But everyone feels self-doubt about their work.
It’s just a matter of managing that feeling and making progress, step by step.
This post originally appeared onJames Clear’s blog.
In the beginning, it was easy.
There was no pressure.
There were no outside eyes.
There were no expectations.
I wrote about what I wanted to write about.
I wrote because I wanted to get my thoughts down.
I wrote because I felt like I needed to write.
After a few months of sharing my work publicly, things began to change.
As I developed an audience, I noticed that I began judging my work.
I began comparing new articles to my most popular ones.
Thankfully, I didn’t let my self-doubt stop me from writing.
I figured this was part of the creative process for anyone who created things consistently.
In a way, this is true.
Everyone deals with self-doubtartists, creators, entrepreneurs, athletes, parents.
But in a way, I was wrong.
Self-doubt is not a cost you have to pay to become better.
Let’s talk about why.
It is a book about life, not just tennis.
We treat it as a seed, giving it the water and nourishment required of a seed.
The rose is a rose from the time it is a seed to the time it dies.
Within it, at all times, it contains its whole potential.
Ambition and contentment are not opposites, but we often make the mistake of thinking that they are incompatible.
The rose seed, however, is both content and ambitious.
As Gallwey says, at no point are we dissatisfied with the current state of the rose seed.
It is perfectly all right at each moment.
Yet, it is also incredibly ambitious.
The rose seed never stops growing.
It is constantly seeking to get to the next level.
Every day it is moving forward, and yet, every day it is just as it should be.
Is Judgment Required for Success?
Do you have to be unhappy with your work to discover the drive to become better?
Does judging ourselves make us any better?
Those tasks are easier said than done, of course.
Point A is getting your first 1,000 readers.
Point B is landing a book deal.
Point C is speaking internationally about your work.
Point A is making $10,000.
Point B is making $100,000.
Point C is making $1,000,000.
Point A is squatting 100 pounds.
Point B is squatting 300 pounds.
Point C is squatting 500 pounds.
Point A is selling your first print.
Point B is showing your work in a gallery.
Point C is making a full-time living from your work.
Every outcome you could achieve is simply a point along the spectrum of repetitions and time.
Everyone’s spectrum of repetitions is unique: your spectrum is different than mine.
In fact,there is no bad work or good work.
Just as there is no such thing as a rose seed that is a bad rose bush.
There are just points in time and repetitions completed.
Release the desire to define yourself as good or bad.
Release the attachment to any individual outcome.
The only thing you’re able to control is the next repetition.
Or, download his 38-page guide onTransforming Your Habits
Image bybplanet(Shutterstock).
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