Control is mainly a story we construct up to make us feel okay when things are tough or make us feel better when things are going well.
After all, that award we got? We earned that! And that time someone else was selected to have their work on display and not ours? We had no control over it.
The problem isn’t that we’re wrong with either, it’s that we give each too much weight. We didn’t just earn that award, it was our effort combined with good timing, the right people evaluating the work, and a dozen other variables that one could argue are out of our control.
And that time someone else was picked over us? Sure we didn’t have control on the selection process, but we did have control over the quality of work we submitted.
Going forward, it’s in our best interest to use stories of control in a way that helps us be more generous and create better work. The truth is that we’ll always be in control, to a degree. What matters is what we do with the control we do have. Can we shape it to include others? And about that control we don’t have… can we shape it to better ourselves first?
Stay Positive & Lean Into Control Appropriately
Photo credit
- The Special Ingredient - October 7, 2024
- Aftermath - October 6, 2024
- Drawing It Out - October 5, 2024
