Hey, what's up?
John Sonmez from simpleprogrammer.com.Today,
I have a question about confidence, dealing with a lack of confidence that I was asked.
This question I'm going to read some pieces of this because it's a little bit long.
Some of you, you just like to tell me your life story.
I understand that, but it's just doesn’t work too well on the video, unless we make
a whole like movie.
Here's the kind of the highlights of this.
"Hi, John.
I stumbled on your channel on your YouTube and I wanted to compliment you about the work
you are doing.
Your videos, blogs and your presence alone can motivate one to stop procrastinating."
All right, that's what I like to here.
“I also have a small question that maybe you could help me with.
I'm a freelance programmer since 2007.
Although from time to time I take a regular job where there is less demand in freelance
work.
At the moment though I am at home waiting to take my new job offer, but lately I am
bothered about the fact that before taking another project, I have a lack of confidence
if I'll be able to do it.
Maybe it has to do with the fact that everything is evolving at a really fast pace and maybe
also because I am getting older (42 now) and I am being afraid that at some point I will
not be able to do it.
For example right now, I am being asked by a company that developed website for websites
like Nike, Tommy Hilfiger and KLM so the bar becomes higher.
Also, the demand and pace at companies is more and more.
I feel like this world is getting out of hand, or maybe it's just me.
I would like to hear your thoughts on this.
Thank you.”
I guess I did read the whole question.
I guess it wasn’t that long.
I was just whining.
So here's the thing.
You should always be—this is a good place to be.
A lot of people are very uncomfortable with being uncomfortable.
They're uncomfortable in being in places where they don’t feel 100% confident.
The thing is I did this video, I did this talk called 5 Soft Skills Every Software Developer
Should Know, and it's really—it's not about the soft skills.
What it's really about is how the only way that you grow in life is when you become uncomfortable,
when you put yourself in uncomfortable situations.
Here's the thing that you got to think about here.
You want this.
You want to live your life.
You want to always be pushing the envelope.
It's good that you've got these butterflies in your stomach.
It's good that you're 100% sure.
It's good that you're pushing the envelope and you think that you might fail.
That's not only what causes you to grow, but it also gives you that adrenaline rush.
It gives you that energy to be able to go and hit it hard.
It's really easy to get into this comfort zone where your life is just comfortable.
I did this video, again, I’ll point to another one, How My life Changed Over 7 Years.
You can see it.
My life 7 years ago.
A lot of people were shocked by that.
I was surprised how popular the video was.
To me, I mean it was crazy, wonderful what happened, but it wasn’t as shocking as some
of you found it.
That's because I found that most people that nothing like that ever happens that—again,
and I attack some people, "attack some people," and some people were offended by this.
I said that I still know a lot of my old co-workers.
No offense to them, but they've been doing the same thing for the last 10 or 15 years.
Their life hasn't changed hardly one bit except that they have more gray hairs, and that's
a sucky place to be.
You don’t want to be there.
Okay?
So the only way to avoid that is to constantly put yourself in situations where you can be
uncomfortable, where you're going to be afraid, where you're not sure if you can make it,
where you might fail.
You might fall off a cliff and die.
That's life.
The more that you put yourself in that situation, the more that you'll rise to the challenge,
the more that you'll grow.
You might fail from time to time.
You might fail with a lowercase F. You only fail with a capital F when you give up.
You have a choice whether or not you want to fail or not.
What I say in this situation is great.
That's good.
You should feel this lack of confidence.
You should go ahead and do it anyway because—I'll tell you just about every single job I've
ever taken, I've always been unsure if I could do it.
I've always had this lack of confidence.
I wouldn't call that lack of confidence.
I would say butterflies, nervousness, or unsure of myself, but I did it anyway.
I got the job.
When I got there on the job, it caused me to work really hard.
All of a sudden, within 2 weeks, 3 weeks, I was mastering that job and I was like, "Oh,
this is easy.
I'm comfortable now.
I can do this job."
I think you probably—if you look back at your own history, in your own career experience,
you'll probably find that you have a similar experience.
Most of us do.
Most of us take jobs that we're not prepared for.
Do this.
Stretch it.
Whatever someone will hire you for—I mean if you can get a spectacular failure in your
life, just a spectacular failure, that's one of the best things you can possible experience
in your life.
It's not comfortable at the time, but man, when you shoot so far above where you're shooting
for the moon and you just fail spectacularly, you'll learn a great deal about yourself.
You'll learn a great deal about your environment and you improve.
You drastically improve.
Sometimes every once in a while, when you shoot from the moon, you hit the moon.
If you like this video, click the Subscribe button and we'll shoot for the moon together.
I'll talk to you next time.
Take care.