Yoo, though this would be a good idea since by the time i joined i have saw lots of BotBrs struggling with their own works, and that's NOT GOOD

so let make our fellow defeatist botbr shine and rekt our asses with their unleashed repressed talent next compos!

to start with, i'm defeatist, not only artististically BUT on almost everything that i do; just yesterday i felt quite down and looked for ways to support myself; when i read this, i think those BotBrs could appreciate this read too

‌How do I get over someone being more successful than me? ‌
‌wikiHow Contributor
There will always be someone who appears more successful. Success doesn't just come from achieving external goals. True success is measured by your attitude. If you believe in yourself, you can achieve whatever you put your mind to. Don't compare yourself to others, it's a recipe for disaster. Set yourself realistic goals, work to achieve them, and then set greater goals. Little by Little. People who appear successful often took many years to get there.
‌Source

share your experiences! tips on how to encourage a defeatist artist or your story on how you overcame being a defeatist! who knows? your support may encourage a BotBr to blast the next compo!~ x3

titan sucks

this is a baseless attack on titan

the key is to be absolutely not bothered by losing and continue pumping out minimum-effort entries anyways

aka the reason I don't cite my botb page anymore as a reference for my portfolio

Like a rollercoaster that only goes up.

Once you think you're good, you stop getting better.

kinkinkijkin: i agree with you; while one keeps trying one always figure out how to do better more quick later until is a natural response

Apsarah: i feel quite identified with you; though, most of times is not your art what should make you proud of what you do on this world; the fact of have been supportive to a friend or family is much more a thing to be proud than how famous you become with your art and then being famous has some luck factor to it; if everyone were famous; no one would be, for the most music is a hobby; and the purpose of it is to have another ways to express yourself as well as having something else to have fun on

just don't stop having fun and you'll become better at it! :D one only becomes defeatist when comparing to others, and that is never good; just achieve small goals, like getting a pleasant synth sound, a beat you could dig all day, until you can purpose yourself making a bass line you like and so on, that's the way to become the best! imho

btw i look forward for your game! it is looking astonishing already!~ x3

NerdMcBoon: if your only purpose is to become good, it's probably you get discouraged to continue after BUT there's so much personal goals to feel motivated of when making music; like trying how you perform different styles, trying to make some impressive use of effects, or music you like with no effects at all, making something in a style that is not of your preference BUT with the goal of you ultimately liking how you pull it, and so on!

two different concepts when criticizing oneself is agreeing in other constructive approach and being plain self-punishing

i think improving is better when you have fun seeking other approaches for what you like to do, than to force yourself to be sad about your work until you accomplish something (have seen much people getting burned out and have a bad time for way long before they accomplish something when they take it this way, so i'd recommend the funnier way instead as it is faster and more self-compassive imo)

Self-doubt is all a part of the process. I still deal with it daily! I'm pretty sure that anyone who is interested in achieving something deals with self-doubt. It would actually scare me if I didn't have some measure of it.
It's part of our internal checks and balances, and is a component of successful thinking. But that's only if we master self-doubt, learn to trust the process, and know that inspiration will emerge if we continue to seek it. We can't let it get the best of us.

From talking with people who I've looked up to I've found out even though they might be "better" or "more successful" than me, they don't think so themselves or at least don't give it a thought. Most of these people also don't tend to think about what other people do, or even compare themselves to others that much if at all. They do what they do purely out of their own interest, their own curiosity, their pursue of fun and entertainment, or a sense of fulfillment, not for the sake of others.

For the past few (five?) years I've been trying to do the same, to not think about others and focus on doing stuff I want to do and stuff I find nice. And for what I can see myself, it has worked somewhat. I'm not as stressed about performing or showing my stuff, since I'm more invested in it and I think it's good.

If the problem is that you feel nothing you make or do is good, I'd guess you need to really think about why isn't it good. What makes it not good, what's wrong, what could be done better. And then fix that stuff, either right there or in the next project/thing.

