This quote so eloquently puts in words a concept which comes up again and again in my research and through my interviews.

The one thing nobody tells a beginner is: your idea will feel stupid to you for a long time.

So many of us have great ideas, yet when we put them into practice the self-doubt begins to swirl and before we know it our thoughts are permeated by the sense that our idea is ridiculous.

This feeling renders us incapable of pushing on or moving to the next phase.

So we give up; we’re done; gave it our best shot we tell ourselves. Who were we to be brilliant anyway?

Enough!

I know this block and understand it to be true of so many people no matter what age or stage we are.

As Ira says:

“A lot of people never get past this phase; they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know that it’s normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you finish just one piece. It’s only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions…”

Screen shot this quote.

What’s your special thing? Please let me know in comments…