drew gneiser

You may find it wasn’t actually a rule.

If you had played the piano for just five minutes every day since age ten, you might be pretty decent.

If you had written just one page a day for a year, you’d have a 365-page book.

Makes you filled with hope and regret at the same time, huh?

Will Smith (yep, the Fresh Prince) put it another way that has helped my perspective: “You don’t set out to build a wall. You don’t say ‘I’m going to build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall that’s ever been built.’ You don’t start there. You say, ‘I’m going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid. You do that every single day. And soon you have a wall.”

Brick by brick.

No one wakes up and writes a book in one day. You aren’t going to either. Our art (the art of making something that resonates, the art of connecting with people, the art of sharing ideas) needs consistent practice to gain momentum and mass.

If it takes locking yourself in a room to get it done today, do it. If it takes you not allowing yourself to go to bed until it’s done, commit to it. Focus on just one brick.

One thing that makes music so powerful is the lyricist (usually) has only a few minutes to say what he or she really wants to tell us.

Think about the of potency in brevity when communicating a truth. That one line of a song–maybe even a few words–really can sink in deep. Or sting hard. Or kick your butt. Inspire you to action. Comfort in sorrow. Become an anthem.

Powerful ideas do sometimes take more to explain, but not as often as we think.

Today is Samuel Langford’s birthday. ESPN called him the “Greatest Fighter Nobody Knows.” I didn’t know who he was until I Googled him.

Sam Langford was a black Canadian boxer that fought in the early 1900s. Most agree he was one of the greatest fighters of all time. Aside from his short height of 5′ 7″ (which some argue was still an advantage), he had everything–speed, intelligence, wit, mobility, fast hands, long arms, and a great finish. Mike Silver, author of the Ring Boxing Almanac, wrote, “Langford’s every move embodied the technique of a studied master boxer.”

It’s said that at the beginning of one of his matches he addressed the crowd saying, “You’ll pardon me gentlemen if I make the fight short. I have a train to catch.” Sam then knocked his opponent out in the first round, left the venue, and caught his train.

Sam won more matches than George Foreman and Mike Tyson combined, but never won a World Championship. Due to his color and inability to raise the guarantee money for a fight, he was denied the opportunity to compete for a world title. Many thought he would have been a sure winner against anyone. The other top fighters of the time were afraid to face him.

After retirement, Sam ended up blind and broke, living in New York City. Fans heard about his situation in a sports article and set up a fund to help. Clay Moyle, Langford biographer, reported that Sam was “perfectly content with his lot in life,” and showed no bitterness over having been denied the chance to fight for the championship. His high spirits and optimism remained until the end.

Never give in to the bitterness.

When was the last time you went to a restaurant after seeing their commercial on television?

When was the last time you went to a restaurant after your friend told you it was amazing?

Wherever you work, which are you investing more in?

Art takes time to learn. New techniques that were hidden yesterday seem obvious today. We make spelling and grammar errors. We change our minds. We may even want to take back what we wrote a year ago. Or a week ago. Our art is not perfect (and never will be).

Waiting until “it’s ready” or “it’s perfect” or “I’m 100% sure about this” is a sure way to never finish and a sure way to never share anything. While we’re growing and practicing, we still need to share. Someone needs your imperfect art.

Today, I loaned $25 to a woman in Tajikistan named Sayora who wants to improve her farm. Along with a few dozen micro-lenders through Kiva.org, we’ve been given the opportunity to help Sayora grow her business and provide for her husband and three kids.

I’ve loaned this same $25 two other times this year – once to a woman in the Philippines and once to a woman in Kenya. The whole process takes about 5 minutes. (If you’d like to join me, please click HERE.)

But this post isn’t about Kiva or getting you to sign up. It’s about opportunity.

We live in amazing times. Every day, we can choose how we use the tools of the Internet, social media, and connections. Do we use these tools to make an impact or do we choose the “just-because?”

It’s pretty easy to get lulled into the “just-because” – hours of online games, memes, viral videos, wasting time with endless surfing. I do it a lot.

But, what would happen if we chose purposefully? The Internet allows us to see more ways to make these “$25 loans” – small gifts, small ways to help others with our time, gifts, and creativity that bring change. And the gifts will come back to us so we can give them again.

I wonder if we live in a moment in time when we could make an impact with these tools like never before. It scares me to think I might waste that chance.

I challenge you this week: find one person you can give something to without looking for something in return. Find someone an answer to a tough question, solve a tricky problem, leave an encouraging comment, or send a stranger a needed job lead. Choose.

So much preparation has gone into this moment. The dreaming and wishing and hoping. This is the moment when the dream could become reality.

So when the audition doesn’t go how the hoping did, what then? Many cry. Many feel sick. Many get angry.

American Idol Criers are distraught and heart broken. I think they’re wrong though. I wish they’d embrace their failure.

If you think that you only have one chance–one shot to “prove yourself”–you’ll always be disappointed. If all your energy is focused on that single project going perfectly the first time or that big meeting simply opening all the doors you’ll need, something is off.

What American Idol Criers forget is that they can pick themselves. They can do their art, share it, and work hard. Mariah Carey is one person. Sure, she might have some valuable insight to learn from (and she certainly does), but if you let her opinion alone destroy you, then you’ve really failed.

So the choices:

1) You can choose to believe you’ve completely blown it. Your one shot didn’t work and everything is over. You may even blame others (“they made a bad decision”) or completely give up on the future. This is what lots of American Idol Criers choose.

or

2) You can choose to try again. Learn from the feedback and mistakes. Embrace your art even more. Go read the biographies of the Beatles, Jay Z, Picasso, or Michael Jordan for inspiration and a how-to on doing art in the face of criticism. Put in more hours. Realize that the failure isn’t really failure, but an indication that you might be on the right track. Be honest with yourself as well-if it truly isn’t your thing, something else is and you can still pick yourself.

Please choose the second option.

You can’t force me to care.

Yelling louder isn’t gonna do it. Bribing me won’t work. Neither will threats.

Make me care! Speak to my heart. Help me tell my own story better. Tell me something I already believe.

Relying on loud yelling and coercing will not keep me loyal in the long run. If I care, you’ve got me.

Here’s the twist: to get others to care, you have to really care first.

Storytelling is powerful. It entertains us. It teaches us. It moves us. I believe everyone should study story–especially if you work in marketing, social media, or the nonprofit world.

The following TED Talks are packed with great quotes, insights, and a deep look into the world of storytelling. Learn with me.

“The Danger of a Single Story” – Chimamanda Adichie

“The Mystery Box” – JJ Abrams

“The Clues to A Great Story” – Andrew Stanton [warning: some graphic language]

“We Are the Stories We Tell Ourselves” – Shekhar Kapur

“If I Should Have A Daughter” – Sarah Kay

“Weird or Just Different?” – Derek Sivers

“Be Suspicious of Stories” – Tyler Cowen

“The Technology of Storytelling” – Joe Sabia

“How Great Leaders Inspire Action” – Simon Sinek

“The Politics of Fiction” – Elif Shafak

Which is your favorite? Best quote? Which TED Talk did I miss?