"You're only as good as your last concert."

Becca and I went to see B.B. King last night.

He was awesome.

A couple of things struck me. One was the quote above. I've heard that sentiment many times. B.B. King said it in a question and answer session after the show. For some reason it really inspired me that an 81 year-old blues musician is still holding himself to that standard.

I think that ideas like that keep us humble while at the same time forcing us to constantly improve what we do.

It really struck me because I'm going through a bit of a crisis about my work as of late. When I started grad school a year and a half ago, I really threw myself into it. I kicked ass and failed in equal measure. I had some stupendously embarrasing moments, but I also had some moments that made me smile for days on end.

Lately I feel like I haven't been taking the risks that I did then. I've become pretty complacent doing things that don't fail rather than things that could really be great. I haven't been swinging for the fences quite as often. And I miss it.

Part of it is self defense. I got really involved in my work last year, and there were some casualties in my personal life that resulted from it. Some I've been able to fix, some I haven't.

But I know a lot more now than I did back then. I've learned a lot about people and about myself. And it's time to start swinging for the fences again.

Because you really are only as good as your last concert.