In fact, I'm not alone in this predicament. Every other creator faces this hurdle too. How do I know? I read it in books. I've seen it on videos. Even the experts must get past the barriers of self-doubt.
If they've managed to beat this blockage to production, then they are the right group to glean from. They are the people who could show me how to jump higher so I could move to the other side, crush my current obstacles, and help me muffle out the monstrous insecurities, chucking unbidden opinions to my sensitive heart.
Isn't that how it works? We search out those who have gone before and overcome. They nourish our resolution to never give in to discouragement and give up. Follow their example.
Hours of my sleepless nights were spent buried on books -- paperback and e-paper -- seeking solutions. It's better than counting sheep. In fact, I relish the time absorbing from great minds: what works, how they did it, who they were before and who they have become later.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”
From the plethora of advice collected from my nighttime quests, one stood out. That is, to focus on who we were becoming in the process, rather than depend our progress on results we have no control over.
In introspect, it has been a year since I've set out to do better in writing. Growth may be slow, but it is perceptible (according to my own estimation). Go ahead and check out my old published posts, you'd probably jeer at my ineptitude. (Not that I'm skilled now. I was worst back then.)
This counsel did help me but not enough to curb my obsession with the statistics.
Until...
I heard this one piece of advice, coming from a Youtuber. It contained my preoccupation with numbers. She was asked how she got over the discouragement of poor audience reception during her baby step days. This is her response, not word for word, but the point.
"Simply focus on your next masterpiece."
It's unwise to depend our output on people's lack or largeness of applause. It will never be enough. This only breeds discouragement, cajoling us to reach for the white flag of defeat.
What part of the process makes you happy the most? Isn't it when we are creating?
After pondering on that advice, I manage to remove the statistics app on my phone. Sometimes I gloss over the blog stats on my laptop, but lesser to never per hour now. Then, congealed my focus -- when I'm not working or whatever else -- honing my craft, creating, and constructing. Repeat.
Observation informs me, this is where I'm satisfied the most. It painted a smile on my face when my day is spent producing.
Do you remember Genesis account?
If we think about it, the first thing God ever did, recorded in the Bible, is creating. He didn't stop to ask the angels or cherubims' opinion about His works. Or solicit reviews from Adam and Eve. He simply went ahead, spoke the universe into existence, and...
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.
~ Genesis 1:31
That's it!
When discouragement comes, I remember to focus on creating my next masterpiece. Because pleasure and satisfaction come when I am sowing seeds of productivity.
