If you’re simply following [shortcuts] you probably won’t get anywhere interesting. It’s the detours that pay off.*
Seth Godin

On the other path [before Hercules] stood a sterner goddess in a pure white robe. She made a quieter call. She promised no rewards except those that came as a result of hard work. It would be a long journey, she said. There would be sacrifice. There would be scary moments. But it was a journey fit for a god. It would make him the person his ancestors meant him to be.**
Ryan Holiday

After arising and before the work begins,
I take a detour,
I have for many years now,
Into a journal and reading and doodling and
discovery and wonder and,
I hope,
A little personal development
along the way.

And some detours can last a lifetime:
And, some detours can turn into a lifetime.

Seth Godin’s blog: Actual shortcuts often appear to be detours;
Ryan Holiday’s Discipline is Destiny.