When you have an idea, there might be some kind of temptation to save it for a more suitable time to share.
I’ve certainly felt this, coming up with something that I don’t think is ready to share, thinking something along the lines of ‘Oh I’ll touch up this idea later and then maybe share it’
But that’s not how things work in real life. There are many ideas that I’ve kept in my content bank, complete with actual outlines and ready to create that I’ve just gotten rid of because I’ve fallen out of love with or moved on from the idea.
What’s better is to, in the words of Annie Dillard, ‘Spend it all, every time’. She’s referring to a creative pursuit here, with the belief that if you make something, and you think that it’s even remotely worth sharing, then you should share it.
Ideas beget more ideas.
The other day I watched Naval Ravikant on the Modern Wisdom podcast, and he and Chris Williamson were talking about mastery. Ravikant believes that rather than 10,000 hours to reach mastery, you need 10,000 iterations. 10,000 efforts at building and sharing something before you nail it in the eyes of the world.
That means, if you want to reach that 10,000 number, you have to get started. Today. Right now.
If you’ve got something floating around in your notes app that you think could be turned into a useful or entertaining story or insight for even one person (even yourself in the future), then make it. Put it out there.
Once you’ve done this, the shackles loosen a little. You add another layer of paint, climbing towards mastery. You’re not there yet. But you won’t ever be if you don’t make and share things when inspiration strikes. So get started today, and don’t ever hold back.