Give it all you’ve got

How often do we really put 100% of our effort into a particular project or goal? If you’re like me, chances are you start out just fine, but something happens along the way to derail you. Usually that “something” is pretty nebulous, or maybe even something completely unimportant.

But if you’ve ever really given something all you’ve got, putting forth a sustained effort until the project or goal was completed, chances are you’ve been really happy with the results. So why don’t we do that more often?

Well, I finally heard an answer to that question that resonated with me while listening to one of the Accidental Creative’s podcasts a while back. From podcast #127:

“When we put too much stake in what we make, then we’re always going to be tempted to shrink back or to not engage fully, because if what we make fails or if it’s not received, that’s somehow going to affect our identity.”

That’s talking about fear of failure for sure, but for the first time I finally recognized the why behind the fear of failure. And I think that’s more important.

The thing is, failing is NOT going to affect our identity. Everything is NOT at stake.

Everyone fails, at something. At many things, usually. That doesn’t make us failures or people who no longer have any meaning in our lives. It makes us people who tried something that didn’t work out the way we’d envisioned. The thing is, it doesn’t mean that we can’t try again. Maybe tweak things a little, maybe get some help, maybe try a different market, etc.

So why not really give it all you’ve got? I know I’m going to.