm working on a book!  Lucky number 14!  You go, girl!  :waves pompoms: and that sort of thing, even when I'm totally not feeling it.

And once the attitude is in line, maybe the passion will come back.  And the energy.  And then I can put forth the effort and be prepared and all the other things needed to be successful.

Let's see if we can't put that plan in place this weekend and get some editing done again.  I still don't have the funds to begin the publishing process with this puppy, but I can have it ready for when things fall into place financially.  (As long as my editor hasn't completely washed her hands of my lazy ass by then.) 

Here's hoping I have better things to tell you on Monday.