Mental Inertia

Jerry Seinfeld writes material every day for his act. In interviews, he often references his endless collection of yellow legal pads, saturated with ideas he curates and refines until they resemble the comedic equivalent of a bonsai masterpiece.

What he discovered early in his career, with either an acute stroke of self-awareness or a deep understanding of human psychology (maybe both), is that inertia is everything. Making continuous contributions, no matter how small, have the power to add up to something incredible over time. This discovery did not, unfortunately, come to me early in my career, having only truly settled in my consciousness in the last few years. I've already seen remarkable results with even cursory attempts involving my art, fitness, and design habits, making noticeable strides over time with minimal effort in the moment. The point is firmly driven home after falling off the wagon at any point. I haven't consistently made art for more than a year after having drawn something every day for at least that long prior to suddenly stopping.

It's crazy to consider how easy it was to do every day contrasted with how difficult it is to find the energy now that my inertia has completely faded. I hope by writing something every day, I can relearn what it feels like to build and maintain inertia, so I don't continue neglecting my 'bonsai' masterpiece.