Do you think you’ll ever retire?
I don’t know what that is. There’s always some way to serve. And I never felt like I had a job. – Prince
Some people are born with talent and other’s work for it. On an interview with Howard Stern, Steve Martin explained how he isn’t naturally funny and it was hard work that vaulted him to stardom. Tweaking each piece of his act until it was perfect was his motive. I read similar thoughts from Prince in an article for Rolling Stone.
Prince had to be reminded to eat. He’d rather not interrupt his work than eat. This is the devotion you have to have to your craft in order to rise to the highest levels. It’s the same story over and over again. Grow up with some struggle with your family, fall in love with whatever it is you were born to do, don’t stop doing it until you are the best. Literally spend every second of every day performing your craft. How hard can it be?
Unfortunately not many people are given the opportunity to do this. Life gets in the way. The large majority of us may be moderately talented but not ungodly gifted. So it is possible for us moderately talented people to achieve next level status we just have to stop eating.
There’s this other little problem that’s called work. I love when people say, “I love my job. It hardly feels like work because it’s what I love to do.” Most of us don’t feel that way. I like that my job gives me the flexibility of a non-corporate environment but I’d rather spend my time Photoshopping ridiculous pictures onto celebrities and writing about news stories. All I’d have to do is take a few writing classes and blog incessantly. I bet I could get more readers than I have currently.
Is there any point to this post. Not really except that it’s the same idea for success. Work hard. Give your entire being to your work. It’ll take months, years, or decades, but eventually you’ll see the fruits of your labor as long as you aren’t a pussy and understand what work is. Most don’t.
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