"Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do."
-Pelé
I think about time a lot.
I sometimes catch myself in the paralyzing loop of "the clock is ticking, I hope I can do enough" and "oh god, if I died today...there's so much more I want to do."
That's an unfortunate byproduct of who I am.
Perhaps you can relate.
The foreboding dread that looms at the end of the dunes of time can often infect and take root in the minds of people who opt to blaze their own trail.
Spoiler alert: that dread doesn't matter and it's a supreme waste of time.
I think it was Casey Neistat that once said, "Existentialism is a very dangerous thing. Ignore it- get back to work."
Now, that's a pretty sharp line in the sand, but I think he hits the nail on the head.
So, let's unpack that a little.
For the sake of keeping the conversation grounded (and because I'm sure you're just as tired of my metaphors as I am), allow me to use my own life as an example:
I constantly feel like I am at the starting line of my career. I work tirelessly to learn, grow, and adapt my photographic style- but it still often feels like I am far behind my peers. It feels like now matter how hard I work, I still have an infinite number of things to learn. I feel...behind.
It's very easy for that mentality to inspire sadness, even dread. It can lead to other thoughts like, "Is this worth it?" and "Am I even meant to be doing this?"
Those feelings, in combination with the fear of running out of time, produce a deadly cocktail of self-doubt and waffling that can critically debilitate a person, leaving them floating, stranded in the vast ocean of their mind.
It can leave one moving neither forwards nor backwards.
It is a very lonely feeling.
Not only are you feeling inadequate, but now you're also not moving towards becoming better. Your attitude and outlook has halted your progression.
Fortunately, there's a solution:
Recontextualization.
Simply put, recontextualization is the act of putting something into a different context. Even further, it can be likened to "looking on the bright side."
Recontextualization is a super power. It's the real-life equivalent of getting hit with a Draw Four and confidently smacking down an Uno Reverse Card.
It's staring up at your Goliath and flashing him the middle finger before kickflipping off his toga and using his nutsack like a fucking speedbag.
It's taking what you're feeling, and reevaluating it as someone who gets shit done.
I'm not behind or lost, I just have a lot to do!
Sure it's a long road, but if I get all of those things done, then guess what?
I made it.
Yeah it'll take a long time, but at the end of the day, I have that time.
I have the unique pleasure, the luxury, of being able to commit myself to the solitary purpose of creating better and better art, and it doesn't matter how long it takes. If I can be patient, I'll get there.
As a young person, I'm in the perfect position to sit down, get to work, and know that it doesn't matter if it takes 10, 20, or 50 years- I'm going to make it, I'm going to succeed.
And so are you.
So, the next time that you feel like your head is swimming, the next time that your mind is heavy under the weight of possibilities and decisions, just remember:
All that matters is that you weigh the options and make a decision.
You have time for mistakes. In fact, the more mistakes, the better you'll learn!
So go out there and do.
Do it.
Whatever it is that it is, it's yours and it's you.
It doesn't matter if you're not sure, or if you don't feel ready.
No one ever is and no one ever does.
What matters that you keep moving forward, keep practicing, keep doing.
And with time, which you have, you'll find the greatest fulfillment of your waking dreams.
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