All day my head was pounding.
I barely made it through the workday and came home to crash on the couch with a cup of tea and some aspirin. And part of me was thinking, “Why, oh why, did I commit to a daily blog posting?”
But most of me was thinking about the fact that I went to work today, despite my headache, and that I gave it my all. I was thinking about the times when I put in 12 hour days just to meet deadlines. I was remembering that only recently my boss had to insist I take the holiday, because my tendency is to keep pushing if there are unmet obligations.
Being professional, productive, and present in the workplace matters a great deal to me.
So why would I offer any less of myself to my writing?
If it matters to me, I wouldn’t.
If it were just a hobby, something to pass the time, then sure – I could take a break whenever I want to.
But I want to develop the discipline of daily writing so that my quality improves. And I want to contribute something meaningful to help inspire people to learn and grow.
This matters as much to me as my day job.
In a YouTube interview, Seth Godin said that authenticity is overrated. He gave the example of a barber. If you show up for a hair cut, you don’t want your barber to say, “I had a terrible day and I just don’t feel like cutting your hair today!” No, you want him to smile, extend authentic courtesy, and professionally ask, “how can I serve you today?”
Seth’s opinion – and I agree – is that what people really want is professionalism, which in this context means the commitment to deliver value despite life circumstances.
That is what separates excellence from mediocrity.
So with that interview and my professional work experiences running through my head, my very-verbose-brain kept saying one thing, over and over and over again.
Show up.
Even when you don’t want to. Even when you are tired or the car broke down or you had a fight with your best friend. Even when the rain comes down by the bucketful and the internet dies and your three year old just flushed the goldfish (when it wasn’t dead).
You still show up.
It’s what moms do. It’s what teachers do. It’s what doctors and pastors and mechanics and computer programmers do.
It’s what professionals do.
Showing up means you value your integrity and believe in keeping promises. It means you know that people are counting on you and you don’t want to let them down. It means seeing the long view and being undeterred by momentary discomfort.
Putting in an appearance but being mentality elsewhere is not showing up. Putting in enough effort to get an “S for Satisfactory” doesn’t count, either.
Showing up means being present in all faculties, mentally prepared and able to put aside all other concerns to focus on the one thing that matters. It means maintaining a personal high standard of excellence. It means knowing the difference between excellent and perfect, and it means delivering.
Showing up means you plan ahead, prepare for inevitable crises, and care enough about commitments to ensure you can keep them even when the laptop crashes.
Sometimes showing up means sending someone else in your place, because it isn’t about you at all – it’s about the mission, the kids, the business, the message. So showing up means you are teaching, training others, and providing them with a means to make sure everything keeps moving forward when the realities of life interrupt your ability to personally deliver.