There’s always going to be someone doing what you’re doing and doing it “better.” The quotes are there to prove a point. Success is a subjective metric, and most people don’t know it. When you compare yourself to others, you limit your potential. The writer with 100K followers looks like an Eldin Ring boss who’s about to lay the smackdown on you and make you quit the game once and for all. Letting go of others’ success means you can grow. It’s like taking care of a house plant. All you can do is water the plant and give it enough sunlight. You know how big the plant can grow, but know it’ll take years to get there in the back of your mind. Your work is a plant. Water it. And be patient.
The superpower you gain When you care less about what others are writing, you become frictionless. Reading others' work makes you want to emulate them. You pick up on their style and run away from your own. While “stealing like an artist” is fine, there’s a difference between providing unique insight and not writing like yourself. Caring less is freeing. You have the freedom to write and not give a shit about what others will say. You know you’re putting out value, and the right people will come eventually.
Patience is the name of the game, but there’s something else you can do that helps. Turn your damn phone off
Shutting my socials down from 10 PM to 10 AM every day also helps. This helps keep me away from late-night scrolls on Instagram, and I get more sleep in the process too, so I have the energy to create.