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We hesitate to make a promise like “the show will be on at 11:30,”
because we’re not sure we can meet the deadline and make it happen in a way that allows us to control the outcome.
an anchor can also be a beacon, the thing we work toward, relentlessly.
Not because it’s perfect. But because it’s 11:30. We promised.
Good process leads to goo...
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The generous critic has taken the time to regard your work, understand your intent, and then speak up.
These critics have told us a lot about themselves, but nothing much about the book.
When you’re consistent in who it’s for and what it’s for, you can claim the high ground and clearly say, “It’s not for you.”
The thing is, these are gifts. Gifts from your former self to the self of today.
he didn’t want the gift from his former self.
“No thank you.”
If the audience you’ve worked so hard to build trust with is making it clear that your vision doesn’t match theirs, you can move on.
It’s a mistake to stick with one simply because we can’t bear the regret.
Sunk costs are real, but sunk costs must be ignored.
There are at least forty-five ways we sacrifice our work to our fear:
Stall.
Expand the project so it cannot m...
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Shrink the project so that it doe...
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Compromise on the hard parts.
Don’t go to work. Work all the time.
Don’t talk about the work with the right people, crippling it.
Work only when inspiration strikes.
Taunt yourself.
Expect applause.
Avoid sales calls.
Catastrophize.
Confuse perfectionism with quality.
Miss ship dates on a regular basis.
Don’t set ship dates.
It’s yourself, so in a way, it’s more vulnerable.”
This is toxic thinking. It also belies the mindset of the professional.
It’s not “yourself,” it...
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When we find that our choices didn’t succeed, vulnerability with lots of personal angst is an available choice.
The alternative is to learn from what didn’t resonate.
You are not your work. Your work is a series of choices made with generous intent to cause something to happen.
We can always learn to make better choices.
We don’t write because we feel like it. We feel like it because we write.
The action of the thing becomes the motivation or inspiration. Smiling to feel happy, throwing to catch, process before outcome
Write more. Write about your audience, your craft, your challenges. Write about the trade-offs, the industry, and your genre. Write about your dreams and your fears. Write about what’s funny and what’s not. Write to clarify. Write to challenge yourself. Write on a regular schedule. Writing isn’t the same as talking, because writing is organized and permanent.
Writing puts you on the hook.
This is a dangerous misconception.
The misconception that things just happen without intention. The process requires intention, direction.
The alternative is to imagine that there’s an abundance of opportunity,
determination is precisely what’s needed to write poetry or create art.
He doesn’t exist.
Except for one: denying his existence.
Our fears are often made up. Our own design without flaw that can't be reasoned away we created them. They don't exist though. It's made up and only to protect us from something that doesn't exist. Get over it.
The key word, the word that’s unstated, is “simply.”
To do it without commentary or drama. To do it without regard for things that are out of your control.
To do it without relying on the outcome being wha...
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This is the practice. Simply to chop the wood and carry the water. Again and again.
Flow is the result of effort. The muse shows up when we do the work. Not the other way around.
Set up your tools, turn off the internet, and go back to work.
