Do you like deadlines? Or do you prefer finishing things on your own schedule? How does pressure affect your creativity?

Remember the old fable about the guy building a boat? The story goes something like this. A fellow wanted to be a fisherman and sail the salty seas (or so he said).

So, of course, every fisherman needs a boat, right? Well, our man was all set up on the shore with a boat up on blocks that he was working on. But the longer it sat there, the more things he would find to work on before it was finished.

In fact, no matter how long it sat there, or how many people asked him when he might be done so that he could finally go out and torment the fishies, he always had a little more to do.

He kept finding more and more things to do on his boat to get it just right that he never finished and passed away before he ever went out to sea. But while folks may have thought that was sad, it turns out that he was just being true to himself.

Because, as it happens, our friend the would-be fisherman was actually scared of the water.

Like all old fables, this one has a moral to the story. If you find yourself wearing an identity that doesn’t really suit you, you might find yourself procrastinating all the way to the grave just to avoid doing the thing that would finally, and once and for all, make you who you are purported to be.

In other words, to borrow a phrase from famous shoe company, there’s only one way to find out. Just Do It!

For some folks, (myself included, upon occasion), there’s nothing like a drop-dead deadline to bring out great work. I’ve just never been the one to self-impose such things upon myself.

I think it has something to do with the pressure. When the clock is counting down you can’t second guess yourself in the least, you have to simply plow ahead and trust that the decision that gets you to the finish line on time is the proper one.

There’s a bit of a thrill to cutting it close, so you have to know yourself and trust your ability to deliver. Seeking perfection is a fool’s errand, it’s a receding horizon that’s always just a bit further away until it becomes a vanishing point. My version of Voltaire’s phrase is “perfection is the enemy of excellence.”

Excellence, however, is that quality of creativity that shows you when you’re in the flow and you know that 95% perfect in your own eyes is far better than anything your peers or competitors can produce and that no one but you will ever see it as anything but A+.

It’s like naturally arriving places on time. You somehow have a sense of just how many things you can fit into your schedule and as long as you stay in motion and don’t succumb to stress you’ll show up at precisely the proper moment.

Not to disparage the opposite way of doing things. There’s much to be said for having a plan of action, outlining your steps, sticking to a timeline, and methodically delivering your deliverables right when they are due.

The trick is to know yourself and be true to your nature. The world wants what you have to give, so let your mojo flow and bestow your gifts. No-one has what you have to contribute, if you don’t do it your way, it will never never appear in our world!

Much love and have a great week! See you next Monday!

M+

Mark Metz
Director of the Dance First Association
Publisher of Conscious Dancer Magazine