underrating the art of discipline
i was reading a speech given to graduating design/architecture students at Harvard this year. the speaker was Chris Anderson—curator of the beloved TED conference.
he offered a few pieces of advice that were beautiful and original (surprising for a graduation speech). to focus on just a few words:
“A great musician who wants to pursue the absolute in artistic creativity doesn’t get there by being creative. She gets there by being disciplined. By learning, listening and by practicing for hours, until one day the creativity just flows of its own accord.
…
Pursue discipline. It’s an old-fashioned word, but it’s never been more important. Today’s world is full of an impossible number of distractions. The world-changers are those who find a way of ignoring most of them.”
i would never advocate for unassuming routines, unquestioning rituals, blind religion, or anything of the sort. but the advice to pursue discipline is something that i’ve overlooked for quite some time.
i think i’ve underrated the art of discipline, how important and life-giving it can be in not only shaping one’s character, but driving change inwardly so it can be expressed outwardly.
so one small step i’m taking from here on out is to write/post something in the owler everyday. written for the lucky folks who stumble across it. but mostly for myself, thinking and communicating more clearly, building valuable discipline into a life that’s already filled with a great number of distractions.
