Every day I get in the queue (Too much, Magic Bus) To get on the bus that takes me to you (Too much, Magic Bus) I’m so nervous, I just sit and smile (Too much, Magic Bus) You house is only another mile (Too much, Magic Bus) -“Magic Bus”, song by The Who
“Strong ideas. Loosely held.” -John Gruber
Ideas are like buses. Don’t worry if you miss one. Cuz another one’s coming by in 15 minutes.
The talent is knowing and deciding which bus to get on.
And having the discipline to stay on, to execute, all the way to the destination.
(And sometimes, you’ll need the awareness to know you got on the wrong one. That’s okay. Hit the bell. Get off here. And find the next magic bus.)
This is the last time This is the last time (The National, song “This Is The Last Time”)
“Deliberate practice requires working where challenges exceed skill.” -Angela Duckworth, book Grit
“When people are placed in positions slightly above what they expect, they are apt to excel.” -Richard Branson
“I can’t tell you the feeling I get when I plant a birch tree and I see it grow up and sprout leaves, I…I mean, I fill up with pride, I…But then again…It’s time for me to go. Maybe I’m just crazy. Good-bye.” -Astrov in Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov (Annie Baker adaptation)
When’s the last time you…
…had your mind blown; were gobsmacked by life’s beauty and stood in awe?
…changed your mind; changed your previously held convictions?
…dreamed big, really big, and then told someone your dream?
…learned a new skill?
…attempted to do something difficult; something that was slightly beyond your belief about your own capability?
…put yourself out there; took a risk, a real risk?
…desired something deeply and went after it with all your heart knowing that if you didn’t get it, you’d be heartbroken?
If it’s been a while or never, you’re in a rut. Time to explode out of it.
“Every event has two handles – one by which it can be carried, and one by which it can’t. If your brother does you wrong, don’t grab it by his wronging, because this is the handle incapable of lifting it. Instead, use the other – that he is your brother, that you were raised together, and then you will have hold of the handle that carries.” -Epictetus
When you face a setback on the road towards achieving your goal or manifesting your passion project, you can think “it just wasn’t meant to be.” You can give up. Quit. Do something else. (By the way, sometimes quitting is the right choice. See Seth Godin’s book The Dip and Annie Duke’s book Quit: The Power Of Knowing When To Walk Away for more on this.)
But more often than not, setbacks are just…setbacks. Nothing more. Nothing less. They’re information. Stuff that happens on the road towards doing anything. Don’t ascribe any more meaning on it it then you have to.
If you drive to the grocery store because you need groceries and then get a flat tire on the way, you don’t suddenly think, “I guess it wasn’t meant to be. I shouldn’t have needed groceries. I shouldn’t have gotten in my car and driven to the store.”
No.
Shit happens. Deal with it. Move on. And keep on, keepin’ on.
“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” -Mike Tyson
“Fall down seven times, get back up eight.” -Japanese proverb
(Thanks to Fr. Pete, aka “DJ McSwish” for inspiring this post)
Hopefully not literally, but definitely figuratively, you can expect life to punch you in the mouth. It’s not a matter of if, but when. (If you’ve lived on Planet Earth since March 2020, you know what I mean.) And it won’t just happen once. It will happen throughout your life. Big roundhouses and small jabs….Job loss. Family illness. Bad weather ruins your vacation. The dog ate your homework, etc.
So if you know a storm is coming, what can you do? Or better yet, how do you get back up?
Think of the below four words and corresponding acronym, B.O.R.A…
Breathe. Remember to breathe. Focus on the inhale. Focus on the exhale. Ground yourself. “Be here now” is a good mantra to repeat.
Observe. Look around. Notice your surroundings. Get outside. Observe nature. You’re alive. Be grateful. If for nothing else, that reason alone.
Remember. Remember the good and great times you’ve had. Times when you felt loved. Remind yourself that this too shall pass and better days lie ahead. Life is a flywheel constantly turning.
Act. Once you feel that you’re in a more positive emotional state, write down all the possible action steps you can take from here. When you’re ready, pick one and move forward.
Coincidentally, a Bora is a real thing. As defined by Merriam Webster, it’s “a strong, cold, dry northeast wind blowing in the upper Adriatic.”
Oh, and in the Urban Dictionary, a Bora is defined as “the truth. often known as a waker of dreams. ancient legend speaks of one who walks with insight and sees things for what they are.” Hmmm….
“I used to worry a great deal about the theatre, the arts, where it and they were going. There were panels and there were editorials and there were arguments, and I came to see that the worriers had created a career–a sinecure–for themselves. Worrying and prognosticating, but never producing. So I stopped worrying and bleating and just showed up at the plays I cared about and wrote the plays that I could. That is really all we can do, anyway. Do what you do, and show up to support what others do. The rest is professional misery.”–Harold Pinter/Interview with James Grissom/From “Come Up A Man: The Hungers of Marlon Brando.”
“Where is theatre going?”
“Is this end of theatre?”
“Will people still want to go to the theatre?”
