THE VALUE OF A GREAT SILVER LINING

No doubt you've heard the old expression, "In every cloud there is a silver lining," or something like that.

Sometimes the dark cloud perverts our thinking. For 3-4 years I have been checking out the silver linings but never gave any thought about the possibility of there being more than one!

Yesterday I received my dvd burner and printer. A nice piece of work and it seemed like what I had ordered. But, after a nap to blow away the day's cobwebs I started to set it up only to discover this machine used a slightly more advanced operating system and had different hardware requirements than what I had.

While I didn't cuss or throw things I was disappointed as I wanted to get started this weekend and crank out a bunch of back ordered DVDs in the "Shockers" series.

Then it occurred to me: "I've got this nice looking piece of hardware but I haven't made any art yet for the printing of the DVDs!" So that's what I will be working on today. (Sunday I don't do commercial work... so, things are better.) What else? How about working on the material for White Shockers, another DVD from Andrew Martin? That will take some more time. Hopefully by then, I will have the right machine.

Apparently the salesman and I were "thinking" different things. There will be a delay, but there are always other things to do. That's one of the Big Keys to the lock.

For example, I am almost finished with The Chess Reports #104, the last in Semester 8 (time really does fly!) But I saved the "hardest" work for last, splitting the publication into two magazines. Will it be more work? Obviously, but it has to be the right kind of "more" work.

All in all, the delay is a new opportunity for me. Maybe you can't find the time to study during the week, but even an hour or two on the weekend will be most helpful; perhaps the basis for a new program of personal instruction. I keep reading books and passages that have one thing in common with success, the oft stated "hard work." There is no substitute for it. Even, and probably especially, geniuses perform hard work to achieve a result they are seeking.

Next week I will cover some more new chess titles which have come in. Am looking forward to making new DVDs and printing on them to satisfy the purists.

bob@thinkerspressinc.com