I’m a pretty big fan of This American Life, listening back when I was in my early teens. Public radio is pretty much unheard of when you’re that young, but one day I just started listening (probably because it made me feel older?). Haven’t stopped since…

Anyways, I watched this video. And at the end (I can’t believe I’m writing this) I broke down a little. As soon as Ira started to say, “It takes a while, its going to take you a while, AND THAT’S NORMAL… you just have to fight your your way through it… you will make things that aren’t as good as you know in your heart you want them to be, over and over again…

Hearing someone whom I respect and well, sort of grown up with say, “I was not good for a very long time, but I got there” and then say “you may not feel like you are very good either, and that’s okay, just keep going”… well it struck me.

Look, I just turned 20, I started my first real job co-oping at a design firm two weeks ago… I have spent the past two years (and still have 3 to go) working my ass off trying to compete at a design school that tells us we HAVE to be good… and its hard. It’s the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Sure I like what I’m doing, but I hate my work. Every thing I make I tear apart, and it worries me. When you’re being taught in an environment that acts like you should be professionals right now, it makes you doubt yourself. It makes you feel like you are the only designer that is behind.

But, the truth is, I am not amazing at what I do. Nor are my friends… we can barely pass as good. WE ARE LEARNING, and its going to take a lot of work and determination just to do work that actually is considered “good”.

So in conclusion, my work still disappoints me. But I’m learning and I’m working…and I can accept that.

It’s not just radio. Turn on Food TV there are several hosts that do the same thing. The most disturbing thing is it is like the famous FNORD, once you see it it’s everywhere.

So, to anyone who’s worked through the suck, is there really an end in sight? Does it ever get any easier?

p.s. @brandon - Dude. You’re 20. Give yourself a break.

There is an end to the suck stage and it is worth the effort. The bad news is you take on the next challenge and everything starts again. Rather like the buddhist concept that life is suffering.

Mashedspud Green lasers rulz

Great video - painful but true.

You might be able to continually halve the gap between taste and quality.

But that distance can always be halved - again -

Snatch the Pebble From My Hand, Grasshopper.

The alternative view is to eventually stop comparing yourself negatively to everything, just relax and figure so long as you’re trying it’ll at least be acceptably good, and one day you wake up and you know what? It’s all looking and sounding pretty damned good. Not perfect every day. Not your best work every moment. But enough of what you produce is beyond the suck that you’re OK with the rest of it.

And that’s when you realize just how mediocre and small your existence really is and you want to take a heated spork and lift your eyeballs out of their sockets like a modern-day Oedipus who can’t stand to view the ragged remains of what you used to call a ‘life.’

Oh, no - wait, sorry that last paragraph was meant for the emo blog. Bad ctrl+v error, sorry.

...I just stumbled on this interesting idea for a conference on failures. Being not really a software guy but a story guy, I also think the concept would make for a great documentary/"inspirational" book.

I also liked this clip enough to seek out the whole video. It's yonder, and has some great advice about creating a narrative that works. Which is always useful.

I'm always shocked when someone tells me they don't like This American Life. I've always thought Ira Glass was a really admirable guy. I can't tell you how many times I've sat in my driveway for twenty or thirty minutes to listen to the end of This American Life.

I'm hyper-self-critical and I've always thought that was a key to always improving. The other key is to pay attention to your progress and feel good about that. Even when you're not happy with where the level of your work is, feel good about where its going. Basically you should be critical of your work to help yourself improve, but proud of the improvement so you don't just get down on yourself all the time.

-Brad
WDWForGrownups