What if My Best Is Not Enough?

During my flight back from Vancouver to Singapore, I watched this movie Good Will Hunting on Japan Airlines. It was such a touching show that I couldn’t hold back a tear or two.

It was a story of young genius who, because of fear, refused to allow his potential to come out, and refused to love a woman who loved him. It was touching because it spoke to me; it was about my story too.

To get it into context, Will was this young super genius that could solve super maths problems and prove theories that even the famous professors couldn’t. However, he chose to hide his potential and chose a job doing construction and being a janitor in the school. Sounds absurd?

The movie is speaking of young men today. It was talking about me.

I remembered how I used to be (and still am a little now), when the pressure for me to do well in school came on, I refused to do it; I dropped the ball. I chose not to study instead. I never wanted to put in my best. I never knew why, but at some point I figured because I was afraid. I asked and wondered to myself why,

“What if it isn’t good enough?” was the silent reply of my heart.

Till today, this same fear still plagues my heart.

Some of you know I’m building a website about leadership at www.leadership-with-you.com ; some days I seem to be doing everything else EXCEPT writing. I would have the whole concept figured out; frameworks all out, everything, but I noticed I seem to be procrastinating. I didn’t get down to writing.

Beyond some criticism from a few people around me about not being ‘qualified’, the toughest battle was within.

“Why if it isn’t good enough?” once again was the silent reply.

Today, I have a reply to that.

“No writing is perfect. Just write what you have in your head and you’ll be fine.”

It’s no easy battle to fight, and I do it everyday before I write.

You might be in the same shoes as me; you might want to do something big in your life, but you never got down to doing it; it might be singing, might be getting those As, might be starting a new business.

You’ve been thinking about it, but you’ve been paralyzed because that same fear plagues you; that your best might not be enough.

The message of the show says: Everyone has that same potential to be a genius in his/her field, but it is fear that keeps you from exploring, developing and using that potential to its fullest. You have to overcome that fear so that you will not sabotage your own success.

Speak to yourself; “you will never do a perfect work, but if you keep at it; one day you’ll be good enough!”