Daily Inspiration 10-8-12

"Guitar gurus say, "Tone is in your fingers." You can buy the same guitar, effects pedals, and amplifier that Eddie Van Halen uses. But when you play that rig, it's still going to sound like you Likewise, Eddie could plug into a crappy Strat/Pignose setup at a pawn shop, and you'd still be able to recognize that it's Eddie Van Halen playing. Fancy gear can help, but the truth is your tone comes from you." -- Jason Fried & David Heinemeier Hansson from the book, Rework. Yesterday, I took another quote out of this very short chapter in the book, Rework, titled, Tone Is In Your Fingers. Yesterday it was about how some people are obsessed with technology ignoring substance or content especially as it is related to websites and other Internet properties. But, these few sentences above preceded the previous quote from yesterday, spoke to me a bit differently.  I could relate to this quote immediately because I play the guitar and have for a long time. I've seen good players who can come in and pick up a piece of crap instrument and make it sound good, while they make a good instrument sound spectacular. Part of what I related to here was that I'm glad I learned on less quality instruments that were good enough to tune, but not so good they made me inflexible or able to make my sound work in lieu of the better instrument. At the same time, it is amazing what a better instrument will do for a player when they get one. I'll never forget starting to play bass guitar after playing a six string guitar for many years and I had a very inexpensive instrument that wasn't that easy to play, but I made do with it and it worked out okay. Then, the time came when it was time to move up to a better instrument and it was almost miraculous how I instantly became a several layers up better player just from that ease of playing that fine instrument. But, the key to that was that this would never had happened without the previous instrument. How I relate to this in business and in other ways in life is to go with what you have and do the best you can with what you have to work with. Find your sound. Find your tone. Develop the skills, and the knowledge of doing what you do as only you can do it. Then, in due time, the need and opportunity will come together to bring you to the next level where you will soar as you never imagined. Your skill and knowledge will leap several levels all in one fell swoop. You will be joyous in this and at the same time, you will find a whole new appreciation for what has gone before--for the things that taught you and challenged you, created, and fine-tuned that tone, and for the learning process, and even the extra work that went into all of it.

Rock On With Your Bad Self! In Appreciation, Of Course. Spread Some Joy Today--Gratitude unlocks the burden of work to become merely preparation for the best that is yet to come.