June 10, 2022
Ixchel's Journey
It is erroneous to think that people with more developed skills than average can affect you and your performance.
That because you don't have that "certain something" that others have, that that puts you in an inferior position and that, in your opinion, is a reason why you can't achieve what you want to become.
Nowadays it seems that the person who excels in a certain area is a symbol of triumph and appreciation. And in some cases it is to be admired, but it is not the only factor to focus on.
By thinking that what happens on the outside determines one´s progress, it would mean that we are depending on something that is highly variable, and that if what we do, does not meet our expectations, we will lose.
We will lose something that by our own criteria is not what we expected, and as a consequence we will be disappointed by the "failure" we have manifested.
This whole subject that I am presenting is because a few years ago, I believed that because I started playing the cello late – at age15 -, I could not become a professional musician. I am still in the process, but it has helped me to realize what I am talking about.
I spent my time comparing myself to people who had started at a younger age (as is the case in other cultures) and thinking, that if I had started in earlier years, I would have advanced my progress and I would be seeing other things. In spite of that, I realized that the image I had of myself was not taking me anywhere, nor was I enjoying what I was creating or the progress I was making.
This way of thinking created unnecessary frustrations for me that would later find their way out.
One day I found a phrase that to this day has been teaching me a great deal, since it helps one see certain things in a different way.
Let me share it with you:
"The success of others does not mean your failure".
The famous "success" that we hope to achieve is really a concept that poisons and limits us, and pressures us unnecessarily.
Each person has their own idea of how to become "successful", depending a lot on the education they have received and the experiences they have lived through, but it causes us unnecessary suffering by wanting to possess it.
That's where this particular phrase helped me, in realizing that I really hadn't wasted any time, and that life is not a competition. Everyone has their own path to travel and discover.
We should not put limits on the point where we will get to, or on what we will be able to do in a certain time, because those expectations that we create in our heads, take away the vitality of the purpose of what we do and create in the present.
Let's let life flow. Let's not close ourselves to concepts, let's open ourselves to new approaches and give ourselves the freedom to enjoy what we do.
Isn't that right, fellow traveler?
Ixchel Pérez Hernández (Instagram: 
