Words from the Showgirl - Divine Dissatisfaction

Originally posted from Knox Harter's Facebook:


Since Christmas, I have been doing at least two stage shows a week (some of them out of town, never mind a handful of corporate bookings), plus regular rehearsals, my teaching schedule, a workshop weekend, and a bunch of costume/media projects. Needless to say, I'm due for a bit of a break before the next wave of insanity. Times like this when I'm feeling exhausted and overwhelmed I try to remind myself that my job and my life is good, that there are many that wish they had my problems, and that this is the payoff for years of hustle. 
Reward comes with hard work, and it is a never ending process. Sometimes I'm told that I'm lucky. Luck would mean all I have simply fell upon me. "Luck" is such a small part of the equation. Your "luck" can't happen if you don't earn your place, if you don't do your homework, if you are unable to take the criticism and the hardship that can and will befall you with grace, if you don't know who you are and what you want, if you can't humble yourself enough to seek help and improvement. You must suffer the artist's divine dissatisfaction. It is imperative that you stay hungry and restless, that you don't rest on past accolades because they are fleeting and only represent who you once were and not who you are now. Make mistakes, but then learn from them. Be critical, but be tactful. Be confident, but be humble. Let gossip-mungers and antagonists fuel your desire for the better. They do what they do because you're doing something right. And most importantly, know why you're doing all this. Don't do this to prove something, or find yourself, or for political reasons (in whatever context you choose to take that). Do it because you want to give to others. Do it because it fills and satisfies you. Do it because despite all things there is something inside you that says this is what you were meant to do.