There’s a type of person I think everyone knows.
They’re really good at something, even really good at many somethings. Maybe you rivaled them growing up. Maybe you always hoped you could be like them. Maybe you were this kind of person yourself.
This person was put on a pedestal by their parents or their coaches or their peers.
But people aren’t meant to live on pedestals.
If you were ever told you were “gifted” as a child, or if you grew up feeling somewhat superior to other people — whether this meant athletically, artistically, academically, etc. — you might find yourself struggling to hold on to that capable feeling post-high school.
If you were always told that you were innately perfect or exceptional or talented — what happens when you find yourself failing at something? You blame yourself, you hit the wall, and you feel as though this failure now defines you as a person.
Teaching someone that they are infallible is a certain way to make them fear failure.
In our generation, this problem is pretty common. Few admit it, but it’s easy to see the signs.
If something is “too hard,” you get frustrated, berate yourself and stop trying.
Even if whatever you’re working for is attainable by any normal standards, even if you can clearly see how to attain it, you drop it. You don’t work. You can’t. You’re paralyzed.
If you are not immediately good at something, you run away from it. You don’t give yourself the chance to try. Trying isn’t something “smart” people do. Struggling isn’t something “smart” people do.
If anything is outside of the sphere of talent that has been made around you, it’s impossible. You’re so afraid of failure, you also become afraid of trying.
Perhaps this is why some people see millennials as lazy or entitled. Generally speaking, we’re neither of these things. We are smart and capable, but we pursue only the things we believe we are capable of doing. The problem lies in what we believe we can do as human beings, not as millennials.
To overcome this, we must think that we can do anything, including fail. You will fail, and you will continue to live afterwards. Try to believe this, no matter how many times you have to tell yourself.
Your life will be a cycle of trying and failing and you will keep living through it.
If you find yourself toeing the edge of a pedestal, step down. Help others to leave their pedestals behind, too.
This life is better when we strive for equal ground.
