“I’m never any better than my last concert or the last time I played, so it’s like an audition each time.” ― B.B. King
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One bad thing about success is, we often rest on laurels. We finally hit our goal and expect everything to magically come together.
You know those moments. It’s the moment when: we get our painting in a gallery, we get published in a magazine, or we hit a five figure month in sales.
It’s exhilarating. We’ve worked so hard to get here. But then we get complacent. We think that just because we are in a gallery or publication that everything will become easier.
While these moments are fantastic and worth celebrating, that doesn’t mean things will become easier. In fact, we aren’t close to being done yet. We are just getting started.
Hitting a milestone alone won’t help you find more success. It’s what you do after you’ve hit the milestone that counts.
Anyone can become a published author. Anyone can get 100,000 views on their website. Anyone can get published in a big time magazine. But what do you do afterwards?
Will you continue on that upwards trajectory or will you become complacent? That is the difference between a professional and an amateur.
B.B. King was one of the most decorated and highly regarded blues guitarists in the world, yet he still approached each concert, each performance, like it was his last. He did not rely on his name or stature to get gigs. He worked hard every time he played to earn his next gig.
If you think one successful moment is good enough to bring you recognition and respect, think again. You have to earn that respect every time you create. You have to treat every piece of art, every performance, every book like it’s your last.
That is how you gain respect. That is how you gain recognition. That is how you find success.
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