Almost 99% of the time I’m not sure what I’m going to write here. But almost 100% of the time I feel I’m incompetent, ignorant and just good for nothing as a writer. Thankfully, years ago I read about the real reason behind those negative thoughts — the resistance.
I wouldn’t say it’s pure evil. Some of it can be good. It’ll make you stronger and more resolute about your goals. But it can also become one of your major obstacles if not kept in check. And how do you go about it? It’s simple — keep showing up. Go through the pain of just doing the work and not worrying about the end result. It’ll be uncomfortable, ugly and just might make you want to vomit. But keep going on.
Think of your biggest successes and I can confidently say it never came easy. You struggled and fought hard for your accomplishments. Perhaps that’s why you cherish them still. Things got uncomfortable but you keep going on until you achieved what you had to. Your creative (or offbeat) pursuits aren’t any different. They won’t ever be easy and always remind you that there’s an easy way out — quitting.
Going ahead with the easier choice is your birthright. But then you’ll be missing out of the other side of pain, victory. Life’s quite unforgiving in that regard. It’ll give you a hard time doing the right things and an easy time doing the wrong things. And worst, most people suffer from the “wasted effort” syndrome. You know how that sounds — what if I fail? What if I’m not on the right track? What if there’s competition? What if there isn’t enough demand. The answer is twofold. One, there’s no freaking way you’re even going to know for sure. And two, if it makes you uncomfortable, you’re probably doing it right.