We Have Limits, But Don't Limit Yourself

I remember early in my teaching career when I was working with some gifted students. One student was a great guy and really worked hard. He was, what you would call, a great B+/A- student. That was just where he was at. His father worked at the same school teaching PE and during an informal conference, he was going on and on about how his kid needed to be a A+ student. He had a hard time with the B+/A- concept. So, I explained it to him this way.

I want to be a NBA Basketball player. I will come in every day before and after school and he can make sure I can get to that level because "I really want to be that level player." His answer? Not going to happen because many of those elite players were coming in with certain natural talents.

Hmmmmm?

He got it figured out.

Now, I bring this up because there are a lot of authors out there with that same mentality. Many believe they are the next "Great American Author." Many believe their books are already perfect for the movies. Many believe they are ready to be #1 on that Best Sellers List. The reality is that will not likely happen.

Please understand, I am not trying to shoot down people's dreams of being an author. That is far from the case. In fact, I am a true believer that everyone has a story to tell and everyone can do so! But, I also believe that we all have limits.

Some of us are limited by our outside lives. Other things are a big priority in our lives and that
WILL impact where we can go to with our careers. If jobs, making money, having food on the table, paying mortgages and getting kids through college are strong influences in your lives, and you are not in a job situation that allows for a lot of writing time, you will be limited.

Some of us are limited simply because of our voice. My son is a junior in college and is a biology major. He has a scientific mind so his writing is very straight forward and to the point. Depth and creativity is simply not there. When he does write stories, they are creative but VERY limited. Many of you are the same way. You just have a voice that fits certain markets and styles.

Some of us are limited due to our education and training. I worked with a writing chapter where no one was published beyond this very small POD/E-pub publisher. They all dreamed of bigger things, but they were teaching each other. This was a case of the blind leading the blind. They were limited.

I think you get the idea.

But pay attention to the second part of the title of this blog. I do not want you to limit yourself. I want you to write. I want you to push yourself. If you are someone who writes excessively for a small community journal or publication, go for it! That is your niche and you should be proud of your success.

The key is to know your limit and don't kick yourself if you aren't getting to something beyond that limit.