I was shown this video about two years ago, but it still rings loud and clear with me every time I watch it. I am the kind of person that is always comparing myself to people that are better than me. It keeps me moving, learning and growing. It gives me a target to aim for. There are many many things that I would love to accomplish, but we have to choose our battles sometimes to do the things we are truly passionate about. For me I strive to become a better photographer and videographer and editing is a part of those trades as well. There is much to learn and many skills to hone within those fields. As technology progresses there is new software to learn, new techniques to comprehend, new equipment to purchase and so much more. Despite electronic art being heavily driven by technology, understanding the latest and greatest is not always something we have to be worried about. There is so much more to concentrate on. Understanding how to tell a story, how to interact with a subject, how to light a scene and interactions with your team are essential just as much if not more than knowing the technology. It is a never ending learning process as we learn to deal with different types of people and personalities along the way. We always are defining our style and that’s a great thing because we know we are always getting better. Ira Glass makes some great points in stating that we all start out making stuff we don’t always like, but if we keep going we eventually will. I am not sure if its just that our quality of work gets better or our appreciation for who we are becomes stronger. Maybe its both? Either way, remember to keep going in whatever your passion may be and not give up on it because some day it will become awesome in our own eyes.

Tips for Staying Inspired

• Go back and watch videos that inspired you before.

• Go for a walk outside or travel to a place you have never been before.

• Surround yourself people that inspire you.

• Try a new technique that you have never done before.

• Listen to music that really motivates and moves you.

• Search for poetry or quotes about being inspired or creative

Dialogue from the Video:

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

― Ira Glass