Why good doesn’t matter

Too many people want to be good. Hell, everyone wants to be good. But trying to be good is the wrong point of reference. To be good is to externalize your worth. It’s to rely on your estimation of what others deem appropriate. To be good, you just look at what’s out there and match the commonly accepted standards of goodness. It’s a hunting expedition. You pin every picture you like, you review every blog, and if you conform yourself to the good ones, then you’re good. But where do you go from there? Good is a ceiling. Going for good leads to mediocrity.

Even being the best is wrong target. Going after the best fixates the mind on bloat and excess. It becomes about exceeding everything else instead of finding more of yourself. The tendency is to look at what’s good and to try to do even more of it. To make the pictures more dramatic. More filmic. More polished. More of whatever it is you’re after. That’s how we wind up with bad Hollywood flicks that cost north of $200 million. But photography is about sacrifice as much as inclusion. Pictures are about omission, and the question isn’t how much more you can stuff in there, but how you can do less to say more. Thinking about the best pulls you towards bigger and better, when what you really want is more subtle and refined.

Instead, try better. More specifically, ask how you can do things better. Better creates disruption. It creates the type of shifts that lead to breakthroughs. Better is personal. You can’t ask how something can be better without involving your own beliefs and values. It is about what you think is important in the world. The moment you ask how you can do something better, you force yourself to find alternatives to the status quo. It’s at the heart of creative thinking.

If you ask how to make a picture with good composition, the answer is flat and uninvolved. It’s great when you start out, but it runs out of steam fast. But if you ask how to make a better composition, you now have a pursuit that can last an entire lifetime. It will always challenge you. There will always be room for growth. It will layer itself, adding more and more, as your mind navigates the twists and turns of life to constantly create increasingly refined and focused answers.

People who pursue good burnout. They get the accolades, then they rest on their laurels, because there simply is nowhere else to go. That’s how you get defensive and your vision grows myopic. People who pursue better commit to themselves. It keeps your eyes open and your mind engaged. It’s a rocket that propels you into the future. So forget about good, better, best. Just focus on better, better, better. It is the best way to unearth your beliefs, to stay vital, and even to get good.