It's almost impossible to have fun playing ping pong with someone who doesn't care, won't try or isn't any good.

Things that look like shortcuts are actually detours (disguised as less work).

Loving what you do is almost as important as doing what you love, especially if you need to make a living at it.

Your art is the act of taking personal responsibility, challenging the status quo, and changing people.

The problem with putting it all on the line is that it might not work out. The problem with not putting it all on the line is that it will never (ever) change things for the better. Not much of a choice, I think.

If you set your bar at 'amazing' it's awfully difficult to start. Your first paragraph, sketch, formula, sample or concept isn't going to be amazing. Your tenth one might not be either. Confronted with the gap between your vision of perfect and the reality of what you've created, the easiest path is no path. Shrug. Admit defeat. Hit delete. One more reason to follow someone else and wait for instructions. Of course, the only path to amazing runs directly through not-yet-amazing. But not-yet-amazing is a great place to start, because that's where you are.

We don't become mediocre all at once, and we rarely do it on purpose.