Where Things Really Begin.

When I created my first video on Youtube, I didn’t know what reception to expect.

I knew I’d be in it for the long haul, but I had a glimmer of hope that things might just magically ‘kick off’ — it would have made things easier, but as expected, it never turned out that way.

Beginner’s luck they call it, exactly what I had experienced.

My first video still remains the most viewed on my channel, but after more than a year of hard work, repeated iterations, months and months of refining every aspect of my craft, I still remain in what Seth Godin calls: the “Dip.”

“The Dip is the long stretch between beginner’s luck and real accomplishment.”
— Seth Godin

Almost everyone I know has experienced a similar phenomenon with their most meaningful projects. Things start off seemingly easy. All eyes divert to the newcomer. They want to see who you are, what you do, where you come from and where you might be headed.

A short while later, those very eyes divert elsewhere. Their gaze reverts back to the known and the deserved.

The surge of initial support naturally dwindles, leaving you with a feeling of isolation. Soon, it’s just you and the work that needs to be done; a void that awaits to be filled through hard work and commitment —  A trial for the untested.

The ‘dip’ is where real work takes place, where no one keeps a watchful eye or hears you complain, where commitment is undisputed, because you’re yet to earn the stripes of ongoing acknowledgement.

The dip is where the superficial are laid to rest and the genuine, strengthened.

It’s rare to arrive at any true accomplishment without the trials of error, self-doubt and glass ceilings. But this is what lays the foundation for real achievement.

The truth is, my beginner’s luck was undeserved. It always is.

I always knew it was the beginning of a long road, a path filled with hurdles but the start of something better: an infinite game.

To all the beginners out there, the doubtful self-starters, know that the dip is the real beginning.

The real rewards belong to those who keep on moving.