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• The economy will be going gangbusters.
• Your knowledge will reach critical mass.
• Your boss will give you the go ahead (and agree to take the heat if things don’t work out)
• Your family situation will be stable.
• The competition will stop innovating.
• Someone else will drive the carpool, freeing up a few hours a week.
• There won’t be any computer viruses to deal with, and your neighbor will return the lawnmower.

Then…

You can ship, you can launch your project, you can make the impact you’ve been planning on.

Of course, all of these things won’t happen. Why not ship anyway?

[While others were hiding last year, new products were launched, new subscriptions were sold and new companies came into being. While they were laying low, websites got new traffic, organizations grew, and contracts were signed. While they were stuck, money was being lent, star employees were hired and trust was built.

Most of all, art got created.

That’s okay, though, because it’s all going to happen again in 2011. It’s not too late, just later than it was.

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Along the way, many of the linchpins who are able to do work like this develop affectations, quirks and even obnoxious qualities. They might demand an over-equipped dressing room or a private jet or merely be a jerk in meetings (or show up late, which is almost as bad).

We often put up with this, because, after all, they’re superstars, right?

Somewhere along the way, we confused the signals with the work. Now there are people who start with the bad behavior and the affectations, hoping that it will be seen as a sign of insight and talent. And they often get away with it. “Who’s that?” we wonder… “I don’t know, but they must be good at what they do, because why else would we put up with them?” It’s a great plan when it works, but I don’t think it’s a strategy to be counted on.

The key to getting a reputation for being brilliant is actually being brilliant, not just acting like you are.