#2: How to Do Great Work? - Fear

Unblocking my mental barrier for great work is easier said than done.

In my blog titled "#1: How to Do Great Work? - Myth," I talked a lot about the fear and misconceptions we have about doing great work. However, I realized that when it comes to making choices in life, it is easier said than done.

For instance, today I was worried about how I can maintain my side project building cadence when I started working. All my current projects are only tangentially related to my idea of great work, and I struggle with how to weave more impactful problem-solving into them. I don't feel comfortable only exploring fun or funny ideas because I don't think they are "great" enough. In this way, I fall into Myth 3: Ambition and direction are a must for great work.

When I began planning, I realized that I might not even have enough time and energy to pursue my side projects in the way I want them to be done. It could take me 10 years to build a big project, and I started to feel inadequate and stressed, violating my own Myth 1: We need to do great work, and great work means a large-scale impact, like Elon Musk or Steve Jobs, and Myth 4: We need to be good enough to do great work. I am amazed by how much my rational brain tries to learn versus how much my emotions and traditional perceptions trap me in my old ways.

When I shared my inner fears with my housemate, she asked me a great question:

The product is curiosity and learning-driven, potentially exploring and solving real-world problems using AI. It is already aligned with my concept of great work. Why do I need to reinvent the wheel and create great work for myself? Instead, I can use my internship opportunities to understand the problems, markets, users, and solutions in AI x Learning so that I can gain knowledge beyond technical skillsets. Exploit in my real job, and explore my side projects. A simple but straightforward solution.

I know you might expect me to share my accomplishments and growth, but I share my fear with you instead. I believe that the process of progress always has ups and downs, fears, and confusion, and learning to face them has value to share. It's okay to feel puzzled and recognize that we are all on this journey together. Maybe we should gather more people who are interested in this "how to do great work" learning group (?