Perfectionism is holding you back:

‍

Perfectionism is holding you back.

‍

No one is perfect so stop pretending to be.

‍

You don’t need to be perfect to start.

‍

You need to start.

‍

Even if it sucks.

I’ll guarantee you it will suck.

‍

That’s ok.

‍

The point is to go.

‍

It’s to not be afraid of what’s to come, put effort into your craft and keep pushing.

‍

People will take notice, even ones you’ve never met.

‍

Went to a work event last week where I was talking to some friends at other investment firms when this girl came up.

‍

She’s one of the analysts at another firm and was one of the organizers of the event.

‍

She knew someone I was talking to so introduced myself.

‍

First thing she said to me, ‘Wait, are you the daily blogger?’

‍

I was like ‘Hm I have a blog but it’s not daily so I don’t think it’s me.’

‍

Then she said ‘Really? Because I saw this guy had recently written a lot of blog posts as a way to challenge himself and I’m super impressed with how he’s been able to do it.’

‍

‘Oh yea that’s me. Thanks! Do you have any feedback?’

‍

‘Nah just well done.’

‍

Someone who I had never met before noticed me for something I shared online.

‍

It was cool.

‍

What I appreciated is that she was impressed with the commitment to writing, even if it sucked.

‍

Here’s the secret - most of your work will suck.

‍

Any time you do anything creative, you don’t know what will happen.

‍

You don’t know where it’ll go.

‍

You don’t know who it’ll touch.

‍

You don’t know who will see it.

‍

You have no control over any of those things.

‍

But you do have control over effort.

‍

You have control over committing to your craft.

‍

Constantly improving.

‍

Constantly pushing the envelope of what you believe.

‍

Working again and again, even when it’s hard.

‍

Even when you don’t like what you do.

‍

Even when your self-doubt is running rampant.

‍

Even when your mind is telling you you’re a failure.

‍

You have to persist.

‍

You have to keep it going.

‍

Share your gift with the world, even if people don’t want to see it.

‍

You have a duty to yourself and society to share what you love.

‍

A lot of people will hate it and that’s ok.

‍

Don’t mind them.

‍

Don’t let their false beliefs about your work hold you back from pursuing your dreams.

‍

But the road to your dreams is hard.

‍

It’s fucking brutal.

‍

It’s filled with tons of failure, heartbreak, and death.

‍

That’s part of it.

‍

But you have to keep showing up.

‍

Conquer your muse as per Stephen Pressfield in ‘War of Art’

‍

Conquer your resistance.

‍

The amateur makes excuses, the professional goes to work.

‍

He/she knows most of the stuff they do will suck, but they continue to show up.

‍

Here’s the secret to solving perfectionism - start.

‍

It won’t be perfect.

‍

Nothing ever is.

‍

But you’re holding yourself back.

‍

Never forget this - the only person stopping you from accomplishing your goals is yourself.

‍

No one else.

‍

So fuck the idea of perfectionism.

‍

Stop overthinking.

‍

Get to work and let everything else go.

‍