The 15 words I live by
If you’re not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you’ve launched too late.
Until recently, I’d spent my entire life being too scared to release projects that weren’t exactly complete.
I would spend hours, weeks or even years agonising about the ‘perfect time’ to let go, no doubt missing countless opportunities to connect, recruit or convert my potential audience.
No matter how much I just wanted these things out of my head, or off my desk and into the world, the thought of people not understanding the intent or appreciating the complete vision, often left me feeling physically sick.
I always felt there was more I could do to anticipate questions or negative feedback and bake those solutions right into the original concept.
But what I love about this quote from LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, is the series of highly efficient presumptions it makes.
- Everybody wants to create something remarkable
- Everybody suffers from imposter syndrome
- Embarrassment isn’t a bad thing, as long as you learn to channel it
To be clear: I still battle these feelings every single day.
But what I’ve learned from watching and working with some extraordinarily talented people is it’s this inherent tension that makes the work worth doing (and refining, and iterating and eventually — mastering).
Tension is what makes everything interesting.
From great conflict, comes great art.
Murray Galbraith is the Co-Founder + CEO of Myriad. Connect with him on Twitter or sign up for The Museletter at murraygalbraith.com
