Because if you do, you’ll be more creative, you’ll make more money, you’ll improve at your craft, and you’ll build an audience. And gosh-darnit, people will like you!

I’m completely serious.

You may never write a NYT Best Seller or have a billion dollar exit. But showing up every day to do your best work will absolutely leave you better off.

Diligence is the single most important component to creativity and building a business.

Just ask these clever guys:

“Quantity produces quality. If you only write a few things, you’re doomed.” — Ray Bradbury, hard-working writer

“The keys to success are patience, persistence, and obsessive attention to detail.” — Jeff Bezos, hard-working entrepreneur

“Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.” — Chuck Close, hard-working painter

Do you see why diligence is more important than money, talent, relationships, audience, tools, or anything else?

It’s through your diligence (your persistence) that you build those assets.

Showing up every day is how you go about making money, developing your skills, building relationships, growing your audience, and mastering your tools.

Showing up every day means you have passion and focus. Why else would you do what you’re doing?

(Of course, there’s more to it than just showing up. You’ve got to be intentional about how you’re spending your time. (Work smarter, not harder.) But that’s a topic for we’ll get to later.)

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Here are a few other advantages to showing up every day:

• By showing up every day, you’ve stopped waiting passively for inspiration to mosey on by. Instead you’ve turned the act of doing your your best work into part of your daily routine. Now you’re playing offense.

• Doing focused, creative work every day is challenging and, at times, even mundane. Your diligence helps you build a resistance so you don’t quit when it gets difficult.

• The consistency of showing up every day, providing value, and showing your work is one of the best ways to build a relationship with your audience and establish true fans.

• After a few years of showing up every day to do the work, you’ll have invaluable experience and perspective about how seasons of life go up and down. You’ll have a better story to tell about your work. (This goes hand-in-hand with developing your resistance to the mundane.)

• Diligence in one area of your life will bleed over into other areas. It’s a skill you can learn.

• Quantity leads to quality.

• Quantity also breeds confidence. The more you do something, the more confident you become. Stick with it and you’ll slowly take ownership. You’ll realize you’re a writer and not just someone who writes; a photographer and not just someone who bought a camera; an entrepreneur, not an imposter.

• Showing up every day removes the pressure of having to have a huge breakthrough ASAP. No single day becomes more or less important than any other day — the value is in the aggregate.

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Isn’t it silly to think that as creative and entrepreneurial folks we should live without routine, discipline, or accountability?

Showing up every day is the best thing you can do for your business, your creativity, and your platform.

Give your ideas and your goals a fighting chance.