Shift your mindset from an amateur to a professional to overcome struggles. A professional shows up every day, stays on the job, does not take success or failure personally, plays hurt, and doesn’t care how they feel, they just do the work.
Adopt the mental model of being the CEO of your own ‘corporation’ (e.g., ‘Huberman Lab, FSO, for services of Andrew Huberman’) to separate your personal self from your professional self. This allows you to pitch ideas and work with a professional detachment, removing personal judgment from failures and overcoming shyness.
If you have multiple projects, choose the one you’re most afraid of, as that fear (resistance) indicates its importance to your soul’s evolution. The bigger the dream, the bigger the resistance, signaling it’s the project you should pursue.
Recognize that suppressing your true calling or creative energy can lead to destructive behaviors such as addiction, self-abuse, or cruelty to others. Following your calling, though hard, channels this energy positively.
Recognize that life is long and presents continuous opportunities and obligations to evolve and create. This perspective encourages sustained effort and prevents the mindset of giving up or slacking off due to perceived limited time.
Engage in difficult physical activity, like going to the gym early, as a rehearsal for facing resistance in creative work. This builds momentum and makes subsequent tasks feel less daunting, acting as a ’little success’.
Capture important thoughts and ideas immediately, such as by dictating into your phone, because they are evanescent and will quickly disappear if not recorded. This ensures you don’t lose valuable insights that ‘burbble up’ when your mind is occupied elsewhere.
Before starting creative work, perform an invocation of the muse or a similar ritual, like saying a prayer out loud, to ask for inspiration and help. This practice helps open the pipeline for ideas and gets your ego out of the way.
Begin your work session by immediately plunging into the task without hesitation or wondering what to do. This direct approach helps overcome initial resistance and maintains focus.
Do not allow the inner critic to interfere during the creative process; focus on creating without judgment. Avoid reviewing the day’s work immediately or the next day to prevent perfectionism and allow for a fresh perspective on subsequent drafts.
Approach creative projects with a mindset of multiple drafts, understanding that you can only effectively fix one major thing per draft. This strategy prevents getting bogged down by perfectionism and allows for progressive refinement.
At the end of each work session, only evaluate whether you put in the time and worked as hard as you could, rather than judging the quality of the output. Trust that quality will emerge through subsequent drafts and sustained effort.
Stop working when you start making mistakes or feel tired, recognizing the point of diminishing returns to avoid hurting yourself or producing counterproductive work. Pushing too hard at the end of a long day can negatively impact the next day’s performance.
Conclude your work session when you know exactly what comes next, leaving an ’ellipse’ in your mind. This provides an easier entry point for the next session, making it less daunting to restart.
Aim for consistent daily work, even if it’s only a couple of hours, as this can be as effective as full-time dedication for artistic pursuits. It demonstrates that significant creative output is possible alongside other life commitments.
Maintain a regimented work schedule, starting at more or less the same time each day, to build consistency and routine. While flexibility is sometimes necessary, a consistent schedule supports sustained effort.
Eliminate distractions during creative work by keeping your phone away (unless for dictating notes) and ensuring the internet is not engaged on your computer. This creates a focused environment conducive to deep work.
Avoid listening to music or other auditory distractions while working to fully immerse yourself in your creative universe. This allows for deeper concentration and connection to your internal dialogue.
When creating, be highly aware of your audience, aiming to lead, seduce, and reel them in, ensuring the content is interesting and avoids repetition. The goal is to make them eager for what comes next.
Create content that is so good, interesting, and intriguing that people will overcome their initial resistance or disinterest. This applies to any form of communication, compelling the audience to engage.
Be prepared to handle success and your ‘big break’ with humility and self-regulation, as many people fail not because of inability, but because they cannot cope with the attention or changes that come with success. Develop methods to stay grounded.
Strive to ignore external feedback, both positive and negative, about your work, and instead judge it solely by your own standards. This helps maintain internal validation and prevents being swayed by public opinion.
Immediately begin the next project or iteration as soon as one is finished, viewing creative work as a continuous, lifelong practice for the love of the craft. This fosters sustained engagement and growth.
Understand that consistent exposure to negative feedback will naturally reduce its emotional impact over time. The more you put out there, the less individual comments will affect you.
Avoid overanalyzing the reasons for a project’s success or failure, as many factors like timing and promotion are beyond your control and difficult to ascertain. Focus instead on whether you did your best.
Accept that pursuing your true calling with full dedication may lead to an unbalanced life, requiring you to prioritize your craft above other aspects. This intense focus is often necessary for significant creative achievement.
Be prepared to distance yourself from friends or groups who consciously or unconsciously maintain a ‘compact of mediocrity’ and try to sabotage your efforts to grow. Seek out environments and relationships that support your high standards.
Actively seek environments where you are surrounded by individuals who are also striving and pushing themselves to high standards. Being among high achievers elevates your own standards and fosters personal growth.
Intentionally choose a slightly uncomfortable work environment, such as an uncomfortable chair, to prevent creature comforts from becoming a distraction. This encourages focus on the work itself rather than physical ease.
Refrain from complaining, viewing it as a vice and a form of resistance that saps energy and focus. Instead, channel that energy into productive action.
Commit to waking up early, regardless of prior sleep duration, to cultivate discipline and gain a head start on the day. This practice can have an antidepressant effect and increase productivity.