The Professional

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1. The professional shows up every day
2. The professional stays on the job all day
3. The professional is committed over the long haul
4. For the professional, the stakes are high and real
5. The professional is patient
6. The professional seeks order
7. The professional demystifies
8. The professional acts in the face of fear
9. The professional accepts no excuses
10. The professionals plays it as it lays
11. The professional is prepared
12. The professional does not show off
13. The professional dedicates himself to mastering technique
14. The professional does not hesitate to ask for help
15. The professional does not take failure or success personally
16. The professional does not identify with his or her instrument
17. The professional endures adversity
18. The professional self-validates
19. The professional reinvents herself
20. The professional is recognized by other professionals

Here are a few additional qualities

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In the spirit of not violating copyright, I cliffhang the “additional qualities”, which are also pretty interesting. Buy the book! The book is Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield. This is an excerpt from Act 2, Book 3, “Qualities of the Professional”.

BTW, I had already read The War of Art and Do the Work by the same author and I’d thought that was enough. But I changed my mind when I saw that Derek Sivers had read all of them.