Subscribe to Love Mondays newsletter updates via email »
LM: #292: Borrowed worth, earned worth
One of the loneliest things about being a creator is, you can’t borrow self-worth.
If you have a degree from a prestigious university, work for a big company others have heard of, and have a title that means something, you have a lot of borrowed self-worth.
Other people know a PhD is a big accomplishment. They know that university has a great reputation. They’ve heard of your employer, and “VP of Sales,” they surmise, is just one step behind President of Sales.
WANT TO WRITE A BOOK?
Download your FREE copy of How to Write a Book »
(for a limited time)
If that isn’t enough to make you feel worthy, you might have lots of well-known clients you can list off. It sounds impressive.
I’ve had a job before. I know, this stuff feels good, and it’s real – it comes from a lot of hard work.
But a lot of that self-worth is due to the hard work of others. It can come from sources as borrowed as the city you live in. How many wannabe screenwriters feel good about themselves just for living in Los Angeles, for example?
Everybody needs self-worth, but that need stands in the paths of many would-be creators. Because to go down the path of creator, you have to leave borrowed self-worth behind.
It takes a while to gain another form of self-worth. Because as a creator you aren’t your degree, your job title, or your clients.
You are only what you make.
Aphorism: “The innovator has for enemies all those who have done well under the old conditions, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new.” —Niccolò Machiavelli
Book: Madame Bovary (Amazon) is an incredibly well-written classic, an allegory for the conflict between romanticism and rationality.
Best,
David
P.S. Today is the last day to save big throughout my store, for Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
