Don't Settle

“Don’t take yourself so seriously!” I’ve heard this phrase more times in my life than I can count. And, it’s quite a true statement of life in general. But when you have a goal that you’re absolutely passionate about, well, that’s an entirely different story.

See I recently took part in a book fair where about twenty self-published or indie published authors, spent six hours representing their work and learning from each other. It was a fantastic time, I met new friends, and it was nice to know that I wasn’t alone in the struggle for my voice to be heard. But during this time, I received words of wisdom from a seasoned author whose writing wasn’t just a hobby, it was her life. We spoke a lot about how she began her writing career and then she started giving me advice seeing that I was relatively new to the marketing side of the business. At one point in our conversations, she whispered to me seriously, “Don’t settle!” I know it doesn’t seem very profound. But, I’ll never forget those two powerful words. It brought me back to that idea of taking myself seriously.

There’s nothing wrong with being serious because it will keep my eyes on my ultimate goal. And that really goes for any kind of art form. I mean, if I don’t take myself seriously, then how do I expect others to? Now, I’m not saying that if I’m serious about my work it makes me a perfect writer or marketer. I still have so much learning to do on my crazy writing adventure and I’ll probably never stop. There are always ways to improve!