When I was a young squid with little experience and even less confidence, many of my best lensmaking habits were developed from watching what successful lensmasters did and then adapting their methods on my lenses. It's a great way to learn, one I recommend often.
Occasionally, though, there would be practices that I didn't feel particularly comfortable with. More often than not, though, I jumped on those bandwagons anyway. After all, those people had been around longer and had more lenses and more success than I had at the time, so they must be right, right? Not necessarily.
Peer pressure is a very powerful motivator for doing the wrong thing, even in a writing community like Squidoo. The
trap, however, lies in doing something simply because everyone seems to be doing it.
Here's what I learned: Instincts rarely lie. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. Just don't.
Susan this made me Smile. So often I am hearing "I did it because I saw others doing it and it seemed successful, something whether instinct or gut told me there would be a stop put to hundreds of similar lenses, I must admit I was tempted, tried to make a few but it just never felt right. I am SO glad my instinct or guts told me no.
ReplyDeleteI am SO happy to hear that, Lisa. I knew I couldn't be alone about the gut feelings. Since I wrote this I even had a time of being sucked into negative thinking because "everyone was doing it." I know better, but emotions are very addictive. Guess we all live and learn - and hopefully just take the good and leave the not-so-good behind! Thanks so much for your comment!
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