I labored for six weeks, stressing over every detail, printing and re-printing. Finally, critique day arrived for the three posters I had created for my Graphic Design final at university. We, the students, stood confidently next to our work. Then, we were told to vote on each classmate’s two weakest posters—the posters we had spent our meager college budgets printing and re-printing. We had done this exercise before, but this time, once the votes were all in, we were instructed to take down those two weakest posters and tear them up.
The best work comes from being torn up and made better.
This was an important lesson I learned early in my higher education: Do not be so attached to your work. Attachment is the enemy of improvement. The best work comes from being torn up and made better. The best products result from freely exchanging ideas, challenging assumptions, and embracing feedback. When you emotionally detach from your work, you open the door to innovation, growth, and the creation of something exceptional.