“If we failed, would it be worth the journey?”
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Notes
“There’s no need to know the details of the practice before we begin.” That would be a recipe:
- There’s no such thing
- Recipes depend on the outcome, which is not the primary driver of the practice
The more important the project, the less certainty of success. Thus: “If we failed, would it be worth the journey?“
- Trust yourself to commit without that certainty
- Separate the process from the outcome— “Not because we don’t care about the outcome. But because we do.”
Thoughts
I kind of wish Seth had stated that first sentence— “There’s no need to know the details of the practice before we begin”—because I’ve struggled with that desire to know what my practice is—or, perhaps, to design a practice before I begin—for a long time. The good news is that I figured it out on my own (though perhaps he did say it, in different ways, and I only unconsciously made the connection). The bad news is that, even though I’ve “started,” I’m not sure what I’m looking for.
Said a different way: I’ve started getting some traction around the album. It’s slow, but (aside from a couple days when I was out of town [which also explains the gap in these posts]) I’ve been reasonably consistent with the project. But I’m not sure how the work I do on the project (the “outcome”) is meant to become a process (the “practice”).
I’m nearing the end of the section called “Generosity”; there’s just a few more chapters. The next section is called “Professional” (or something close), so maybe some of the nuts and bolts of what a practice looks like will come into focus. (Though I suspect that “nuts and bolts” metaphor is a bit too analogous to the “recipe” metaphor, which I’m clearly expected to avoid…)
And yes: I do think that the album is worth the journey, even if it doesn’t succeed (I don’t complete it, or it’s not up to my standards, or very few hear it, or lots hear it and don’t like it, or….)
This series is meant to capture my thoughts as I work through Seth Godin’s The Practice. It’s a book with over 200 (very short) chapters, which I hope to work through and, I further hope, to implement over time.
If you’re interested in more of Godin’s ideas, or my thoughts about them, you can check out this collection of posts. Note that if you’re more interested in the former, you should probably get Godin’s book and read it yourself; my notes will be both incomplete and idiosyncratic, and my thoughts will relate to my own experience.
But if my thoughts resonate with you, or if you think I’m just silly, I welcome your comments.