I used to draw a lot as a kid and all through university I spent most of my lecture time sketching rather than taking notes and talking to the girls. Suffice to say that come exam time, I liked multiple choice tests. Drawing for me was always a bit of a time waster activity, something I did when I had nothing else interesting to do. I haven't drawn much for what feels like a very long time. Well, I have been drawing with my daughter on one of those magnetic boards with the slider thing to wipe it clean.

https://i.imgur.com/kCFIGAl.jpg

Where do you get your ideas about what to write and post about or if you are an artist, draw? Do you have reliable sources you can turn to? Is it habitual and repetitive while you refine your techniques? From where do you draw inspiration? 

I was talking to some random person today who got me thinking about the types of content people produce and how they approach its development. People tend to have some aspirations of some kind here, somewhere they want to be in some kind of future but I wonder how many actually consider if their current actions and behaviors are of the kind that are aiming them toward that point. 

It seems that many people have a disconnection between that future and what they are willing to do for it. Or perhaps it is that they don't really know what is required of them to get there. There is of course no one way to get anywhere for the most part, but a lot of people kind float and wander aimlessly in the moment but have a clear idea of where they want to be.

There are many who openly talk about what they expect from the future but are seemingly unaware that in order to actually get there, *some* movement toward it of some kind is likely required. There is nothing wrong with being a wanderer as long as there is no fixed destination in mind because if there is, it will only lead to disappointment.

I think a lot of people come into Steem with an expectation of where they want to be and if it doesn't turn out that way, they become disillusioned or bitter and blame others for their position. To each their own but we do have to take into consideration what we have done to reach these points in our lives, both the positive and negative. 

I wonder if where we source our inspiration is also the source for our disappointment as we might be wanting to be in places we just aren't capable of getting. Kind of like a dress bought from a catalogue that looks beautiful in the images but once on, looks terrible and doesn't fit well. It doesn't even necessarily mean that the body shape between the model and reality is different, because they also use a lot of pins in the right places for photo shoots and often on mannequins in shop windows too. The shape of the dress in the image is not the reality of the dress itself. Of course, personal body type might just not fit the dress style. 

We source an expectation, we surround ourselves with aspirational perspectives without fully working out what needs to be done to make what we aspire to, into a reality. We may not even realize that the thing we value is an illusion itself. Nearly every kid dreams of being something grand when they grow up, a sports star, an astronaut, a doctor but at that point they don't know what it actually takes to get there.

Steem is much like this too where people hold expectations, but if one doesn't take the time to understand how the ecosystem works, what the technology allows and things like how people behave, the chance of getting to where they want to be is very slim. The system is complex and expecting it to be what it is not or only fit into a narrow frame of what one *thinks it should be,* is an immature approach to the platform. It is almost destined to end in dissatisfaction because what one does and how the environment acts aren't aligned to get to where they want to be.

What we surround ourselves with matters and a lot of people in this world seem to have had a lot of their lives handed to them, ordered, structured, protected. Whenever they are faced with opposition or anything *they deem* an attack, they feel victimized. That goes onto include unfulfilled expectations, even if they are unfulfilled because of their own actions, inaction or demeanor and inability to fit and adapt themselves adequately to the worlds in which they operate.  

One of the beauties of Steem is the ability to be who you choose to be but sometimes people forget that there is a price to pay for all positions. All actions have reactions and this includes those made in freedom which reacts as consequence. Freedom and responsibility are two sides of the same coin although most seem to think that Freedom is without limitation. 

I think that where we draw inspiration from is going to affect the chances of our accomplishments and if we continually borrow where we want to be from others, we might end up aiming for the wrong place for us. And while we focus and compare ourselves to others and worry about what they are doing, we miss the signs that could course correct and put us on a better path for who we are. 

This isn't about lowering expectations, it is about losing them completely and finding out what reality has on offer that is matched to what one can offer reality. One thing is certain, there is no such thing as an easy path, no matter in how much cotton wool we asked to be wrapped.

Friday night thoughts before bed.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]