Q Factor
As these spaces have been used by many of us at the News-Telegram to explore things about ourselves, I’ll admit something. I worry. A lot.
Despite my best efforts, I worry about the stuff I can’t control. I worry about the stuff I can control. I worry about making mistakes. I worry that I missed something if I find no mistakes. It’s not something I do every day. It’s just that when I start to fret about something, that worry tends to linger and I can’t always shake it that fast.
I am more than a decade into my career and I admit there are some nights I am still worried that I’m not doing all that great at it. Goodness knows I’m not perfect. I’ve been in journalism now for more than a decade and I make mistakes every paper.
“But that’s okay! We’re not meant to be perfect. There’s always something left to learn – and sometimes, things of which to be reminded.”
I know this and yet there are times I’m hard on myself. “I should have known this.”
I’m working on the Friday Night Lights football magazine and I’m worried that despite years of the magazine looking amazing and having great content, and despite working with awesome coaches, players and schools as well as my coworkers here at the News-Telegram, THIS is going to be the year it falls short.
Never mind that I’ve always done my best. Never mind that I’m confident in my skills. It’s just that annoying little voice in the back of my mind that won’t shut up when it needs to.
I suspect I’m not alone in this. Humans tend to worry about things. I usually talk to my family or my close friends and they help walk me through my fears.
It’s those moments that I realize that either I shouldn’t worry about it because I can’t control it or that I shouldn’t worry about it because it’s something that won’t end up happening.
I learned that there’s a difference between being prepared and being paranoid. And it’s where I’ve gotten one of my mantras for life.
“Just do the best you can where you are.”
It’s something I tell my friends when they’re worry about something. All we can do is our best. If we know we’re doing that, that’s half the battle. And we can’t control outside factors.
There will be people for or against you. That’s life. All you can control is what you do to meet those moments.
Let’s turn it around to sports. I’ve spent a good portion of my life as a professional wrestling fan. Yes, I know it’s worked. I like the storylines and the chance to just relax and watch something that can be amazing and silly all at once.
There’s always seemingly some weird kerfluffle between pro wrestling and its fans. Sometimes, it makes sense (wrestling needs more entertaining storylines that don’t belittle or ridicule!) and sometimes, it doesn’t.
This week, a subset of “fans” went after announcer Renee Young after she made a joke about baseball caps. The individuals went after her announcing skills, or what they perceive as a lack thereof. Young, who was a very good host in Canada under her real name, Renee Paquette, revealed a bit about her mindset when the attacks continued.
“I know I’m not great on commentary, but it’s my job,” she said on Twitter. “I try to get better each week. People love to tell me how bad I am at it as if I think I’m great at it. So I should just quit? What would that say about me? Not easy to learn a skill on a gigantic global TV show.”
She then explained the differences between hosting and live commentary as it related to her. Her answers resonated with me because we all want to be great at what we do, but there are some people who see nothing but the mistakes – not the work put in to get to that point.
And I think Renee Young is a good commentator who is learning on the go and getting better. She’s very good as a host and she’s putting in the work on the commentary side. They’re two different animals.
That’s something we all do in life. We do the best we can at our jobs. We know within ourselves whether or not we’re giving maximum effort. If we’re giving that effort, then we’re ahead of the game. The work we put in leads to the success we achieve. It may take a week, it may take a year, it may take longer. But that success is sweet when we reach it.
“Do the best you can where you are.” As long as you do that, you’ll build to where you want to go and be.
NEVER STOP LEARNING
As you read this, I’ve just completed a Texas Center of Community Journalism workshop on sports photography. It was an honor to go and learn more about my craft.
I’ve had a lot of fun going to the various camps and shooting pictures. I love taking action shots, but I worry about how good they are. It’s that worrywart in me. I’m working on that. I hope to get a chance to use these skills in my day-to-day photography, whether at work or at home.
We already discussed the things I’d like to learn this year. Learning a language was on the list; I’m taking steps to do that. I’d love to learn how to draw, but I may be too far gone to get really good at that.
Still, life is about learning, isn’t it? I’m looking forward to the education.