“Without solitude, no great work is possible.”
Pablo Picasso
As I sit here and reflect on some of the great works of my life—it is undeniably true that solitude was present in each of them.
- For every assignment I was proud of in school—solitude was present.
- For every martial arts performance I still love to rewatch on YouTube—countless hours were spent in solitude training.
- For every article I share with pride—including these short, daily pieces I email out daily—solitude happened.
And my guess is, if you’re having a hard time producing work that you feel is great—you’re probably also the type who’s having a hard time finding solitude in your day.
But, let it be known, if not from me then from Picasso himself—solitude is a necessary ingredient for great work.
And if you’re serious about wanting to produce great work, then get serious about prioritizing solitude into your days.
Be it by waking up earlier, eliminating excess screen time, deleting unnecessary tasks, rearranging the tasks of your day, or buying a pair of over-the-ear headphones that you can start wearing around the chronic distractions—be like Nike and just do it.
And for every excuse that follows and prevents you from building more solitude into your days, remember, it’s you who’s arguing against the great work potential of you.
…And what a shame to be the reason for your own withheld potential.