Last week we discussed the difference between confidence and certainty.
Today we are going to explore how certainty can take you to the places of your dreams!
I'm going to use my exceptionally talented husband, Tab Laven as an example to show how certainty works.
Tab started playing guitar when he was about 11 years old. He dreamed early on of creating an amazing life in music.
By the time Tab was 19 years old he was already working on the first three steps of becoming an ARTIST. He had Accepted the Challenge, he had Defined the Rules, and he was Mastering his Craft. He had become a confidant, proficient and dependable guitar player. His ability to duplicate opened the door to touring with the #1 selling artist, Mary Macgregor, guitarist extraordinaire, Michael Johnson and then with Rock 'n' Roll legend, Art Garfunkel. He had earned a position as a rock solid part of Art's band, but then something happened that opened the door for him to rise to becoming an ARTIST.
When Art Garfunkel lost his voice back in 2010, Tab became a part of helping create an atmosphere that allowed Art to sing again. It became clear early on that Tab would have to do more than just be part of the band. He was the band. It was one legendary voice fighting to resurface and one guitar, Tab's guitar.
It was at this point that confidence had to become something else.
Tab had to let go of confidence and rise up to certainty. He had to be willing to abandon the comfort zone of confidence he had built over decades of playing. He had to open the door to just be himself and play as himself, not as someone duplicating someone else's work. He had to allow the music to flow through him without resistance. He had to let go of the mechanisms that had ensured his survival in the industry; his ability to rely on muscle memory. He had to break free of the mechanics, and tap into what was special about him; a beautiful, flowing, effortless and powerful energy. He had to be more than confidant if he was going to elevate his skill. He had to have certainty that he WAS those things.
The journey was brutal; filled with doubt, frustration and always the fear of losing the gig if he didn't deliver. Art needed him to rise to the occasion; his vocal chords needed magic to rest upon.
Art didn't need a musician. He needed an ARTIST.
Tab confronted all that screamed at him that he could not surpass the boundaries he had set up for himself. He struggled and battled and fought the voices that said he was "good enough."
He HAD to have certainty in himself to open the door to allow himself to shine. He had to elevate his skill. He HAD to attain ARTISTRY.
He had to.......and he did. It was absolutely magical.
I am of course biased, but when the many legends of Rock 'n' Roll greet him off stage and are awed by his playing, it's just a confirmation of what is true. I know it is a nice validation but in the end, Tab will tell you that the true joy and happiness comes from the freedom to just be.
I wish every person on Earth the opportunity to experience the joy of certainty because with it brings the life of your dreams.
Go ahead! Create the life you live.
You Are An ARTIST. I see it.
Check out Decker's latest piece, "We Can Do Better" on our Observation Deck.
Well Played and Well Said!