Here’s a wild proposal.
Think of something you do every day — just because you love it.
Watching TV.
Eating Pringles.
Scrolling through Facebook.
It’s easy to do these things every day because you’re doing them for fun, right?
Not because you’ll get better at doing them. Or because they’ll help you lose weight. Or because you can make money at them.
You do it just because you love drinking Diet Coke or watching Real Housewives or checking the box scores.
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Now, think of something you enjoy making.
Maybe you like drawing funny faces. Or painting cats. Or writing limericks. Or doodling designs.
Maybe you like writing down stories about your family. Or coming up with new cookie recipes. Or singing in the shower.
Something that is interesting to you to create.
But not a job. Not going to get graded. Not for sale.
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Now, what if you committed to doing more of that every day in the same spirit as your other daily fun activities?
Not just when the mood strikes or when you have some down time.
But a commitment so that it becomes as regular a part of your day as watching Jeopardy or reading Steven King.
What if you said to yourself, I’m going to try drawing cats/dreaming up new cookies/writing haikus every single day. And I’m going to do it …. for two years.
Wait, what? Two years?
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Yes.
I’m suggesting you commit to your creative passion on a regular basis for 730 days. Showing up consistently.
Not doing it well.
Not doing it professionally.
Not doing it to get likes.
But doing it consistently for two years.
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What would happen if you did?
What would you life look like if you drew your cat for ten minutes every day for two years?
If you wrote one paragraph of a novel every day for two years?
If you published two essays a week for two years?
If you practiced yodeling or riding the unicycle or drawing a self portrait every day for two years?
Where would you be?
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This doesn’t require hours every day. Just 10 minutes will be fine. And if you miss a day here or there, that’s not a deal breaker either.
And even if 90% of the things you make suck — what would that remaining 10% look like?
This isn’t a punishment. It’s not a workout regimen. Or a mountain to climb.
It’s just the same as drinking a daily martini. Or doing Wordle. Or playing catch with your dog.
Just another thing you do for fun but — because you do it constantly — one day you’ll wake up and you won’t just be just a martini drinking, Jeopardy fan.
You’ll be an artist. An artist with a body of work.
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Maybe you’ve already tried focussing for a month or two and the results were meh.
But two years of regular creating is absolutely game-changing.
Things will happen you can’t possibly predict. Maybe you’ll start to share your wok with others and opportunities will erupt. Or maybe you’ll get so deep into it you will make insane discoveries. Or maybe you’ll just have a real fun time every single day.
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Becoming an artist doesn’t mean quitting your job or renting a studio or buying supplies or taking a workshop or getting a degree. It doesn’t mean slogging or suffering either.
It means showing up.
Day after day. Step after step.
Having fun until you get to where you’ve always dreamed of getting.
Sound plausible? Then why not start today?
I’ll see you in two years. I can’t wait.
Your pal,
Danny