Be honest, what’s something you’ve always wanted to do but never started?
You want to…but it needs to be perfect, right?
But perfect is just another word for fear — you need to start now.
Even if you have to start ugly.
In this Takeover episode, Casey Cheshire speaks with Chris Krimitsos, Chief Creative Officer at Podfest Multimedia Expo, about why starting ugly is better than never starting at all.
The problem with perfect
Perfect isn’t always a good thing.
Sure, you want the things you do to be the best they can be, but the more important thing is actually doing them.
Something you have executed poorly is better than something you were too afraid to do.
And afraid is the operative word — because in reality, what you are seeing as perfectionism is really just a synonym for fear.
Especially if you are success-oriented.
“If you’re successful and achievement-oriented, you call the fear of getting started ‘perfectionism.’”
The thing is, everything people have ever started started ugly. Because the only way you can ever master anything is by doing it.
And it’s not the end of the world if it isn’t perfect — you can revise and learn from every mistake you make.
If you are doing things right, you’ll be learning as you go and it won’t always be ugly.
Living your dreams
When you think of all the things you haven’t started, you may just think you are putting it off until later…
But how much “later” is there, really?
If you’ve always wanted to master the guitar, then, unless you are loading up on superfoods, starting when you are 80 doesn’t give you a lot of time to do it.
Life is short — so live it while you can.
“You really have to think intentionally about what you want in life and how to create it. Because before you know it, it’s over.”
And even if you are unsure about something, starting ugly helps you figure out the things you like and don’t like in life.
If you are stuck wondering whether you should have pursued something, then you probably should have.
But there is good news: It’s not too late!
Learning is a lifelong process and as long as you’re learning the way that works the best for you, then starting new things is never something you are too old for.
Learning in your own way is one of the critical ways you can turn those ugly starts into triumphant successes…
Of course, first you need to define it.
Defining success
Two of the biggest issues that stop people from starting is that they place limits on what they can achieve — or they don’t even know what they want to achieve.
For Chris, he had already had a successful career and built a lot of wealth — but it turns out, that wasn’t really what he wanted to achieve in life.
He wanted to help people.
So he pivoted to a job where he could do just that, which leaves him intellectually and spiritually fulfilled.
“I help people and when you help people you learn a lot about their industries.”
Part of this became the entrepreneurial organization he runs, a place where, among other things, high-achievers discuss their goals.
Even here, with like-minded people, he’s encountered folks limiting their potential. In one meeting, he mentioned his goal of being able to get a private aircraft for travel…
And a room with some incredibly successful people in it filled with the sounds of those people saying this was an unattainable dream for them.
But how could they know that?
They’ve never started trying to achieve it — even an ugly start towards that goal might end in their own personal jet to fly in style.
By limiting what you think is possible to achieve, you’ve cut yourself off from opportunities that may, as it turns out, be infinitely more achievable than you might think.
So, whatever it is that you want in life, get started on it now.
Even if it’s an ugly start.
This is a #FlipMyFunnel podcast. Check us out on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or here.
