Doing Boring Shit Is A Superpower

As I plod through my footage; cutting, sorting, labelling etc. I try to remember one thing: The ability to deal with tedium that gets me to my goals is more important than talent, inspiration, or the ability to pull all-nighters.

I love telling the war stories of shooting a feature in 8 days (including 23 pages in one shoot day). It feels fucking artistic to stay up all night writing an inspired first draft.

However; the majority of the work in creating anything is just showing up, putting in the time, and not quitting after a week because you aren't feeling inspired.

Cutting 2 frames of of a take so it blends better does not feel artistic. It feels boring and frustrating. It's not the magic that happens when acting or shooting. But it is 90% of the process.

Want to learn guitar? Take a shit load of time and practice your chords.

Want to learn a language? Practice daily.

I fucking hate it, but the truth is; most of my failures have come from a lack of patience and intolerance for boredom. And most of my successes, came from doing the boring shit anyway.

So my inspirational message for the day?

"Do Boring Shit"

Edward Janis Gusts