Skip the Inspiration. Get to Work!

At a recent event, a colleague ended his presentation with this quote from Chuck Close.

"Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work."

Close isn't being arrogant. His point is waiting for inspiration is an excuse to not do the hard work. Whether it's a plan, wrap report, blog post or tweet -- dig in and get started or you risk not getting started at all.

Excuse or Opportunity?
Early in my career, I worked with someone who spent more time documenting why a tactic didn't work than he did trying to make it work in the first place. But by taking this approach, it seemed as if he were making excuses...even if he was right.

It sounds zen to say there is potential opportunity in nearly anything that challenges our work. But the point is, if you get to work, the odds are better you'll create opportunities instead of excuses.