I’ve recently started reframing everything as a practice. It frees me from the binary categories of “success” and “failure.” You may have an art practice. A meditation practice. A daily movement practice. Perhaps you practice nourishing and fueling your body well. Practice bravery and courage.
When something becomes a practice, it inherently provides room for mistakes, experimentation, and growth. It makes space for curiosity, playfulness, and self-compassion. Life becomes an ongoing series of opportunities to show up again for yourself daily- believing and trusting that you’re still learning, growing, and ever-becoming.
Growing up, I had to practice the piano for 1.5 hours a day. This was in addition to swim practice and basketball practice. It was full of tedious scales and drilling measures over and over again until muscle memory took over. But practicing the piano taught me the meta-skills of perseverance and discipline. These same skills of showing up day and day, even and especially on the days I did’t feel like it, all translated to triathlon, #the100dayproject, and writing my first book.
Creative work doesn’t come with a guarantee. Learn to separate the process from the outcome. First and foremost, focus on the practice.