Check this out…it’s an image of what my website first looked like when I originally got started way back in 2007:

…and here’s the first video I ever put up on YouTube:

I’m not showing you this so you can see how far I’ve come, but so YOU can remind yourself that we all need to start somewhere.

Be Inspired, Not Compared…

On your path to be more successful at anything (a blog, a musical instrument, your dating life or anything else), let the people who are already successful in that be a source of inspiration, NOT a source of comparison, because – like my father would always tell me – “No matter how good you are at something, there’ll ALWAYS be somebody better.”

He didn’t say this to me so I would feel defeated…he said this to me so that I wouldn’t get caught up in measuring my own progress against an impossible standard of people who were already ahead.

There’s no logic to not feeling motivated simply because you’re not one of the best: there will ALWAYS be somebody who paints better paintings, writes better songs, generates more revenue or has more karate trophies in his living room then you do. Just accept this as the reality and give it your best anyway.

Now you may be thinking to yourself, “What if I’m just starting out, and I’m THE WORST person I know???” And the answer is that this still applies because your goal is to better yourself, not to be better then anybody else out there.

It’s not a competition, and even in things where it IS a competition, it’s still not a competition… Let me explain:

A Sports Analogy:

When you ask NFL players why it is they won a game as opposed to an equally-capable opponent, you get answers detailing their mental state:

“Well, they were a great team too, we just wanted it more.”

When you ask NBA stars about their performance on a particular night, you get answers referring to their drive or team-dynamics:

“I knew I had to come through for the team, so I gave it my all,” or, “We came together and decided that we were going to take it just one play at a time.”

Typically, it’s the commentators, sports analysts and fans – the people OUTSIDE the game – who focus more on comparing statistics and technicalities. The people out there making it happen know that the real game is inside themselves…

So with whatever it is you have going on, don’t allow yourself to get intimidated. Just “play your position”: learn from the people ahead of you, set realistic, feasible goals based on your particular situation and focus only on being better then what you once were. See the motivation section of this blog for more…

Peace,
+B