Being Honest About Struggle

QUESTION

Hi, Joey. Well, you seem to have it all! [Note: Sarah then goes on to toss out a list of compliments so intensely that I can’t bear to repeat them.] But I'd like to see under the hood a little.

Doable?

If so, with what do you struggle the most—personally, professionally, or both? Eg. Self-doubt? Mental health? Unrealistic expectations? Suppliers? The need for profit? General dread? Stupid questions?

—Sarah

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ANSWER

Hi Sarah, I’m glad you asked this question. I’ve always been a fan of being an open book about doubts and struggles.

Everywhere we look, people are sharing their successes—which is nice to see—but because they don’t often share failures, it can seem like we’re the only one failing.

My doubts and struggles range from my approach to work to more existential thoughts about the world. Some common ones are:

• Am I doing my best? Is it fair to want to have personal time that “takes me away from work,” even though that personal time is during nights and weekends?

• Should I know more? There are facets of Baronfig’s business that I just don’t understand or spend time on. Do I make room to learn? Right now I trust the people responsible for those things—do I leave it at that?

• Is my time being used well? I enjoy playing video games, but I can’t help but see an hour or two tick away and think, “I could’ve just learned a new concept or written a new post.” How much is too much?

• How much time do I have left? When I was 17, a metal valve was installed in my heart. Since then, I can hear every heartbeat in my head, literally ticking my time away. It’s hard not to be aware of my own mortality.

• Where’s humanity going? With automation and artificial intelligence gaining more traction every day, where will we be in one or two decades? Population is going up, will jobs and food and income trend with the number of people on the planet and what it takes to care for them?

In The Laws of Creativity, I share several stories about failure, including one about a panic attack on an overseas trip. If that interests you, you can learn more about the book on my website.

I hope this is helpful to someone out there. Running a business or having a book may seem like neat things, but they also bring a lot of struggle and doubt. I’m not complaining, though—I chose both of them.

The best way I’ve learned to handle this comes from a riddle (joke?) someone once told me: What phrase will make a rich person upset and a poor person happy?

This too shall pass.

—Joey

Creator of Baronfig
Author of The Laws of Creativity

The Persistence of Time by Salvador Dalí