Over the last week I found I had to cheat a little to publish a post. Yesterday it had just passed midnight when I found time to write so I changed the publication time to ensure it was posted for the correct date. It’s the second time I’ve had to do that in a week. Is it really cheating?

Charged with painting a picture of a mountain landscape we grab the largest brush to get it finished as quickly as possible. A triangle of green does not a mountain make. It certainly won’t let the mountain be identified from the painting.

There’s more to it than that. It’s all in the detail. Choosing the right colours, the right shapes, the right textures…

Details are important at every stage of a process. Not just at the end but even before we start. In our rush to get it done let’s not ignore the finer details. The details are what make a triangle a mountain.

Moving towards a deadline there’s always a lot of things still to be done. Not all of them need to be done before the deadline arrives. Some can be done after the deadline passes (not long after but still after).

Make the list. Put it in order. Work on the things that must be done. Skip the things that don’t. Do them after.

You’ve had an idea. There’s no point to it unless you pursue it. Whether that means making something or persuading other people to get involved your idea is nothing if you don’t pursue it.

What are you trying to escape from? Escape should not be the goal. The goal should be to create change. Change yourself and you don’t need to escape, you can leave freely.

It’s still November but already the ‘best of’ lists have started to appear. An entire month of the year to go but judgement of what was the best movie, book, etc has already been decreed.

Would it not make more sense to wait until the year has ended?

On the path to your goals there will be setbacks and small victories. The small victories are important. They keep you focused on the path. Take a moment to celebrate them, not long, just a moment, then get back to work.

Before you do the work you’ve got to prepare. You’ve got to put the time in to get ready.

If you’re writing a speech that might mean research. If you’re building a house that means deciding what you want the house to look like, what rooms it needs, what materials to use, getting plans drawn up, getting planning permission and probably a lot more.

The better you prepare the easier the work will be. The better you prepare the better the finished work will be.

Sometimes though preparing feels like wasted time. It feels like you should be working already. But the thing is that preparation is part of the work. Not separate. As tempting as it might be don’t skip the preparation.

Earlier in the month I wrote about my Only Do List. As I have been painting for the past few weeks there are very few things on the list – mostly painting and writing these blog posts. So, success? Yes but it’s not the list that’s the root of the success. The job of painting basically ensures that you don’t end up straying from it while doing it. The Only Do List has yet to be put to a proper test.

The perspective you have depends on so many things. Not least the country you were born in.

Life, the world, and everything in it, look very different depending on who you are.

Born a man

Born a woman

Born to a rich family.

Born to a Catolic family.

What you feel you’re entitled to, what you feel you deserve, all come from the perspective you have.