Do you ever feel like you’re not living up to your full potential? 

Does it seem like your abilities always fall shy of the mark? 

Do you give up because that’s easier than facing failure? 

I do. And I feel like a shitbag afterwards (mainly due to the giving up part). 

Here’s the challenge: I’m competent in just about everything I do in life, personal and professional. 

But I’m not great at any of them. As a result, and because I’m my own worst enemy, I feel unremarkable at best. Which causes me to spiral and give up. 

A good example is this blog.

One of the reasons I launched the Davis Daily was to improve my writing skills. And while it led to some notable milestones, it wasn’t long until I hit a plateau.

I started to doubt my skills, I lost my focus, I struggled to write routinely. Eventually, I stopped publishing entirely. 

As I write this, it’s been 280 days since my last blog post—269 days since publishing my newsletter.

But when you feel like you’ve hit your ceiling, when you’re ready to admit defeat, that’s the time to buckle down and block out the inner critic.

Growth isn’t linear. It doesn’t happen fast, and it’s rarely pretty (regardless of what those thought leaders tell you). 

The rise from mediocrity is slow and humbling. 

The best you can do is swallow your pride and remind yourself that success looks different for everybody. Greatness comes in many forms, and it comes from staying the course. It comes from a blind belief in yourself.  

To that, I say don’t get in your own way.

Keep building.