You know those creepy-crawly plastic insects kids play with around Halloween time?  Back in the day, my friends and I would throw a bunch of them against the wall and then see which one would stick.

When I saw these in the store last week, they got me thinking that a lot of people have careers that involve exactly the same thing.  When you’re an entrepreneur appealing to venture capitalists, a marketing consultant coming up with the next big promotional idea, a scientific researcher (like my husband) applying for a new grant, or an author (like myself) selling a new book proposal, your daily grind encompasses trying dozens – maybe even hundreds – of things that don’t work in the quest for something that does. 

For some people, the tinkering around is part of the fun.  But for those who are efficient perfectionists and hate spending time on projects that don’t have a sure outcome, throwing ten plastic insects against the wall and having all of them drop to the ground can feel a lot like failure.  It’s occurred to me recently that if you’re in a career like the ones above, not only do you have to accept the “inventor’s mentality,” but you have to be comfortable with it as well.  You can’t allow yourself to get frustrated because you’ve reached a certain level of success and feel you shouldn’t have to “pitch” people anymore.  In many creative, scientific, and entrepreneurial professions, the “pitching” process never stops, and so sometimes you have to be content to try and try again, until you hit on something brilliant.