“Do people still care about theatre?”
“Is theatre just a smaller and smaller niche?”
“Will people still be going to theatre in fifty years?”
I have no idea. And nor do you. Nor should we care.
All that we should care enough to ask is “Do I love theatre?”.
If yes, do whatever you can do to love it back.
See plays.
Read plays.
Write plays.
Act in plays.
Direct plays.
Make plays.
P.S. – Hat tip to my friend Suse for the awesome Pinter quote above.
“The most frustrated actors I know are the ones who are waiting for someone to give them the gig. You must make the gig.” -Jason Alexander
If you’ve been a follower of this blog, you know a central theme of it is urging and inspiring you to make your own art. It’s one of my core values and the reason I started this blog and The Vs. Studio a few years ago. The mission: To help other artists find and manifest their passion projects. And to do so with excellence and generosity for themselves, their fellow artists and the audience they seek to serve.
If you’re willing to lean in and do the work and produce it yourself, you can create unbelievable experiences for yourself and others. Experiences and friendships that will last a lifetime. You can make miracles.
“I have the will to play. Baseball is hard work and the strain is tremendous. Sure, it’s pleasurable, but it’s tough…There’s no excuse for a player not hustling. I believe every player owes it to himself, his club and to the public to hustle every minute he is on the ball field.” -Lou Gehrig (aka “The Iron Horse”; played 2,130 straight baseball games; .340 career batting average; .361 career postseason batting average; hit 495 home runs; 1,995 RBI’s; MLB triple crown winner; two-time MVP; seven-time All-Star; six-time World Series Champion, Hall Of Famer and the first player ever to have his number retired.)
“When a man can control his life, his physical needs, his lower self, he elevates himself.” -Muhammad Ali
“My office is at Yankee stadium. Yes, dreams do come true.” -Derek Jeter (#2, first ballot Hall Of Hamer; aka “The Captain”)
Two of the most important habit-forming principles as detailed in Atomic Habits by James Clear…
The two minute rule…For sticking with any new goal or habit, think of what you can do in just two minutes. For example, if your goal is to “read more”, then strive to read one page a day. If that’s all you do, great. You win. The key here is consistency. Never miss a day. “Never break the chain” as Jerry Seinfeld would advise. Mr. Clear gives the real life example of a person who wanted to “exercise more.” Instead of attempting crazy long workouts, all that person did was show up at the gym every morning. For the first few weeks, they didn’t even work out. Just drove there, checked in, looked around, then left. That led to five minute workouts, which became ten minutes, and so on and so forth. Eventually that person achieved their fitness goals, but more importantly forged a new identity…Becoming the type of person who loves to exercise.
Never miss twodays in a row…Life happens. Stuff goes awry. The day’s a shit show and you miss doing your two minutes. Don’t fret. Don’t admonish yourself. Don’t quit. Resolve to and then execute your two minutes tomorrow. Start a new streak!
“The content of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you choose, what you think and what you do is who you become.” -Heraclitus
“Certain things in life will cut you open like a knife. When that happens—at that exposing moment—the world gets a glimpse of what’s truly inside you. So what will be revealed when you’re sliced open by tension and pressure? Iron? Or air? Or bullshit?” -Ryan Holiday,The Obstacle is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Adversity to Advantage
“The things which hurt, instruct.” -Benjamin Franklin
Instead of looking at obstacles or problems as signs you’re not on the right path, that you should be doing something else, that you’ve chosen poorly…look at them as gifts. As opportunities. Expect them. Welcome them as fun tests of your resolve and your resiliency.
The more you overcome and even flow with these obstacles, the more your desire and passion to achieve the thing in your head is increased.
C’mon now. You didn’t think it was gonna be easy, did you? And even it was, where’s the fun in that?
“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.” -Oprah Winfrey
“I follow three rules: Do the right thing, do the best you can, and always show people you care.” -Lou Holtz
“It is never wrong to do the right thing.” – Mark Twain.
“But the only thing harder than knowing the right thing to do, I went on, is to actually do the right thing.” -Viet Thanh Nguyen,book The Sympathizer
“There is Right and there is Wrong…You do One, and YOU ARE LIVING…You do the Other and You may be walking around, but YOU are as Dead as a Beaver Hat.” -John Wayne, aka “The DUKE”
“You’re here. You know what to do.” -John Kolvenbach, play Stand Up If You’re Here Tonight
“One day you’re gonna be nice to me. We may both be dead and buried, but you’re gonna be nice – at least civil.” Da Mayor (played by Ossie Davis) to Mother Sister (played by Ruby Dee) in Spike Lee’s film, Do The Right Thing
The right thing to do is rarely…
…the easy thing to do.
…the quickest thing to do.
…the most lucrative thing to do.
…the most popular thing to do.
…the most feels good/gotta have it right now/instantly gratifying/transactional thing to do.
…the safe/inconsequential thing to do.
But it’s the right thing to do.
So do it.
For no other reason other than you know in your heart it’s the right thing to do.
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