"How would you rate your skill level on Photoshop?" Man, I hate that question. I feel like it's in the same category of "How well would you say you know who God is?" Anything you say will give the wrong impression. Beginner sounds like you don't know what you're doing and need to be spoon fed. Intermediate sounds lukewarm, and like an uneasy middle ground that could mean literally anything. Expert sounds like you've got it figured out and are above any lesson to be learned. Photoshop (and God), is so expansive it's impossible to know when you've reached the end, much less the midpoint.

In a world that's so goal oriented, it can often feel like we never reach the finish. Professors who have finished their doctorates in hyper-specific areas of study aside, you'll never be the number one world authority on anything of significance to anybody else. Maybe I didn't need to make the exception for those professors (joking!). When asked for advice, we always feel the need to provide a disclaimer. "That's just what I think, but I don't know." A little comment to wash our hands of any misfortune that might follow our advice.

This way of thinking is incorrect. You're exactly who you are RIGHT NOW. Sure, you're growing, but you have value as you are! If you keep waiting for the right moment, you'll never get anywhere. This applies to tons of things. If you want to make art, make it! Don't wait for the skills to make it perfect, because by the time you finish anything you'll already be a different person than when you started. Get stuff done, and then get more stuff done. Stop waiting for the future version of yourself to do it.

I admit, I'm guilty of this too. The reason why you're not reading "a beginner's guide to college" or "everything you need to know about dating" or "the solution to your sin problem" written by Kip Henderson is because I don't feel I'm qualified. And... I'm probably not. But I do have tiny nuggets of wisdom about each of those things, given to me through experience. And I'd be happy to pass those on in the midst of a wonderful one-on-one conversation.

You don't have to be an expert on Photoshop to help out a somebody new to the program. And you don't have to be perfect to accomplish something, even if it's as simple as loving somebody the best you can.