The Proven Path to Doing Unique and Meaningful Work

n June of 2004, Arno Rafael Minkkinen stepped as much as the microphone on the New England School of Photography to supply the graduation speech.

As he seemed out on the graduating college students, Minkkinen shared a easy concept that, in his estimation, made all of the distinction among achievement and failure. He referred to as it The Helsinki Bus Station Theory.
The Helsinki Bus Station Theory
Minkkinen became born in Helsinki, Finland. In the middle of the metropolis there has been a massive bus station and he commenced his speech with the aid of using describing it to the scholars.

“Some two-dozen structures are specified in a rectangular on the coronary heart of the metropolis,” Minkkinen said. “At the top of every platform is an indication posting the numbers of the buses that go away from that unique platform. The bus numbers would possibly study as follows: 21, seventy one, 58, 33, and 19. Each bus takes the identical course out of the metropolis for as a minimum a kilometer, preventing at bus forestall durations alongside the manner.”

He continued, “Now let’s say, once more metaphorically speaking, that every bus forestall represents 12 months withinside the existence of a photographer. Meaning the 1/3 bus forestall might constitute 3 years of photographic activity. Ok, so that you had been running for 3 years making platinum research of nudes. Call it bus #21.”

“You take the ones 3 years of labor to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the curator asks in case you are acquainted with the nudes of Irving Penn. His bus, seventy one, became at the identical line. Or you are taking them to a gallery in Paris and are reminded to test out Bill Brandt, bus 58, and so on. Shocked, you recognise that what you've got got been doing for 3 years others have already done.”

“So you hop off the bus, clutch a cab—due to the fact existence is short—and head instantly again to the bus station seeking out every other platform.”

“This time,” he said, “you will make 8×10 view digital digicam colour snapshots of human beings mendacity at the seashore from a cherry picker crane. You spend 3 years at it and 3 grand and convey a sequence of works that elicit the identical comment. Haven’t you visible the paintings of Richard Misrach? Or, if they're steamy black and white 8x10s of palm timber swaying off a beachfront, haven’t you visible the paintings of Sally Mann?”

“So as soon as once more, you get off the bus, clutch the cab, race again and discover a new platform. This is going on all of your innovative existence, usually displaying new paintings, usually being as compared to others.”

“Stay at the Bus”
Minkkinen paused. He seemed out at the scholars and asked, “What to do?”

“It’s easy,” he said. “Stay at the bus. Stay at the f*cking bus. Because in case you do, in time, you'll start to see a distinction.”

“The buses that flow out of Helsinki live at the identical line, however best for a while—perhaps a kilometer or two. Then they start to separate, every variety warding off to its personal particular destination. Bus 33 all of sudden is going north. Bus 19 southwest. For a time perhaps 21 and seventy one dovetail one every other, however quickly they break up off as well. Irving Penn is headed elsewhere.”

“It’s the separation that makes all of the distinction,” Minkkinen said. “And when you begin to see that distinction on your paintings from the paintings you so admire—that’s why you selected that platform after all—it’s time to search for your breakthrough. Suddenly your paintings begins offevolved to get noticed. Now you're running extra for your personal, making extra of the distinction among your paintings and what encouraged it. Your imaginative and prescient takes off. And because the years mount up and your paintings starts offevolved to pile up, it won’t be lengthy earlier than the critics emerge as very intrigued, now no longer simply with the aid of using what separates your paintings from a Sally Mann or a Ralph Gibson, however with the aid of using what you probably did while you first were given started!”

“You regain the entire bus course in fact. The antique prints made 20 years in the past are all of sudden re-evaluated and, for what it's far worth, begin promoting at a premium. At the cease of the line—wherein the bus involves relaxation and the motive force can get out for a smoke or, higher yet, a cup of coffee—that’s while the paintings is done. It can be the cease of your profession as an artist or the cease of your existence for that matter, however your general output is now all there earlier than you, the early (so-referred to as) imitations, the breakthroughs, the peaks and valleys, the final masterpieces, all with the stamp of your particular imaginative and prescient.”

