Whenever Michael Jordan gets on the golf course and his friends ask the stakes of the game–how much money they’re betting against one another–rumor has it that his stock response is: “Whatever makes you nervous.”
That’s what you should bet on yourself, every time. Not what makes you comfortable, but what makes you nervous.
Your muscles get stronger by running, jumping, lifting weights, by stressing them out, by pushing them, not by sitting on the couch.
Mario Andretti said famously: “If everything seems under control, you’re not going fast enough”.
And the one-liners could go on and on… Point being that you’ve got to push your comfort level to grow. That goes for your photography, your filmmaking, your art, your vision, your business, your whatever.
You will not succeed if you do not take risks.
[thx for the flying shot martin gisborne!]
I would have liked a more-developed story here, rather than an idea that can be expressed on a bumpersticker.
Such a story, off the top of my head, might include some of the following:
Interviews with creative people who work on the edge of their ability. For example, filmmakers who stretch themselves with each new project, like Jane Campion, Julie Taymor, Steven Soderberg. I realize that these are celebrities, so an original interview would be difficult to arrange (would that make you nervous to try to set that up?), but these people have given interviews in the past from which a writer could cull some good quotations. There’s also a small field in psychology of studying “flow” states: the state of mind that artists (esp. performers) as well as athletes go into when they’re working at their edges. That’s when brilliance happens, and records are shattered. Perhaps the author would like to dig deeper and write a followup?
Thanks for this post!
I’m doing my first model shoot next week to jump start my portfolio (for university) and I’ve been feeling a bit nervous how it’ll all turn out. Reading this makes me feel like the nerves are only going to push me to get better now 🙂
P.S. you’re pretty awesome Chase 🙂
Word.
This is my first post here. It was quite serendipitous for me to come across your post as I’ve just made a big career-changing decision. I’m leaving my comfy corporate TV job and jumping into the freelance world of cinematography. Your words are inspiring. I’d only qualify them by saying that, while risk-taking is good and necessary for success and creativity, do not forget to occasionally look around and appreciate how good your life is in the present. If one is always risk-taking and living on the edge, there’s a tendency to not appreciate the simple pleasures right here “in the moment”. It’s a question of balance.
So, as I plunge into this new unknown territory, which is a little spooky but ultimately exhilarating, I won’t forget, at those moments where things feel stable and secure, to look around and appreciate that the risk paid off.