I also agree with what's said in this thread so far (except the stuff about titan), good riddance.

mootbooxle: i agree, self-doubt is very hard to control BUT i can see how it is useful

though, only is while is a wholesome self-doubt and not a hurtful one; and the gap between those is small

a bit can be a great encouragement BUT too much only can do bad to some persons and their will to keep doing music, so it is good only for people that can control it imho

LittleTheremin: totally what you said, can't agree more!~ x3

Instead of being discouraged about those that may appear to be better than you, instead look at it as inspiration and a proof of concept that this level of talent is humanly possible :). You are also a human, therefore it is also possible for you to achieve :).

It is absolutely okay to be proud of your own work as long as you don't put others down while doing so.

It's that balance that gets you out of a slump. Being humble enough to learn from and compliment others, while being confident enough to know that maybe you can do it too because they have.

I think I am not half bad sometimes :), but certainly coming here and listening to what all of you can do inspires me to be better. So take heart defeatists, maybe something you have made that you didn't think was so great inspired someone like me to try harder. You're most likely better than you think :).

I held off joining here for a number of years because I didn't think I was good enough and held you all in extremely high regard. Now that I am here though, it turns out my work is very appreciated by you kind people. So with that in mind, please do not make the same mistake I did.

Just go for it! If you're not where you'd like to be just keep at it, you'll eventually get there and you just might inspire someone else to do the same while you're at it :).

You probably won't find a more supportive and knowledgeable community of extremely talented friends to help you along the way. So use BOTB to the full and try your best. You will improve. I certainly have :).

perhaps is true then, i shouldn't deny being a defeatist BUT actually accept it and always use it while it is a good encouragement for me

is so good to hear so much good advices; there's a ton to learn from everyone point of view! i feel really satisfied of seeing so much support so far; thanks you all, everyone!~ x3

If I've ever needed to reflect on the fact that everyone seems to be better than me, I always remember:

"Roses are red,
violets are blue,
there's always an Asian,
better than you."

fin.

One of the few threads where aura might be relevant in interpreting someone's opinion.

I feel like a perpetual runner up, which gives me me a lot of itch to learn to be better, to poke and prod at those more knowledgeable than me. I appreciate that I am not matured in this kind of music.

Some people get stuck there, and at times I feel the pull back to that stable island. This is where I think ego does someone a great deal of help. Sometimes you are held back by a weak ego, and its difficult to be objective about how far you've gotten as a musician without looking back on those you surpassed (most important of them being your past self.)

There are a few forces at work that can also lead to frustration:

Anyone who does better than you do is improving at the same speed as you. This can lead to the impression that you haven't improved or gotten worse just because you are improving more slowly.

The other is that people will vote for what they are conditioned to like. If you make music that doesn't meet that condition better than others in the battle, you won't win. There's nothing wrong with this as long as you recognize when it happens.

That's the nature of any competitive environment. What you must do is not merely improve, but improve faster than others, with more intensity and drive. If you are sensitive to low placements, but also have a diminished urge to compete... seems you're bound for frustration in much more than just a chip competition. It's a game of who gets it and who doesn't get it. An attitude of predation should be cultivated- when you find a challenge you know you can meet, you should instantly be filled with the desire to attack it and come out on top. You should feel you deserve to place high if you could just study and improve more.

Currently I perform more than I compose right now. It still garners a lot of the same feelings. "Will they like my voice" "can I actually play this guitar lick" "screwed up the lick, now everyone thinks I'm dumb" "oops my voice cracked good job"
It's all in my head, and I think that was the biggest thing for me here was being so worried about how something would be received instead of focusing on actually improving myself.
Even when you cater to someones taste, you still can be rejected. But your best efforts into something you love and I believe that it comes through the music, and vice versa.

titan really sucks

Comparing yourself to other artists is essential. You'll never know how much better or worse you are if you don't do it. I compare my music to my favorite artists all the time so I can understand the options I have for production and composition techniques. You can't do anything if you believe in yourself but you can do some pretty cool stuff if you really work at it. It IS good to struggle with your artistic work, it's how we learn. I know how to produce but half of the songs I make aren't up to my own standards. The struggle is always there. I didn't like Titan either.

The only problem I have with comparing to the usual winners too much is, so many of my stronger results were either because I outlasted stronger competitors (which has its merit) and that voters thought I was a different competitor. I think that's why certain regulars don't come around anymore, but to an extent, that can't be helped.

I'd rather win as myself, but... That's not likely to happen.

just have a good time