This is probably going to seem to run counter to everything you might hold near and dear. After all, I’m supposed to be all about improvement, right? We constantly hear about improving ourselves, getting better, this and that.
But I’m here to tell you that it’s OK to suck. Sometimes. I mean, don’t go out and fail every day on purpose. But don’t lose sleep over the days that you do fail.
You can’t be at the top of your game every day. You can’t brush aside the worries of life every day. You can’t ignore the growing pile of bills every day. You can’t pretend that everything is fine all the time when it’s not.
And that’s OK.
All you can ever give is your best. And some days, your best just isn’t going to be good enough.
And that’s OK.
You need to keep doing your best, even when it’s absolute shit. Why? Because that’s precisely the point that everyone else gives up. When that little voice in their head joins in the chorus of all the naysayers, telling them that they will never amount to anything, they can’t do this; that’s when they quit.
But not you.
You’re not going to quit.
In fact, you’re going to keep putting in your best, even when your best is worse than somebody’s worst.
But then one day, you’re going to notice something. You’re going to see that your best has gotten better. Your creativity has spiked, and suddenly you’re writing more now than you ever have. Or maybe you’re coming up with all sorts of new ideas for your workplace, your relationship, who knows what.
And guess what?
You’ll still have days that you suck.
But the trend line is moving upwards.
So if you suck today, that’s fine. Punch that time card, do the best you can with what you have, and punch the time card again.
Tomorrow is a new day. And you’re going to give tomorrow your best, just like you did today. And maybe tomorrow your best will be better.
“Kid, you had a rough day. Everyone has them. And when you do – do what I do – you ask yourself: Anybody’s life better because of what I did today? If the answer’s yes… then stop your whining. If not, well, do better tomorrow.”
– Comic book character Nick Fury.