Show up and start working

In the systems and habits approach to improvement there is an emphasis on the daily actions that we take. These become more important than the goal we set or even our strategy to get there.

The reason is simple. The strategies, plans, and goals are simply guessing. We set these up but they are really just assumptions. It isn’t until we start the action that we gain any traction.

So if you plan on losing weight and set a goal, nothing matters if you don’t change what you are doing. The best strategy with poor execution is the same as a poor strategy with poor execution.

But if you start to learn to get to work right away and keep your focus on the actions you are taking, then you can break away from the guessing and dreaming stage and move right into the work stage. That is where the important elements all come together.

Artist Chuck Close once said, “The advice I give young artists, or really anybody who’ll listen to me, is not to wait around for inspiration. Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to make an awful lot of work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.”

So if there is something you want in life, or if there is something that you want to improve in your life, start to learn to get to the work part as quickly as possible. Start working towards your desires.

If we wait for the best strategy or the right inspiration we will be left waiting and waiting. Most instances of this leave the individual getting to a point of frustration where they quit because they feel so far behind because they didn’t make any progress.

Instead if we start to work, we start to make progress. We build the foundation on which we can add the right strategy or the right goals and learn how to craft the life we desire. We can improve the odds of getting the outcome we want, versus the one that comes naturally.

So whatever it is that you want in life, learn that the best approach is to simply start working towards it. You will certainly learn a great deal on the journey and that will help you determine what steps to take next. But as you do this you will move closer to what you want and that will help you understand what it will take to reach the levels of success and happiness that you envision.