For anyone who needs to hear it: things take time to build.

Remember that all of the 1-minute timelapse “tutorials,” TEDTalks, highlight reels, and “overnight” success are all the result of much longer amounts of time than you might think.

Jerry Seinfield rehearsed his five minute stand-up bit 200 times before his first appearance on the Tonight Show, and regularly will finesse a joke for years.

The quick digital painting you just watched take place on TikTok doesn’t show all of the practice, the reference, the studying that one does to become a proficient painter.

Even Tesla, funded by huge personal financial investments by Elon Musk, took five years to get their roadster, the precursor to the Model S, into production.

So remember – the likelihood that you’re going to immediately rocket to success when you’re first getting started is pretty astronomically low. If you’re looking for greatness, strap in for the long haul.