Working out our ideas in public, whether via a speech or blog post, is an opportunity to dance with fear. The amygdala senses nothing but survival when the stakes are drawn in the continuous present.
Luckily, taking on vulnerability and accountability often leads to something of value. Starting before we’re ready begs the question: what else is possible when we put our mind to it?
When we actively perform, we have something to play with, revise, and perfect. Practice is a magical power that sharpens our discipline and improves our craft.
Of course, there are many periods of consolidation. There’s typically an apex and then a dip in form, the latter compelling us to keep learning and keep going despite inevitable gaps in knowledge. The more we know, the more we need to know. We come prepared to discover.
Making stuff means showing up and expecting to get trammeled by pernicious doubt, distractions, and feelings of inadequacy. We have to surrender to the possibility of sucking. What if the labor of love is a waste of time?
We invest in the work with the intent to discover who we are, explore possibilities, to reap the rewards of persistence. The hardest part awaits further.
As they say, the road is better than the end. They don’t tell you that enough along the way, or maybe the advice falls flat because fledglings are too perpetually restless to listen.