Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Just Show Up

What is the one thing that I want everyone to say about me?
  • He sure loves frogs? Maybe true, but not very deep.
  • Biggest jerk I ever met? Definitely true, but not very flattering.
  • He eats a great quantity of cheese? Come on, who doesn't?
  • Can't take him anywhere? I don't want to go most places anyway.
  • He introduces more bugs than he fixes? I introduce bugs to each other. I'm like a bug matchmaker.
  • He shows up. YES!
I show up. That's what I want to be remembered for. Maybe that's the only reason anyone will remember me. I guess my odds of being remembered for anything are greater because I showed up. Just showing up is the key to my success, and it can be the key to yours as well.

Woody Allen once said that 80 percent of success is showing up. I would say it's more like 90 or 95. I have no other explanation for where I got in life except that I showed up.

Showing up is undervalued in our society. Be honest, how many classes did you cut in college? I never missed a single class until my senior year. Then I got the flu, had a fever of 103, and my girlfriend wouldn't let me go. But I tried. Showing up to all those classes got me good grades and allowed me to graduate summa cum laude in 2001. I really think the only thing that separated me from the rest of the students was that I showed up.

I'm not especially intelligent, but I might appear to be. It's just because I show up. Showing up provides opportunities that won't be available to those who don't show up. You won't be selected for anything if you're not there, even if you are the most qualified.

So don't cut class, don't call in sick to work just because you don't feel like going, don't disregard appointments, and don't keep quiet when someone asks for a volunteer.

Show up. And success will show up to meet you.

Amphibian.com comic for 4 March 2015

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