Ouch.
How often do we give up on our dreams just because they are hard?
I know I often give up when there is any sort of delayed gratification involved. I like my comforts: my chocolate, mind-numbing T.V., and the words “good enough.” I’d rather feel that instant “win” than have to wait. So I post to social media for likes and retweets, when I should really be writing slow words for the novel. I hit pause on ideas, saying they can wait until tomorrow. I declare a “brain holiday” on a Tuesday evening just because I can, when really it’s because I’m being lazy. I don’t want to do the hard work now.
Big dreams are hard because they should be.
Your dream shouldn’t be as easy as microwaving ramen. If it weren’t hard, it wouldn’t be worth it. It wouldn’t be a dream.
But what if I word hard and it still sucks?
The first round of work usually does. I love how Ira Glass says it:
“…there’s a gap, that for the first couple years that you’re making stuff, what you’re making isn’t so good, OK? It’s not that great. It’s really not that great. It’s trying to be good, it has ambition to be good, but it’s not quite that good. But your taste — the thing that got you into the game — your taste is still killer, and your taste is good enough that you can tell that what you’re making is kind of a disappointment to you, you know what I mean?”
I’m finding that the more I show up, the better I get. I’d bet money that it’s the same for you and your dream.
So I guess I’m going to quit making excuses like Calvin and go do some hard work. Join me?
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