Dare to Suck

Today’s Theme: Failing Your Way to Mastery

Most people expect mastery to feel inspiring, but it’s pathway is often repetitive, frustrating, and full of failure. All of this contributes to why so few stick with it long enough to improve and separate themselves.

This week’s story is inspired by a photography class experiment, a Grammy-winning musical artist, and an Olympic champion and why failure is an essential part of the formula for their success.

The Photography Experiment

On the first day of his photography class at the University of Florida, Jerry Uelsmann divided his students into two groups.

One side of the room was graded on quantity (the number of photos they produced). One hundred photos would earn an A, ninety a B, and so on. The other side of the room was graded on quality and they were asked to produce one photo the entire semester, but it had to be nearly perfect.

By the end of the term, Uelsmann discovered that all the best photos came from the quantity group.

While the perfectionists theorized and planned, the others got to work. Every failed photo gave them feedback on the elements that mattered such as lighting, composition, or timing. Reps (and failure) became their most valuable source of learning and growth.

Their pursuit of repetition became the foundation for excellence. Perfection didn’t come from theory, it came from trial and error.

The experiment is a reminder that mastery isn’t the product of one flawless attempt. It’s the byproduct of thousands of imperfect ones. It’s not the single masterpiece that makes you great. It’s the countless drafts, takes, swings, or shots that got you there.

Mastery is less about perfection and precision and more about persistence.

Dare to Suck

4-time Grammy-winner and singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran once said:

He’s describing something every high performer eventually learns, which is that progress requires a willingness to fail and stumble. You can’t edit and improve what doesn’t exist. You can only improve the work you’ve actually done.

That same principle drove 2-time Olympic gold-medalist decathlete, Ashton Eaton’s, approach in training.

Sheeran’s words speak to courage (the willingness to get in the arena and risk embarrassment to grow). Eaton’s words speak to persistence (the discipline to stay in the arena and learn through every stumble).

One gets you moving. The other keeps you growing. Together, they reveal how high performers view failure. They don’t see it as something to avoid. They see it as something to use.

The Law of 100 (Or Whatever # Fits Your Craft)

There’s a simple framework called the Law of 100, popularized by Noah Kagan.

Now, the number 100 isn’t the point (it could be 50, 200, 500, etc.). What matters is the principle behind this. The number can shift based on your craft, but whatever amount you choose, it needs to meet three conditions:

1. It’s enough to build discipline. It must be long enough that motivation will fade (at some point or multiple points). The real value shows up once you’re tired of doing it. That’s when your consistency becomes a product of your character and identity.

2. It’s enough to strengthen your competence. Repetition deepens understanding. Each rep gives you feedback. Each mistake builds skill. Competence becomes the seed of confidence.

3. It’s enough to create separation. Most people stop early. They bail before the breakthrough happens. The number you choose should take you beyond where most quit and that’s where growth compounds.

Here’s what the Law of 100 (or whatever # you choose) might look like across different roles and pursuits:

• Public Speakers. Seek feedback from 100 audience members before adjusting your storytelling or delivery.

• Content Creators. Post 100 pieces of content before deciding what resonates with your audience.

• Writers. Publish 100 posts pertaining to your new ideas before assessing if they’re worth sharing in your next book.

• Athletes. Evaluate your progress in chunks of 100 (e.g. AB’s, shots, etc.).

• Coaches. Ask 100 intentional questions to people on your team to solidify the group’s identity, direction, and needs.

Whatever your version of 100 looks like, the goal isn’t to chase perfection. It’s to collect data.

Each rep makes you wiser. If you keep showing up long enough, failure stops feeling like friction. It becomes fuel.

Final Thoughts:

Uelsmann’s students proved that quantity breeds quality. Sheeran and Eaton remind us that failure breeds growth.

The thread between them all? They dared to suck before they became good. So this week, whatever your “studio” or “track” looks like, step into it with the courage to fail and stumble.

Greatness doesn’t come from avoiding failure. It comes from getting in the arena, again and again, until the work starts to look like art and mastery.

Inspiration for This Piece:

• Clear, J. (2018). Atomic habits: An easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones. Avery, an imprint of Penguin Random House. 

The Threshold Lab:

Here’s a quick rundown of my most recent episodes on The Threshold Lab Podcast.

• Guarding a Concrete Slab (5 min)

• The Coaching Skill No One Teaches (6 min)

• Opportunities in Disguise (5 min)

• Interview with Nate Shaw, Major League Strength Coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks (64 min)

• Work the Cut (7 min)

• Remembering the Wisdom of Ken Ravizza (8 min)

You can listen to all past episodes here: The Threshold Lab Podcast.

With gratitude,

ZB