I just discovered Nat Eliason.
No, the main image above isn’t him.
I still really have no idea who he is beyond one article he wrote (I’ll read more of his articles later), but this one titled “How to Be (Reasonably) Hard on Yourself” was fairly impactful to me and I wanted to share here.
https://blog.nateliason.com/p/reasonably-hard-on-yourself
In his essay, he essentially states that the gains made on any project are significant in the beginning, but lessen over time. This is why it feels so good to start something new — you feel powerful, creative, you’re making gains, finding success.
But as time goes on those successes are smaller or fewer and farther between. The quality of the project isn’t increasing as much as when you first started. And this is why people often quit things soon after they started — the thrill is gone.
There are four key parts to his “mantra”:
- It’s Good
- It Can Be Better
- Eventually it Will Be Good Enough
- Next Time Will Be Even Better
It’s really important to recognize these elements so you don’t unnecessarily beat yourself up over things. First and foremost, just get started on something. Remember “something is better than nothing” so that’s where part 1 begins. Soon it’ll be good. Quickly followed by part 2, “it can be better”. Of course it can. It ALWAYS can. You see where this is going.
Just get started on that project you’ve been thinking about but have been putting off. At some point you’ll get to where you have to put it down and think to yourself “this is enough”.
