On being realistic

I don't believe in being realistic.  I believe in things that aren't real, that haven't yet become real.

I need to.  Because the only way I can motivate myself to take action is by believing in a reality that does not yet exist.  I need to believe in a result or outcome that has not yet been seen.  I have to believe that what I do will make a difference -- that the reality, which I see today will not necessarily be the one I see tomorrow.

So please don't tell me to be realistic.  I just don't work that way.

Your test

I wrote this for Sahar today and I realized that I need this reminder myself...

Know that wherever you are, whoever you're with, whatever situation you're facing -- is exactly what Allah has written for you.  This is your test.

Impress Him.

Expose your ignorance

I'm reading about how to be a successful entrepreneur. 

It's stuff I've heard before -- about making mistakes, about learning by doing (as opposed to learning and then doing)... about just doing.

And one line that hit me was "Expose your ignorance".

I think that's one of the things that just holds us back so unnecessarily.  We have this image of perfection that we want to uphold.  An immaculate reputation.  An unattainable ideal.

So we hold back.  And plan and analyze and research and get stuck in a vortex of confusion and uncertainty and second guessing.  Analysis paralysis.

We're afraid to do anything until we know it's going to be perfect.

But we can't know it's going to be perfect.

In fact, we know it's not going to be perfect.  Because we're not perfect.  Nothing in this world is.

So rather than aim for something unreachable and set ourselves up for disappointment, we can just do.  And be.  True.  To who we are.

"Expose your ignorance"

The pitfalls of perfect

I think I've made this reflection several times, but it keeps coming back.  I clearly haven't learned the lesson yet.

Perfect is the enemy of good.

I have this idea in my head of how I want the blog posts to be.  I want to re-count my Zimbabwe trip in a contiguous series of posts (which at this point is already broken).  And I'm getting to the part that was just so awesome, I don't think any post will do it justice.  So I just leave it.  It doesn't get done.

And because I don't want to post anything else until I post the rest of that trip, nothing else gets done either.  Ideas come and go and nothing is written.  Everything is on hold for this unattainable contiguous ideal in my head that I'm sure doesn't matter to anyone else.

It's ridiculous, really.

So, I'm letting that go.  I may or may not post the rest of the pictures from that trip.  But even if I don't, I'm not going to let that stop me from posting other things.

Phew.  That's better.