“You don’t need to be incredible at what you do. You need to be incredible at choosing the context in which you do it.” Well said.
I always appreciate new metaphors for making sense of the world. I had never thought of a physics/density-based one for competition and differentiation. So thanks for sharing that. Are you familiar with the blue ocean/red ocean metaphor in business? Your metaphor reminded me of it.
It’s also probably worth clarifying one’s criteria of success. If fame and fortune are high on the list, differentiation, uniqueness, and excellence are important. But if the expectation is personal satisfaction and joy from mere participation in an endeavor, that’s fine too. You discuss the importance of context in the above essay, and that strikes me as another way of adjusting the context/surroundings accordingly.
That said, I often feel paralyzed by the abundance of “competition” in online media. There are so many creative, talented, and ambitious people on the planet. It’s easy to succumb to imposter syndrome and wonder if it’s worth continuing to blog, write, record, or whatever. I wonder about these things regularly.
“You don’t need to be incredible at what you do. You need to be incredible at choosing the context in which you do it.” Well said.
I always appreciate new metaphors for making sense of the world. I had never thought of a physics/density-based one for competition and differentiation. So thanks for sharing that. Are you familiar with the blue ocean/red ocean metaphor in business? Your metaphor reminded me of it.
It’s also probably worth clarifying one’s criteria of success. If fame and fortune are high on the list, differentiation, uniqueness, and excellence are important. But if the expectation is personal satisfaction and joy from mere participation in an endeavor, that’s fine too. You discuss the importance of context in the above essay, and that strikes me as another way of adjusting the context/surroundings accordingly.
That said, I often feel paralyzed by the abundance of “competition” in online media. There are so many creative, talented, and ambitious people on the planet. It’s easy to succumb to imposter syndrome and wonder if it’s worth continuing to blog, write, record, or whatever. I wonder about these things regularly.