On the 13^th November, 1875, the music critic Nicolai Feopemptovich Soloviev wrote the following review:

Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto, like the first pancake, is a flop

In 1907, the New York Post carried an article which stated:

Debussy’s music is the dreariest kind of rubbish.  Does anybody for a moment doubt that Debussy would write such chaotic, meaningless, cacophonous, ungrammatical stuff, if he could invent a melody?

And on 16^th January 1937, the New York Sun claimed this:

It is probable that much, if not most, of Stravinsky’s music will enjoy brief existence

Maybe you’ve heard of Tchaikovsky, Debussy and Stravinsky?

These three inept and hopeless composers wrote some of the most popular, recognisable and acclaimed pieces of classical music of all time.

Now, perhaps the critics were right.  These musical maestros might've struck a bum note those days.  It's possible they hadn’t settled into their symphonic stride and their symphonious skills were yet to emerge. 

But whether the critics were right or not misses a larger point.

And here’s why:

Whatever you’re up to in the world, it doesn’t matter how good other people think you are.

It doesn’t matter how good you think you are.

It doesn’t even matter how good you actually are.

The only thing that matters is this:

How good do you want to be?

To my mind, the number one mental block which stops us getting good at something we want to get good at, developing our craft and generally sticking with it rather than jacking it in is that we think our skill level today is somehow relevant.

That it’s some sort of predictor of our future skill level.

Truth is, it has no bearing at all. 

Our skill level today shows how far we’ve come, not how far we can go.

And if you don’t believe me, scroll up and check out those reviews again.

I don’t know if Tchaikovsky, Debussy and Stravinsky treated these jabs with a generous heap of salt or a humble dose of respect.

But I do know they kept going.  And this is why we’re listening to these lyrical legends over a century later.

I also know that developing your craft and sticking with something you love in the face of your own or other people’s chirping, carping & criticism isn’t always easy. 

In fact, it can feel like a real battle.

If you’d like some support with this:

https://waitinglist.followingfulfilment.com

That’s all for today.

 - Tom