The Underdogs
People understand when you say you’re “going to work” and they mostly leave you to it. But when your work is not so mainstreamed, like writing, you raise a lot of eyebrows. Still, a bad day writing is better than a good day doing anything else, so I’ll take it.
But I’ve spent a good deal of my life defending my time. I’ve defended staring out the window when needing my thoughts to settle. I’ve defended walking away from my computer to go water plants or scrub a sink in order to clear my head. There are times I’ve needed to get out of my own headspace and times I’ve needed to dive in deeper.
I’ve also had to defend staying in my office all day and foregoing dinner and forgetting what day it is because I’m in a story up to my eyeballs and don’t want to stop my momentum. On those days, I’d love to be more like Hemingway, who had a quitting time. It wouldn’t matter if he were mid-sentence; when it was, say, 4 o’clock, he’d stop writing. Then he’d pick right back up the next day. That kind of faith in the words takes practice and discipline. But it’s a worthwhile goal: If I show up, the words will show up. And he didn’t waste a lot of time getting back into a project the next day. Since he left mid-sentence, he simply continued where he left off.
Sometimes working on our own goals looks like we’re working too hard, and sometimes it looks like goofing off. But what it looks like to others doesn’t matter. What matters is what we’re getting done. The secret, I think, is not to let anyone else’s opinions really get into your head.
In our regular, mainstream lives, there are times when you’re not feeling well, or you get interrupted again and again throughout the day, or someone comes along with a suggestion you didn’t think of yourself. Do you fall apart? Give up? Question your abilities to the point of inaction? No. You don’t even consider these options. And so it should be with chasing down your dreams: A belief in yourself. A belief in your work. That’s easy to say, right? Well, living near Pittsburgh, I do have an advantage. We have a strong underdog mentality in general and especially with our sports teams. When we’re outmatched, outnumbered, or simply down on our luck, we can still rise to the challenge. We rise because deep down we know we can do it. We’re in our element. No one else needs to believe; we’ll prove it to them.
Imagine: It’s the fourth quarter, you’re down by seven, you approach the line, get into your stance; you’re in the mud, with a cold rain driving down on you. Now open your eyes. What you feel next—uncomfortable, worried, focused, ready—depends on how much you’ve practiced.
There are times you’ll feel you’re the only one who believes in you--and that’s a lonely road—but don’t ditch the path just for that reason. Think of your goals and what you need in order to accomplish them. Make a list if you like. No, really, make a list. I’ll wait. [I’m humming the Final Jeopardy! music.] Ok, got your list? Let me ask you this: Is there a cheerleader on your list? I’m guessing not. And why is that? Because no one ever said you needed a fan club in order to chase down your dreams. Mind you, it helps. Having even one person say good job to you is exponentially like getting 10,000 pats on the back. That one compliment can fuel you for weeks. But even without a cheerleader or any outside support, you can chase down your dreams and catch them.
Defend your time. Get uncomfortable. Practice. Rise to the challenge. Topple the giant. You can do the hard things.
No matter what anybody says, you can. And you will.
