I cost nothing
Many have praised me, none have condemned me
I am pleasing to everyone
I am useful every moment of the day
These are the haunting, heartbreaking words of a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader in response to the question, “What is a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader?”
This young woman practices self-erasure in the name of…what?...Belonging? Conformity? Rules?
How about: Excellence.
We often think of excellence in its most positive and benign context, as a quality to strive for. Excellence is often the gateway to rewards, both psychological and financial.
But excellence has a deep, dark underbelly—and while men are certainly affected by it, women (in many cultures) are truly constrained by it, to the point of being harmed or self-harming.
Professional cheerleaders exhibit extraordinary strength and skill in a high-pressure arena (a massive football field, in front of millions). Excellence is not only expected, it’s required. It’s in the air they breathe, the water they drink, the culture they have chosen to become immersed in.
Whether you’re a cheerleader or an artist (of any gender), you have every reason to be proud of excellent work, of realizing a goal and a vision you set for yourself and then achieve.
But as we propel ourselves down that road toward excellence, we must not forget to manage and perhaps also temper our expectations at all points along the way—before, during, and after.
We should not judge people by their peak of excellence; but by the distance they have traveled from the point where they started. –Henry Ward Beecher
If you’ve ever received an “A” on a paper, scored a goal on the court, or were chosen for a solo or lead part, then you have bathed in the glow of excellence.
Which is great…except that the experience makes you hunger for more. Once you’ve tasted excellence, it’s hard to settle for less. And what’s wrong with that? A relentless focus on excellence seems admirable (after all, who focuses relentlessly on mediocrity?).
Nothing is wrong with that—but excellence isn’t free.
Hard work comes with the territory of course. But excellence also has a way of becoming a trap. In some cases, you begin craving easy wins and safe bets—the better to ensure an excellent outcome. Thus, you close the door to taking fresh creative risks.
For every Simone Biles who astonishingly keeps topping herself in the gym, there are a hundred authors writing the same book over and over in a bid to preserve the formula that propelled them to success in the first place. Excellence gets lost in the process.
For artists making creative “products” that are interpreted in intensely subjective ways, excellence can be incredibly illusive. One reader’s or critic’s five-star recommendation is another’s Big Fail.
We chase…but never catch…
I grew up with a rhyme that has scarred me to this day:
Good, better, best.
Never let it rest.
‘Til your good is better…
‘Til your better’s best.
What does “best” mean, especially in the world of art? Does it mean “excellent,” and if so, what does excellent mean if it means different things to different people?
Does “excellent” mean something consumable or shareable that is free of detectable flaws or mistakes?
Does it mean a creation that mirrors perfection itself?
This is hogwash.
Excellence is a nefarious trickster: A constructive goad one moment, a hellish tormentor the next.
Excellence is always on the move. No sooner are you certain you’ve caught up with her, than she runs away and there you go, panting in pursuit, eager to catch her, and hold her, once more.
Excellence pretends she is a North Star meant to guide us, when actually, she is a horn sounding in a fog bank that sends us off in an unexpected direction, or off on a tangent, in any case.
Put it this way:
Excellence is always Lucy, and you are always Charlie Brown, hell-bent on kicking that football over the goal post…or at least in the vicinity of the goal post. You’d settle for vicinity because that shows you’re trying…you have excellence in your line of sight.
Excellence can also be cruel, as the very notion seems to leave no room for making mistakes.
Mistakes remind us…yes, yes, of course we’re only human…but more than that. Mistakes knock us off-course as we run after excellence. They make us drop the relay baton…and we fall out of the race…and it’s awfully hard to re-join the course…
Mistakes openly mock us: You thought your work was excellent? Look again! It’s flawed!
But look, this is completely unfair.
Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.
–Vince Lombardi
Perfection is illusory and mistakes are unavoidable. Even cheerleaders mess up once in a while. Even Simone Biles.
As you work on your art, in whatever form it takes, take a moment to define excellence on your own terms. Perhaps finishing is an excellent result—for you. The world is out there waiting to apply its own definition of excellence to your work (Rotten Tomatoes, anyone?).
So define it for yourself first. And then make your mistakes. Because you will. But you will also, undoubtedly, throw your arms around Excellence and catch her, at least for a little while. And when you do, prepare to let her go again, and to make glorious mistakes again, too.
That’s just the way it is. The world, like you, is impure and imperfect, and even excellence carries a whiff of its own demise.
Reserve a copy now: Wrangling the Doubt Monster: Fighting Fears, Finding Inspiration.
“Keep it handy, dip in as you need, and scribble in your own doubt-dispelling passages among the sure insights and notable quotations.”
—Allison K Williams, Seven Drafts: Self-Edit Like a Pro from Blank Page to Book
"In some cases, you begin craving easy wins and safe bets—the better to ensure an excellent outcome. Thus, you close the door to taking fresh creative risks." That hit home!
Thanks for another—dare I say it—excellent post.