Challenges offer growth. They create opportunity to make mistakes and learn from them, and to discover that we can overcome difficulty when we try hard enough to get what we want. How have you approached the challenges in your work? How have they helped you learn and succeed?
Photo by Al Pavangkanan
This quote from famous graphic designer Milton Glaser suggests a nice balance:
In my parents I had the perfect combination — a resistant father and an encouraging mother. My mother convinced me I could do anything. And my father said, “Prove it.” He didn’t think I could make a living. Resistance produces muscularity. And it was the perfect combination because I could use my mother’s belief to overcome my father’s resistance. My father was a kind of a metaphor for the world, because if you can’t overcome a father’s resistance you’re never going to be able to overcome the world’s resistance. It’s much better than having completely supportive parents or completely resistant parents.
Some of the best video games understand how to challenge us just the right amount by giving us no more than we can handle and then increasing the difficulty. This works because we have a sense of accomlishment, learn from what we’ve done, and feel ready to tackle more. How have you dealt with your challenges and what have you learned in the process?
Prove it [Austin Kleon on Tumblr]
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