“But what if it doesn’t work?”
This is a question I ask myself often. If I come across supremely confident all the time – that isn’t reality.
More often than not, I don’t know if what I’m doing is a good idea, if it will work, or if there’s a better course of action that I’m not considering.
When I’m at my most panicked, I go seek the opinion of others.
But, more often than not – I’m not actually seeking information when I do this. I’m asking for permission to act. Worst case scenario, if it doesn’t work, then I can blame someone else’s “bad advice” and not feel as stupid.
Awful, right?
But we do that all the time. Much more often then we’d care to admit.
Gatekeepers
“It’s endlessly interesting to me that the same sort of people who want to work for themselves because they’re tired of gatekeepers are the same sort of people who needlessly put gatekeepers in front of their work. It’s like learning you don’t need a record label to publish your music on iTunes, and then making sure you ask the top artists in your genre what they think of your tunes before you share them with the world. Or knowing that you can publish an online course or book whenever you want, for almost zero dollars, but instead feeling the need to talk to eight course makers who have six or seven figure courses to find out what software they use for their courses (hint: no one buys software because of the platform or software it uses). Asking for help or guidance isn’t wrong, it’s just not always required to proceed.”
That quote above is from Paul Jarvis. I can’t suggest to you enough to sign up for his emails – in just a few weeks they’ve been incredibly valuable to me.
Not to mention I love what he has to say here – it’s both true and funny.
I’ve told you this before, and I’ll tell you again (and again) – you don’t need permission.
As an artist, creative, whatever – you’re free to do what you want to do right now.
You can write a book, make an album, write and release a song a week, create a subscription service, record a video course, vlog, blog, sell sound effects, write and release your own software, network, make a bunch of money – whatever.
You can do any of those things – nobody’s stopping you.
Maybe, maybe circumstances are stopping you – if you can’t afford a computer that can run audio software for example (which… even many of the cheapest laptops can now), then you’re hosed. But that’s a minority of you.
The rest of us – we’re just scared.
Therefore, when there are no gatekeepers – we make them up ourselves rather than stare hard work in the face and do it.
Or, as Paul Jarvis put it –
“We’ve traded gatekeepers for gurus, and continue to seek permission and guidance to do what we want to do with our work.“
Do
The most valuable way I’ve ever learned anything is by doing it. Simple execution gives me more accurate data than any amount of classroom learning, online courses, or advice.
And I’m scared out of my mind every time I execute.
But, when I do – all of my questions get answered.
Like –
- How much money do people actually make from online products?
- Can I really run my own business successfully?
- How do you build an email list of excited customers and clients?
- How do you get anyone at all to look at what you’re doing?
- Why do some people fail so hard?
- What can I do to be in the small segment of people that succeeds?
- Can I actually “do what I love” for a living and be my own boss?
Nobody can answer those questions for me. Nor for you.
Those kinds of things are only learned through action and experience – where you amass data and constantly ask yourself “what am I doing wrong?”
In other words – the life of a creative, of an audio professional or entrepreneur – if it were written into a formal job description, one major bullet point would be –
- Is capable of, and willing to be, an effective trailblazer
Often, you have to go strike out your own path – where there will be no promise of return for your risk. Your path may look similar to others, but nobody can walk it for you.
Just don’t lie to yourself and believe there’s someone or something in your way.
There’s nothing.
It’s just that the first step is the worst – it’s scary.
But most people who take that first step respond with “oh… that wasn’t so bad!”, and then start walking.
Then your job, forever, is just to keep walking. Even when you have no idea where you’re going.
And, if you learn nothing else from this –
You don’t need to ask permission. Especially from me. I’m no guru.
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