I’ve spent almost the entirety of my career running with the idea that I’m behind in this profession due to going to the wrong school, working at the wrong job, and living in the wrong place. Because of those cold, hard facts, I had to overcompensate. When I figured out what I was doing, I had to work harder. I needed to put in more time. I took on more projects, with more people, and more commitments. If I was going to make a name for myself in this profession, which is what I came to want, I needed to bust my fucking ass over and over in order to make it so.
And if there was a point I was trying to prove to myself, who is the most important person to being proving this type of point to, I’m saying right here, right now, I’ve proven it. That’s certainly not to say there’s any ending in sight when it comes to the work that I do and who I do it for. But that is to say, I’m over running with the idea that I’m behind. In fact, I’m right where I want to be in this career. Because of that, there’s a slight shifting in how I view the work I do. I know it’s good, I know it matters, and I know it makes a difference. And where I went to school, who I worked for, and where I live is irrelevant.
The shift I’m talking about isn’t changing the idea of what I’m running with. It’s the shift to no longer running. That’s the crucial point. This is a steady state stake in the ground. This is what I do, who I do it for, how it gets done, and where I operate from, both physically and philosophically. And it now happens at a quick, measured pace, from a position of confidence and strength. An understanding of weaknesses and poor fits. Ready to navigate troubled waters in order to get to destinations I see coming into fuller view.
