No man’s land

Starts are always fun. Everything is new and exciting. The novelty of it all is just thrilling.

Then the prospect of fame and glory is also exciting. Think about signing autographs and taking pictures with strangers in the street. Now that sounds cool.

But between those two points is this huge no mans land of hard work, doubt and frustration.

I think it’s easy to logically accept the deal with no overnight successes but perhaps it’s harder to prepare oneself for just how much work, patience and optimism it requires.

10,000 hours is a long time.

It offers plenty of chances to quit.

I think anyone who dedicates that amount of time to a craft deserves every success they get.

I also think in order to sustain oneself through the no mans land of doubt, it helps if the activity brings you some kind of short term happiness.

If the only thing that brings you joy is hearing your song on the radio then no man’s land is going to be extremely frustrating for you.

But if you get a kick out of writing songs, then you’re going to enjoy the journey.