Think about what you want to learn, and make a commitment to learning it in front of others.. . . . Share what you love, and the people who love the same things will find you.” 

Austin Kleon, Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered

At the beginning of this year, when I was thinking about the things I wanted to accomplish as everybody does around New Year’s Eve. I realized that I’m often very quiet about the things I’m doing until they’ve been achieved.

Maybe all the motivational quotes about moving in silence have subconsciously gotten to me.  Maybe I’m still somewhat afraid of [public] failure and like to ensure I’m winning before making any announcements.  Maybe being thwarted in the past by my village people has taught me a lasting lesson.

Who knows.

Whatever it is, after reading the book Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered, I realized that not talking about the things I’m attempting to do largely serves to hold me back.

There are several incredible benefits to documenting and talking about the things you want to do with others:

1. It shows your progress over time.

At the start of a project, you have all the excitement and motivation to forge ahead despite all the unknowns.  Once the initial sense of adventure wanes, or when the project is taking much longer than you expect, it’s much more difficult to keep up that motivation and excitement to cross the finish line. 

A staggering 25 percent of people abandon their New Year’s resolution after one week, and another 60 percent abandon them within six months. Documenting what you’ve done so far will give you a way to refer back to where you’ve started and see how far you’ve come.

2. It shows you don’t know it all.

Too often I get asked rather difficult questions by family, friends, and acquaintances on the internet about topics I can’t even begin to fathom how to answer.  “I don’t know” I usually say with a face as perplexed as theirs, because I often don’t know.  Moreover, I’m not ashamed to say I don’t know.  I find that once others see that you’re comfortable admitting you don’t know, they’re more likely to want to work together to figure it out.

3. It helps you find your tribe.

There is likely, at minimum, a handful of other people who are interested in the same things you’re interested in or passionate about the seemingly obscure things you’re excited about.  Talking about the things you want to do and sharing your journey with others is how those other interested people will find you.  You can build a tribe of others on the same journey as you helps you answer tough questions faster and navigate choppy waters more swiftly.  

With all these benefits, I’ve committed myself to sharing the process of chasing after things I want to accomplish but don’t quite know how to do.  I know what I’m doing when it comes to healthcare, but there’s so much more I’d like to explore.

I want to be a professor at one of the top business schools; I want to create an online education platform to help people flourish in independent careers; I want to be a high-value keynote speaker who delivers messages that are not only inspirational, but also actionable.

Not exactly sure how I’ll do these things, but I’m committing to sharing when I soar, when I stumble, and what I learn along the way.