Read time: 5 minutes
MCC #72 – 08 Sep 2023
Welcome to My Creative Calling!
You can feel the eyes piercing you.
It makes you feel uncomfortable.
You shake a little in your chair.
You scrunch your face up as a sense of guilt rises up your spine.
You’re here.
But you’re not doing what you should be.
You’re letting the team down.
What team?
Your team.
You’re the leader, manager, employee and coach all rolled into one.
Results aren’t gonna happen if you don’t make them happen.
Action wins
I’ve had this book title staring at me for a while.
I haven’t read it yet.
I don’t need to.
Sometimes, you just need the title.
The title speaks to me and gets my creative working hat on.
So I’ve left it sitting on my desk for the last four months or so.
I needed something to write about today, so I finally picked up that book.
I know what you are wondering:
“What is the damn book already?”
It’s Steven Pressfield’s:
Put Your Ass (Where Your Heart Wants to Be)
How good is that?
You know what you need to do just from reading it.
- If you want to be an author, sit in that chair and start writing.
- If you want to be a podcaster, pull out the microphone and start recording.
- If you want to be a YouTuber, start recording videos.
- If you want to be an entrepreneur, create an offer and find your first client.
Too often, we dance around the thing we say we want to be doing.
- The wannabe author takes a sucky journalist job, killing all their writing motivation.
- The podcaster tells everyone they are starting a podcast, but never actually starts.
- The YouTuber buys all this expensive video and lighting equipment, but then it collects dust in the corner of their office.
- The entrepreneurial dreamer listens to all the business podcasts and buys the marketing books, but never actually acts on their business idea.
Don’t be that person.
Do the real work.
If you want to be *something*, do that *something*.
Beating around the bush isn’t going to get you anywhere.
Or another trap:
Spending all your time on social media.
You might build a decent audience, but do you know what will push you into the stratosphere?
Something remarkable that you created.
That will give you real-world credibility.
You need a craft outside of social media audience building. Something tangible that gives you authority:
- Your published book
- Your awesome podcast
- 100 published videos on your channel
- Your online course or coaching offering
I have spoken before about building something remarkable.
But remarkable doesn’t happen by itself…
You need to actually do the thing you are avoiding.
You need to “Put your ass” where your heart wants to be.
So, where is your heart pulling you to go?
What is the whisper in your ear saying?
What is your creative calling?
And what metaphorical chair do you need to sit in? There is a physical space you need to show up each day if you are going to succeed in your game.
Come on:
Less talk, more action.
Stop making excuses, and let’s finally start the project.
You’re tired of procrastinating, right?
I procrastinated for at least 10 years.
I knew I was in the wrong job. And I felt that call to be more creative.
But I ignored it.
I chose “safety”.
But something was off. It felt like a rat gnawing away at my psyche. I couldn’t pinpoint what was going on.
“Safe” turned into misery.
It’s depressing knowing that not only are you not reaching your potential, but you’re actively avoiding it.
Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore.
I had to make a change.
I’m so glad I did.
I took a leap of faith — an attempt to bring my creative calling to life.
It sure has been challenging. But my life has overflowed with meaning and fulfilment since I took that leap into the unknown.
I want you to feel that joy too.
You need to commit
It is not an idle or airy-fairy proposition to declare that the universe responds to the hero or heroine who takes action and commits.
It responds positively.
It comes to the hero’s aid.
Steven Pressfield
You won’t find rewards without commitment.
You won’t push through the pain barrier without commitment
What’s getting in the way?
Fear.
Yep, you’re scared.
And I don’t blame you.
I’m scared, too.
It’s risky business pursuing our dream.
But we wouldn’t have it any other way.
That is the nature of a calling.
Your biggest challenge is internal
We all know how hard it is to write a book, make a movie, or create a new business.
Powerful forces line up against us — obstacles to entry, rivals, competitors, finances, funding, the difficulty of the craft itself.
But the most formidable antagonist of all resides inside each of our own skulls.
I’m talking about that negative force I call Resistance with a capital R.
Steven Pressfield
Yep, you will face countless challenges on your creative journey.
We’re about to welcome baby number 2 into our family, so I know my world will get hectic fast… And I will have a million excuses for why I “can’t” create…
But you see what’s going on there.
The problem isn’t outside of me. It’s in my mind.
It’s that voice telling me all the reasons why I can’t
It’s not like I actually can’t. There’s no wall physically stopping me from creating.
No, it’s an internal wall.
An invisible force in our minds – the Resistance!
What is Resistance?
It’s our own tendency — yours and mine and everyone’s — to yield to procrastination, self-doubt, fear, impatience, self-inflation, self-denigration, distraction, laziness, arrogance, complacency, and perfectionism.
It’s our inability to focus, our incapacity to press on through adversity.
It’s our terror of finishing, and exposing our work to the judgement of the marketplace.
It’s fear of failure.
It’s fear of success.
Fear of humiliation.
Fear of destitution.
It’s our inability to defer gratification, to acquire and act with self-discipline, self-validation, and self-reinforcement.
Steven Pressfield
And so what do you do?
You sabotage yourself.
You never start.
But if you do start, you don’t finish.
All the while, you are a mixed-up mess inside because of your inability to do the thing you yearn to do.
And so, how do you slay this dragon that dwells inside the cave of your mind?
Well, Steven has a nine-word answer:
“Put your ass where your heart wants to be.”
It simply means showing up and doing the work each day. By “ass”, he means putting your body where it needs to be for your creative work to happen. This can be physically and metaphorically.
Whatever that work is for you.
Find a way to make it happen.
I schedule time each morning for writing.
I show up, sit at my desk, and type into that keyboard.
Most of the time, what comes out isn’t very good.
But the act of showing up helps tame my inner monster and teaches it who the real boss is around here.
And it’s a constant cycle.
You never actually “defeat” that monster. It will be there waiting for you again the next morning:
“Hey, you worked hard yesterday. Why not take today off!”
“You suck, give up.”
“There are more important things today.”
It’s a sinister voice and will cook up all kinds of excuses.
Show up and do your best each day.
Over a few months or a year, you will be amazed at your inroads towards your dream.
Reflection
What is calling you?
What creative work are you hiding from?
What is the metaphorical chair that you need to sit in?
For me, sitting in front of the keyboard. But for you, it could be setting up the video equipment or going to the rehearsal studio…
Make a daily practice of sitting in that “chair” and doing the work.
- What time?
- How long for?
- Schedule it on your calendar.
- Show up!
Don’t be too harsh on yourself for a shaky start. Just taking some physical action and showing up is a massive win to get the ball rolling.
A quote to ponder
Some people stay busy to avoid doing the real work that would actually get them closer to their goal and make them less busy.
Ed Latimore
What happened this week
YouTube & Podcast
No episode this week.
I recorded two episodes but haven’t had time to edit and publish them yet…
We’ve been doing some renovation work on our house in preparation for welcoming another “baby-head” next month!
Poetry & Purpose
Bless This Day
“Bless this day for I feel healthy.
Bless this day for the sun is shining.
Bless this day for I have loved ones.”
… Continue reading on Substack.
Final thoughts
Today’s writing background music playlist was Definitely Maybe by Oasis on Spotify.
I hope you enjoyed this letter, please share it with a friend.
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It would be great to have you on board!
Cheers!
Matt K. Head
When you’re ready, here’s how I can help you:
Coaching
- Find more meaning and fulfilment in your work
- Gain clarity and start taking action on your creative journey
