A creative profession is especially important to treat like manual labor or a physical trade of some kind, that requires you to show up each day, at a specific time you've promised yourself––and get to work.

The moment we start calling ourselves writers, artists, painters and musicians, we risk falling victim to the false assumption that great creative work is a side-effect of inspiration rather than commitment. It's not.

We pen poems, paint canvases and write songs in much the same way that a plumber fixes a broken commode or a carpenter lays down a hardwood floor. We show up. We try like hell to be on time. And, we get to work.

In the poem turned song 'Happens To The Heart', Cohen writes, "I was always working steady but I never called it art."

We can build a creative career on that line.