Do It Wrong
You’re staring at the blank page, the empty canvas, the unwritten code. Your fingers freeze, trembling slightly. The voice in your head whispers, “You’re not good enough. You’ll mess it up. Why even try?”
We’ve all been there. That paralyzing moment when perfection feels like the only acceptable outcome. When the fear of doing it wrong keeps us from doing anything at all. You’re not alone.
We’ve been brought up in a world where we see everything as a competition, as an opportunity. Most of us don’t even have hobbies anymore. When I talk to people, I hear them say
When I was younger, I used to do that, but now I just don’t have the time for it. I was never good at it anyways.
Practice makes a man perfect but how many times have you given up on something just when things got tricky? I certainly have. I started painting when I was in highschool. I pursued it for quite some time but then I saw someone who was ten times better than me. It made me question my skills. I thought “I’ll never be as good as them, so what’s the point?”
But what if I told you that “wrong” is where the magic happens?
Picture this: It’s 3 AM. You’re hunched over your desk, surrounded by crumpled papers and empty coffee cups. Your eyes are bloodshot, your hair a mess. You’ve been working on this project for weeks, and it’s still not right. Not perfect.
Now, I’m not saying you should aim for mediocrity. But I feel it is in our human nature to take an unapologetic dive into the unknown. As Dostoyevsky once wrote,
“To go wrong in one’s own way is better than to go right in someone else’s.”
Let’s face it — society’s got a blueprint for us all. Go to school, get a job, climb the corporate ladder, retire with a gold watch. Sounds safe, right? But— what’s the point of working if it doesn’t excite you?
It’s the life equivalent of eating plain oatmeal for every meal. Sure, it’ll keep you alive, but at what cost to your soul?
Think about your favourite book. Is it flawless? Or is it beautifully, heartbreakingly human? Those dog-eared pages, those quotes you’ve underlined — they’re not perfect. They’re real. They’re raw. They speak to your soul precisely because they’re imperfect.
When I started this blog or my newsletter — it was ugly. I didn’t know how to write, I could barely finish a draft before deleting the entire copy and writing from scratch. I even gave it all up because I feared failure. Most of the time I didn’t even do it because of what people might say, I gave up because I couldn’t face the rejection of my own skills. Doing things perfectly is sure an ego boost
“See, I did it on my own, without any help”
Feels great to say that right? But how long are you gonna run for things that are easier to grasp than chase the dreams you’ve buried long ago?
Think about it — every great inventor, artist, or entrepreneur started as a novice. Imagine if Vincent van Gogh had given up after his first funny-looking sunflower? Or if Nikola Tesla had quit after his first failed experiment? We’d be living in a much duller, less electrified world.
The “Yes…and” theory
I picked it up by watching improvs a long time ago. In improv, there’s a rule: “Yes, and…” It means you accept whatever ridiculous scenario your partner throws at you and build on it. I started applying it to every idea I got:
“Yes, I have no idea how to code, and I’m going to build an app.”
“Yes, I’ve never run more than a mile, and I’m going to sign up for a marathon.”
It’s not about being delusional; it’s about being daring. Of course, I know my ideas will not always work out. And yes, I know I might not become a millionaire in a day by starting a business. But at least I know I gave it a shot. It’s about telling that inner critic to take a hike.
In his book Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, Adam Grant writes, “The greatest originals are the ones who fail the most because they’re the ones who try the most.” So go ahead, try. Try and fail and try again.
So, go ahead. Do it spectacularly wrong. Do it messy. Do it lazy. Do it weird. Do it chaotic. Do it confused.
Do it wrong.
So the next time you’re faced with a challenge, a new opportunity, or just a wild idea that won’t let you go, don’t ask yourself if you’re good enough. Don’t ask yourself if you’re ready. Ask yourself: “What’s the worst that could happen if I do this wrong?” And then, leap.
Because at the end of the day, it’s not about getting it right. It’s about getting it started.
Give your dream a chance.
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