Before I sat down and became a writer, before I began to do it habitually and for my living, there was a decades-long stretch when I was terrified that it would suck, so I didn't write. I think that marks a lot of people, a real terror at being bad at something, and unfortunately, you are always bad before you can get a little better.
Interpretation
Writing can be intimidating, but improvement comes through practice despite initial fears of inadequacy.
In this quote, David Rakoff reflects on his journey as a writer, highlighting the fear that many feel before embarking on a creative endeavor. He acknowledges that the fear of being bad at something can be paralyzing, but emphasizes that improvement is a gradual process that requires overcoming initial insecurities and embracing the learning curve.
In practice
In a creative writing workshop, to encourage participants to share their first drafts.
Fantastic days are what you wish upon those who have so few sunrises left, those whose lungs are so lesion-spangled with new cancer that they should be embracing as much life as they can. Time's a-wasting, go out and have yourself a fantastic day! Fantastic days are for goners.
Those weeks before diagnosis can be among the most torturous times. There is a reason you're called a patient once the plastic bracelet goes on.
Being a stranger was like being dead, and brought to mind how, in a book he had read that most folks misunderstood one common state: The flip side of love is indifference, not hate.
Time has been lost and opportunity thrown away, but I am yet a young man, and may retrieve it.
The dedicated life is worth living. You must give with your whole heart.
Sergeant first class Cory Remsburg never gives up and he does not quit.
Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions, promote all its great interests, and see whether we also, in our day and generation, may not perform something worthy to be remembered.
To summarize, using money to motivate people can be a double-edged sword. For tasks that require cognitive ability, low to moderate performance-based incentives can help. But when the incentive level is very high, it can command too much attention and thereby distract the person’s mind with thoughts about the reward. This can create stress and ultimately reduce the level of performance.
If the risk is fully aligned with your purpose and mission, then it's worth considering.
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