Amid resting, I’ve had a lot of time to think, reflect, and consume content.
I came across Jack Conte’s presentation called Nothing Works recently, and I loved it. It resonates with me.
Everyone has failed. Even the gurus and experts you look up to have failed. Probably more than they’ve succeeded.
This is something that doesn’t get talked about enough.
To be successful, you must be willing to endure failure.
To be successful, you must be willing to endure failure. Click To TweetAnd, as Conte shares, we’ve got to accept that most of what we do won’t work.
Occasionally, we stumble upon an idea that takes off like a unicorn. But it’s a unicorn. It’s rare. It doesn’t happen all the time.
I’m a bit of an archivist. I like the idea of keeping track of the things I’ve done through the years.
And through watching Conte’s presentation, I came to the realization that I’ve mostly been keeping a log of my spectacular failures.
I’m beginning to identify which of those things I would ultimately consider a success – small or large, and they are certainly the exception and not the rule.
I’ve had a few websites I would consider a success…
A YouTube channel that experienced a bit of traction over time…
A book that did decently (I have five books)…
A single that did okay…
At this point, I’m still not exactly sure how many things I would consider a success on any scale, but it’s a dozen things or less to be sure.
And that’s out of the thousands of things I’ve created over the years (including this blog post).
I’m coming to accept that this is par for the course. And it’s okay to try. To experiment. And to fail.
Maybe it’s not so much about the failure lessons after all, even though there can be value in those.
Maybe it’s more about engaging in work that interests and excites you. Getting swept up in the process of doing rather than worrying about outcomes.
I’m going to be embracing the process of experimentation more.
And I hope you do too, because music, creativity, and business can be cruel mistresses that leave your persistence unrewarded. You might even end up giving your all before you realize that a project was doomed from the start, and is doing little more than sucking the life out of you.
There are times to keep going, and times to move on.
There are times to keep going, and times to move on. Click To TweetBut within the context of what you’re committed to doing right now, try more. Experiment more. You don’t know what’s going to work anymore than anyone else does. Let yourself be free creatively.
Because if you were to track the stats, you’d see that nothing works. Which is every reason to create more.
If you were to track the stats, you'd see that nothing works. Which is every reason to create more. Click To Tweet
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