Who am I to do this?

Why would anyone want to listen to me? Why would anybody want to follow my creative process? That's imposter syndrome in two questions.

As a musician, I never had it. I played in front of thousands of people and felt confident every time. But when I started creating content, something strange happened. I thought, “I don’t know anything about this.”

Then I realized: that's the whole point. You're creating. That's the creative process. You don't know what people will like until you try it, and they might find it interesting.

Measuring yourself against anyone else is a fool's game. Your only job is to get 1% better every day. Small improvements and steady practice build a skill, and a skill gets results.

The more comfortable you get with what you do, the quieter imposter syndrome gets. For some people it never fully goes away, even after they become experts. That's okay. You don't have to wait for it to leave. You just have to keep going anyway, because the world needs what you make. Create value, and make it matter.

What's the nextstep? Next.

This is the Nextstep Method: Anchor, Wall, Snap, Nextstep. For more, follow Nextstep Notes every Thursday.

Kindness is cool, smiles are free.

Russ Johns