Not much means more than respect from your peers. It means more than support from immediate family and friends. It means more than people outside of your industry recognizing your talent. We’ll touch on why later in this piece. It is a level of validation that is not experienced by many. It means the people who have worked hard to be amongst the best of your industry looking around and noticing that there is someone so special that public acknowledgment has not only been earned but seems like a requirement. The award or shout-out is good. The recognition that will stay with us is the best. This recognition can be what takes us to another level. It can also take away our hunger and cause us to take a step back. This outcome is what we want to avoid. It can be hard to determine which path we will follow. It has a lot to do with what our original goal was. How fast we obtain that acknowledgment can play a huge role, also.

Before we get into that, I want to explain why this is more important than support from immediate family and friends and people outside your industry recognizing your talent. You may or may not receive support from close family and friends. Most will jump on after the masses and broadcast that they knew you before the fame and recognition. Regardless, the backing will not have any effect on your ascendance to the top of your chosen craft. If it makes us feel any better, your circle is not big enough to push you to the top. If any of us feel down because of a lack from here, keep that in mind and move forward. It is more critical than traditional fans or people outside of your industry because the people in your industry have a better understanding of what it took to get to the top. The typical fan is the person who believes in overnight success, effortless skill, and other magic. Part of gaining skill is to make it look effortless, but those who know understand know there is no magic. That is why acknowledgment from peers means more. They grasp the grind. They have been through the uncertainty. They went through the nights of wondering if what they were doing was worth it. All of the above is why a moment of appreciation from peers is significant.

Let’s get back to the positives and negatives of what respect can do. The positive is not wanting to let the people who acknowledged you down. For some of us, the need to get even better will take us to places we didn’t think were possible. We want to validate the acknowledgment and be known as one of the greatest to do it. There is also the other side of things. Those of us who only seek the validation of our peers may receive it and get a feeling of being fulfilled. A sense of completion is dangerous. It can mean the end of trying, growing, and seeking new ways to contribute. It can mean doom for what would otherwise have been a great and lengthy career. This scenario is where the timing of respect from peers is paramount. If the nod comes late in a career, it is perfect for those of us who will feel finished upon receiving it. Early attention can rob us of the longevity of a great. I don’t see anything that can prevent this. It’s a personality type but the best thing that can be done is raising awareness of the issue.

In closing, one thing I didn’t state was less important than respect from peers is respect from ourselves. Belief in ourselves and knowing that respect from peers will come if we continue to put in the work. Knowing we are not cheating our craft and that we’ll contribute in ways no one has before is empowering. It will get us through the silence and the loudness when the attention comes. Self-awareness will give us the power to take in the acknowledge as only an accelerant. There will be no feeling of completeness unless we have done what we set out to do. This mindset will set up the ability to welcome respect, take it in, and proceed to make the masses feel they owe us even more.

Food for Thought. You do the Dishes!