The Creative Process

Discover practical insights on creativity, music, and entrepreneurship from writer and musicologist Mark Samples. These short, story-driven essays help artists and creators level up their careers with timeless lessons, smart frameworks, and real-world examples. Perfect for musicians, educators, and creative pros seeking growth.

Posts tagged Josh Waitzkin
Make Sandals (On Mental Resiliency)

“A man wants to walk across the land, but the earth is covered with thorns. He has two options—one is to pave his road, to tame all of nature into compliance. The other is to make sandals.”

—Indian proverb

Josh Waitzkin, the chess prodigy turned world-champion-martial artist, has faced and beaten the world’s best.

And at the highest levels of competition, there are always dirty players. Waitzkin encountered them in his chess career as a fifteen-year-old.

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