Why Underestimation Is Key To Success
I've been thinking a lot recently about how I can be 'successful' and what exactly that word means to me. In this new, modern day and age, it's so easy to measure success in terms of materialistic items and popularity and I would much prefer a world where we didn't associate that with success.
Or at least that's what I've come to realise recently.
When I was 11, I had this major aspiration of becoming a YouTuber. I convinced myself that if I collected the full set of Maybelline's Baby Lips and wore skater skirts with crop tops and converse, I was going to be THE next Bethany Mota - and that's no disrespect to her whatsoever. I propped up my Toshiba laptop on my foldaway desk in my lavender-coloured room, with my desk lamp strategically placed about the integrated webcam and spoke to my 'viewers' aka friends I had told about my channel. However, I quickly became obsessed with trying to be something/someone I wasn't. And being the sensitive person I was, took down my channel after four videos (which I recall being skincare and drawing tutorials). To this day, I can't say I'm ashamed. I might even go as far to say that I admire my younger self for being so courageous and going against people's beliefs in me to actually post the videos. Of course, there's a sense of defeat in the sense that I eventually took them down and didn't persevere due to others' perceptions but I still tried...and I feel like that's what I lot of us give up on doing too early on: trying. Because of that decision, I'm now left constantly pondering on the 'What ifs?' of having that channel. What if it took me somewhere? What if it allowed me to make more friends and on a global level? What if I just had more confidence in myself? *insert thinking bubble emoji*
I'm now 18 and have started my year with a list of plans, rather than aspirations. In writing, you may be thinking that there's no difference but upon personal reflection the difference is huge. The definition of aspiration is: 'a hope or ambition of achieving something' but the definition of a plan is: 'an intention or decision of what one is going to do'. The key distinction in wording is hope/ambition to intention/decision. So this year, I plan to take full force of 2019 and whatever it has to throw at me and carry out all my plans, accepting that there may be some setbacks along the way which require a great deal of patience, but knowing I have enough determination, motivation and most importantly, passion, to ensure that these plans come to life.
Now regarding the actual title, the reason I say underestimation is the key to success is that well, it is! Along one's success journey, there are going to be countless times where we underestimate ourselves and people underestimate us. The solution is in realising that we are bigger than those underestimations. My inspiration for this post actually came from having just watched James Charles' recent youtube video in an attempt to wind down from the two-hour revision session I had just had. As he excitedly expressed that he had just reached 13 million subscribers, I couldn't help but feel proud of him for his accumulated success in such a short space of time, whilst reminding myself of all the setbacks he has faced and at the huge scale and multitude, they have been. It takes a lot of courage and strength to bounce back from scandals and public humiliation, but he did it and he's on top - all at the tender age of 19! I'm sure he too must have underestimated himself greatly but as mentioned, he knew he was bigger than that and more powerful thus his success.
Its inspiring stories like these that (weirdly come at pivotal moments in my life) makes me realise that I have not yet reached my peak and having moments of doubting myself is completely okay, as long as I bounce back. So I encourage you to do the same!
This post definitely brought out the motivational speaker in me and that is not what I am trying to be but I do love reaching out to people and motivating people during stressful times, and even if it's not stressful, here's some free motivation! With regard to my youtube career, the channel is still up as I still one day plan to make videos. I love being a content creator! When people hear that term, they usually associate it with YouTube but writing books, uploading blog posts, drawing a picture, just making art generally are all kinds of content creation, and I love being apart of all different types of it! I definitely won't write a book, and my drawing skills could be better but I'm halfway there and eventually, I'll be where I really want to be, doing what I really want to be doing. Now whilst I can, I'm just going to take small, active steps.
Whether one of my plans this year is to upload to that channel again after all these years, who knows? Well, I do and you don't but that's not the point! Life is so funnily unpredictable, annoying at times, but it's time to make the most out of it.
