How to Conquer Your Fear of Creating, Part 3

“I was afraid to write Fear of Flying; ergo, I had to write it. I have lived my life according to this principal: If I’m afraid of it, then I must do it.”
- Erica Jong

Let’s dive into conquering the last 3 fears on my list:

3. Fear that you’re not good enough.

The result: You don’t create anything, and you feel unfulfilled.
The solution: Realize there’s always someone out there more experienced and talented than you, but your desire and talent is inside you for a reason, and we need your voice.

I think we’re all scared of being like those contestants on American Idol - the ones who are completely delusional about their skill-level. I can’t help but think those people are either putting us on, or they’re mentally ill. So before I continue, I’ll assume you have a healthy amount of self-awareness.

Everyone has a unique voice, and most of us are born with particular talents and inclinations. To not use them is really a waste and a shame. It also deprives others the opportunity to be inspired by you.

There’s some kid or person out there who needs you to create. Why? Because yours is the voice they relate to the most. There’s something about your style, your approach, that they can’t find elsewhere. Think for a moment of your favorite book or music. What if it didn’t exist? What if the creator decided they weren’t as good as Shakespeare or Beethoven, and so never created that thing you love?

John Mellencamp once said he could never write a song as good as Bob Dylan. He could have stopped for that reason, but he didn’t.

Let’s move on to the fourth fear:

4. Fear of overwhelm (of a big project).

The result: You don’t begin.
The solution: Make a list of steps, working backward starting from the end goal, then take action on each step.

Personally, I’m grappling with this one right now. My goal requires me to learn technical stuff I don’t feel like learning. But I realize my overwhelm is caused by not having an itemized list of tasks.

The way to clean a pile of dishes is to clean the one on top. Tell yourself you only have to clean one plate. By the time it’s clean you’ve got momentum and you reach for another one. Soon the whole sink is empty.

Let’s conquer the last fear:

5. Fear of looking foolish.

The result: No creating.
The solution: Prepare. Practice builds confidence. Then ask, what’s more painful? Going for my dream and risk looking foolish, or not trying at all?

I think it’s more painful to not try. It eats at you. You’ve got the desire but you’re bottling it up. Whether it’s getting on stage to perform a song, or asking someone out on a date, the question to always ask yourself is, If I don’t do this, will I regret it?

Everytime I post something on this blog, I get this residual feeling of panic. What if I just totally embarrassed myself? But what keeps me writing and posting is my stronger desire and goal - to share what I learn and discover with others, so that their lives might improve.

I’ll never forget watching a scene from a Making of Star Wars video. Young George Lucas is on the set of his first Star Wars film in the middle of the desert. Everything is going wrong. He’s surrounded by his nerdy creations - Jawas, Droids, Wookies - and it’s 110 degrees out. His actors are stuck in their costumes suffering from heat stroke. R2-D2 keeps toppling over. Legendary actor Sir Alec Guiness (Obi-Wan) is staring at Lucas, who looks sad and baffled, like the biggest loser in the galaxy.

But George Lucas had a strong vision, a vision that helped him endure the embarrassment of that moment. His Star Wars films went on to become classics and now, of course, he’s a gazillionaire.

And so ends my own personal trilogy about conquering the fear of creating. Hope it has helped you as much as it has me. Any comments? Leave one!