Fantastic.
Absolutely fantastic.
That's the best way that I can describe what is presented in the following video.
Ira Glass on Storytelling from David Shiyang Liu on Vimeo.
This really struck home for me. What Ira Glass had to say applies to all sorts of creative endeavors. The part that particularly hit home with me is my recetn experience with the building of my coamings and hatch for the skin-on-frame kayak I'm building. I'm not totally happy with my results. They are my third go-around with building them, but they are OK - finally. You can think about things and read about things, but until you start doing them, you won't get better at them to the point where you will satisfy yourself and your sense of what personal idea of perfection is.
I tell my students as we're applying fiberglass and epoxy to their canoes - half jokingly - that they'll be really good at it after their fourth or fifth canoe. There is some truth to the matter because without practice, you'll never get better whether you write, play music, a sport, create art or create beautiful boats. So, don't be disappointed with whatever you produce and remember it is all a part of the process of getting better at what you want to do!
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2 comments:
...this really resonated for me too...there simply aren't any shortcuts...
No, there aren't any shortcuts. It takes hard work, determination and practice. All masters of their craft were once students, and in some ways, I think that anyone who is good at what they do are a lifetime student.
In retrospect, I always find that my students are somewhat disappointed in their work as they are doing it as it doesn't meet that idea of "greatness" that they have in their head. However, I find that the annual exhibition of student work is very important at the school where I teach. I encourage the students to come and stay to talk with visitors about what they've done. Only then do they realize all the things that they have learned, albeit incrementally.
When they see the awe and wonder in the eyes of people seeing their work, and hear the compliments, only then do they realize that their work has greater worth than they could give themselves credit for.
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