FINALLY, I've come up with a blog schedule and you'll be glad to know I'm going to try and upload every Wednesday and Friday :)
If you read all of this, wow congrats but also thank you and enjoy the rest of your week and see you on Friday with a new one <3
- Aswan x
Or at least that's what I've come to realise recently.
When I was 11, I had this major aspiration of becoming a YouTuber. I convinced myself that if I collected the full set of Maybelline's Baby Lips and wore skater skirts with crop tops and converse, I was going to be THE next Bethany Mota - and that's no disrespect to her whatsoever. I propped up my Toshiba laptop on my foldaway desk in my lavender-coloured room, with my desk lamp strategically placed about the integrated webcam and spoke to my 'viewers' aka friends I had told about my channel. However, I quickly became obsessed with trying to be something/someone I wasn't. And being the sensitive person I was, took down my channel after four videos (which I recall being skincare and drawing tutorials). To this day, I can't say I'm ashamed. I might even go as far to say that I admire my younger self for being so courageous and going against people's beliefs in me to actually post the videos. Of course, there's a sense of defeat in the sense that I eventually took them down and didn't persevere due to others' perceptions but I still tried...and I feel like that's what I lot of us give up on doing too early on: trying. Because of that decision, I'm now left constantly pondering on the 'What ifs?' of having that channel. What if it took me somewhere? What if it allowed me to make more friends and on a global level? What if I just had more confidence in myself? *insert thinking bubble emoji*
I'm now 18 and have started my year with a list of plans, rather than aspirations. In writing, you may be thinking that there's no difference but upon personal reflection the difference is huge. The definition of aspiration is: 'a hope or ambition of achieving something' but the definition of a plan is: 'an intention or decision of what one is going to do'. The key distinction in wording is hope/ambition to intention/decision. So this year, I plan to take full force of 2019 and whatever it has to throw at me and carry out all my plans, accepting that there may be some setbacks along the way which require a great deal of patience, but knowing I have enough determination, motivation and most importantly, passion, to ensure that these plans come to life.
Now regarding the actual title, the reason I say underestimation is the key to success is that well, it is! Along one's success journey, there are going to be countless times where we underestimate ourselves and people underestimate us. The solution is in realising that we are bigger than those underestimations. My inspiration for this post actually came from having just watched James Charles' recent youtube video in an attempt to wind down from the two-hour revision session I had just had. As he excitedly expressed that he had just reached 13 million subscribers, I couldn't help but feel proud of him for his accumulated success in such a short space of time, whilst reminding myself of all the setbacks he has faced and at the huge scale and multitude, they have been. It takes a lot of courage and strength to bounce back from scandals and public humiliation, but he did it and he's on top - all at the tender age of 19! I'm sure he too must have underestimated himself greatly but as mentioned, he knew he was bigger than that and more powerful thus his success.
Its inspiring stories like these that (weirdly come at pivotal moments in my life) makes me realise that I have not yet reached my peak and having moments of doubting myself is completely okay, as long as I bounce back. So I encourage you to do the same!
This post definitely brought out the motivational speaker in me and that is not what I am trying to be but I do love reaching out to people and motivating people during stressful times, and even if it's not stressful, here's some free motivation! With regard to my youtube career, the channel is still up as I still one day plan to make videos. I love being a content creator! When people hear that term, they usually associate it with YouTube but writing books, uploading blog posts, drawing a picture, just making art generally are all kinds of content creation, and I love being apart of all different types of it! I definitely won't write a book, and my drawing skills could be better but I'm halfway there and eventually, I'll be where I really want to be, doing what I really want to be doing. Now whilst I can, I'm just going to take small, active steps.
Whether one of my plans this year is to upload to that channel again after all these years, who knows? Well, I do and you don't but that's not the point! Life is so funnily unpredictable, annoying at times, but it's time to make the most out of it.
FINALLY, I've come up with a blog schedule and you'll be glad to know I'm going to try and upload every Wednesday and Friday :)
If you read all of this, wow congrats but also thank you and enjoy the rest of your week and see you on Friday with a new one <3
- Aswan x
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