“Why? Because you stayed at the bus.”

Stay at the bus.

Does Consistency Lead to Success?
I write often approximately how mastery calls for consistency. That consists of thoughts like installing your reps, enhancing your common speed, and falling in love with boredom. These thoughts are critical, however The Helsinki Bus Station Theory enables to make clear and distinguish a few vital info that regularly get overlooked.

Does consistency cause achievement?

Consider a university student. They have in all likelihood spent extra than 10,000 hours in a study room with the aid of using this factor of their existence. Are they an professional at studying each piece of facts thrown at them? Not at all. Most of what we listen in elegance is forgotten rapidly thereafter.
Consider a person who works on a pc every day at paintings. If you’ve been on your activity for years, it's far very in all likelihood which you have spent extra than 10,000 hours writing and responding to emails. Given all of this writing, do you've got got the competencies to write down the subsequent brilliant novel? Probably now no longer.
Consider the common character who is going to the fitness center every week. Many oldsters had been doing this for years or maybe decades. Are they constructed like elite athletes? Do they own elite degree strength? Unlikely.
The key characteristic of The Helsinki Bus Station Theory is that it urges you to now no longer absolutely do extra paintings, however to do extra re-paintings.

It’s Not the Work, It’s the Re-Work
Average university college students research thoughts as soon as. The high-quality university college students re-research thoughts over and over. Average personnel write emails as soon as. Elite novelists re-write chapters once more and once more. Average health fans mindlessly observe the identical exercise recurring every week. The high-quality athletes actively critique every repetition and continuously enhance their technique. It is the revision that subjects most.

To keep the bus metaphor, the photographers who get off the bus after some stops after which hop on a brand new bus line are nevertheless doing paintings the entire time. They are installing their 10,000 hours. What they're now no longer doing, however, is re-paintings. They are so busy leaping from line to line withinside the hopes of locating a course no one has ridden earlier than that they don’t make investments the time to re-paintings their vintage thoughts. And this, as The Helsinki Bus Station Theory makes clear, is the important thing to generating some thing particular and wonderful.

By staying at the bus, you deliver your self time to re-paintings and revise till you produce some thing particular, inspiring, and brilliant. It’s best with the aid of using staying on board that mastery famous itself. Show up sufficient instances to get the common thoughts out of the manner and from time to time genius will display itself.

Malcolm Gladwell’s ee-e book Outliers popularized The 10,000 Hour Rule, which states that it takes 10,000 hours of planned exercise to emerge as an professional in a specific field. I suppose what we regularly leave out is that planned exercise is revision. If you’re now no longer paying near sufficient interest to revise, then you’re now no longer being planned.

A lot of human beings installed 10,000 hours. Very few human beings installed 10,000 hours of revision. The best manner to do this is to live at the bus.

Which Bus Will You Ride?
We are all creators in a few capacity. The supervisor who fights for a brand new initiative. The accountant who creates a quicker procedure for coping with tax returns. The nurse who thinks up a higher manner of coping with her patients. And, of course, the writer, the designer, the painter, and the musician laboring to percentage their exercise session to the world. They are all creators.

Any author who attempts to transport society ahead will revel in failure. Too regularly, we reply to those screw ups with the aid of using calling a cab and getting on every other bus line. Maybe the journey may be smoother over there.

Instead, we need to live at the bus and decide to the tough paintings of revisiting, rethinking, and revising our thoughts.

In order to do that, however, you have to solution the hardest selection of all. Which bus will you journey? What tale do you need to inform together along with your existence? What craft do you need to spend your years revising and enhancing?

How do you recognize the proper solution? You don’t. Nobody is aware of the high-quality bus, however in case you need to meet your capability you have to select one. This is one of the crucial tensions of existence. It’s your choice, however you have to select.

And when you do, live at the bus.