Where are you going that you haven't already arrived?

This week I had one of those "pinch yourself" moments where I was lying in bed watching YouTube videos that were dishing out advice on various topics. In an active position where you're sitting in a chair taking notes, this doesn't seem that odd, but lying in bed it kind of felt a little nauseating.

I realized that taking in lessons in this way can be a bit problematic. We sometimes get into a trap where we start stuffing information into our minds and can't actively process it by implementing what we've learned. We're just sitting there supine, as if someone is feeding us this content through an intravenous drip.

The question I asked my newsletter audience this week at the end of the email is, "Where are you going to which you haven't already arrived?". This speaks to the endless pursuit of "more more more", always improving the self. Add more muscle mass until you look like nothing more than a granite countertop shaped like a human. You can spend your whole life watching tutorials and opinions and you will never do a darn thing to explore the things you love.

I always wish that after people read my work on these topics that they just close the laptop or put away their phone and do their Most Creative Work (MCW).

Alan Watts once joked that a group of people were asked to lie down on the floor and pretend that they were melting into it. And that this idea can terrify people. They are worried that they might disappear or something. This is the idea that we are always looking for something to grasp onto. It might shine some light onto the subject of why our minds are always so busy looking for improvements. We're often not happy to just appreciate things the way they are.

I dream of creating experiences where people can kind of melt into a certain subject matter or a soundscape. I often have to stop myself from coming up with business models and schemes to move people through a maze. That's why it's enjoyable to write a piece like this that kind of just floats ideas around.

This reminds me of the first essay in my ebook Failure. I wrote about how important it is to Start Where You Are. I think that researching topics on YouTube or looking at influencers in your field on Instagram can cross over into the territory of paralysis very fast. We must learn how to turn these things off, which starts by closing windows on your computer, and reconnecting with what your work is truly about.

This can mean starting from scratch for a bit. If you're a painter, you might have to take 20 minutes to start doodling and moving a bit of paint around. On a bigger scale, if you're trying to build a large audience, you might want to start thinking about how you can serve your small and humble audience first.

Starting with where we are also taps into the idea of unity in our life's work. A lot of self-improvement might be focused on the ideas of growth and becoming a new and better version of yourself, but you could also take the opposite stance. That the growth might exist by remembering who you are and where you came from and being one with that.

While I might want to burn new skills on the guitar into my hands, it can be just as liberating to remember that I was tinkering with guitar pedals and recording as a teenager, and to just celebrate this lifelong journey. The growth is in coming home. Returning to your passion.

Constantly striving to be the best is a trait in humanity that can be applauded, and surely has contributed to our longevity so far. Yet this way of living edges on the side of weakness very quickly.

Do overachievers look truly happy? I know that this is a blanket statement and that there are many happy high-achievers out there. But we all know the overachiever who does not feel ok with themselves and therefore has to be constantly busy or showered with love.