""23 things I didn't learn in college / grad school":
#5: Show up
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Really restating Somerset Maugham's famous line: “I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately it strikes every morning at nine o'clock sharp.”
The easiest way to lose steam on any effort -- writing a book, taking a Coursera class, training for a marathon, setting up a weekly collaboration -- is not to show up. Maybe it's daunting or you haven't done your homework, but not showing up only makes it worse, not better.