10min Intermission: Set goals not time limits!
If you are like me, you are neck deep in goal pursuits; you have so many goals you are going after you may need two life times to complete them all. Also, if you are like me, some of your goals have time limits with the hope of completing them by a certain date! Good! A little pressured motivation never hurt nobody. However, if you have a dream/goal of being on Broadway by age 30 and you are a month away from the big 3-0, your pursuit toward Broadway can feel like an anxious race to beat the clock!! Dreams that big should not have an expiration date. They need room to breathe and develop. You need room to breathe and develop! Whether you want to write your own musical, tour the country with a famous artist, or own a condo you must give yourself enough time to do so. A goal may take longer than expected. You may lose a job, have to move back home, or go back to the drawing board... literally!! Thats ok! Life happens!! There may be future situations you have no control over that can slow you down or divert your attention from your artistic endeavors! These things happen and should be factored into the pursuit.
However, if you feel as though "time is running out" or you need to "arrive" at a certain place before a certain age, you run the risk of being stressed out, discouraged, and giving up before you really had time to see any results.
Bill Gates sums it up nicely when he says, "Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years". What's important is that you are A. taking daily action towards the thing(s) you want to accomplish, B. acknowledging the efforts you are making towards the thing(s) you want to accomplish, and C. Enjoying the adventure!
You are worth the time it takes to grow into your excellence!