Work with No Ego

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in the past year is that I have to detach my emotional fulfillment from my work (both actual work and school work).  Yes, I need to be interested in what I do, but I cannot tie my self worth to the success or failure of a particular project.  When I decouple “me” from what I create, I’m able to better edit, revise, and finish my projects.  Articles like this one from Lifehacker serve as a reminder that a content creator (a writer, coder, crafter, artist, etc.) must have strong opinions and a firm grasp on what his or her creation actually is, not what he or she wants or expects it to be.  When I associate too much of myself with my work, I am scared to criticize.  If that sentence is wrong, I am wrong.  Instead, I need to see my work as a step toward a better version.  Failure is not a waste of time.  It is experience and perspective that cannot be attained in any other way.