“The real enemy is within your mind” is a really worn out cliché… that will still be true no matter what.
There’s an anecdote of famed orchestra director Artur Rodzinski that helps illustrate this perennial fact:
One evening, Rodzinski was driving when he saw a billboard announcing an open-air concert that was being broadcasted by radio at that very moment.
The program included one of his own specialties: Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony, directed by Fabien Sevitzky.
He didn’t respect Sevitzky much, but he tuned in to the broadcast anyway.
The concert had already begun.
Just a few seconds in, and he was pleasantly surprised; execution was much better than he expected.
“How well he sustains the line! Listen to that balance”, he thought.
The sensation just grew stronger as the concert continued. He was dumbfounded by Sevitzky’s skill.
“He must have been studying my own recordings”, he murmured to himself.
But as the piece ended, instead of the usual round of applause there was dead silence.
Rodzinski was dumbfounded for a split second.
Then, the announcer’s voice came on:
“Ladies and Gentleman, just a reminder that due to rain, the concert had to be cancelled. You just heard a recording of Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony… as directed by Artur Rodzinski.”
The Polish director’s anecdote is funny, but at the same time enlightening in some way.
Because something very similar happens for almost all of us: We sometimes don’t recognize our own skills.
Imposter syndrome, insecurity, you name it. Our usual bias is to downplay ourselves.
Rodzinski thought that he was listening to someone else and was amazed at the ability displayed.
I guarantee you that if you could ‘listen’ to yourself without knowing that it was you, you’ll judge yourself much more positively than you think.
That’s because of fear.
Fear of ‘not being good enough’, or being rejected, makes you paint your own perception with a thick layer of black.
And that would be helpful if you were a Gothic Metal musician, but even so, it’s better if you acknowledge your skills for what they actually are.
My suggestion: ask yourself if you have proof of your self perceived incompetence.
And if someone has complained in the past… you went out of your way to correct it, right?
I believe you want to do good to the world.
I truly believe it.
And that’s enough!
People want to control how they communicate externally, without first fixing their internal dialogue.
That step precedes everything.
Being kind to yourself starts with being aware of your own body language.
And my free ebook will help you with that:
Suscribe and download the free ebook
Much success!
Jesús Enrique Rosas
I unlock business leaders’ social skills.
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