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Ira Glass on Storytelling 3

warphotography · 145.8K views · 2009-07-11 · 5:21

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Overview

A five-minute clip of Ira Glass on the gap between good taste and early creative work. He says beginners know their work falls short and must keep producing to close the gap.

On Hacker News

HN commenters return to it as motivation for creators who feel their work is not good enough yet.

Recommended by 7 HN people across 7 months · HN mentions 2018–2026

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What people said

michael-online · 2024-11 · Strong recommendation

The first three minutes of this Ira Glass interview are pure gold, and I listen to them at least once a year to remind myself to keep fighting. [VIDEO]

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fenwick67 · 2019-12 · Strong recommendation

Ira Glass's take on this is so good and I go back to it often when my creative work is less than satisfactory: [VIDEO] Basically when you work on creative stuff you're drawn to it because you have good taste, but for a long time your work will disappoint you because of your good taste.

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SeanAnderson · 2025-07 · Recommendation

I find it surprisingly difficult to lower my standards once I feel committed to an idea. I wish this article leaned a little more into ways to address that sort of dilemma. Don't get me wrong, I agree fully with the article. I put it into practice plenty well in many areas of my life. I've made great progress with my diet, self-care, and physical fitness routines by keeping my goals SMART. And yet, a few years ago, I got this idea in my head for a piece of software I wanted to create that is, if not too ambitious, then clearly asking all of me and then some. The opening paragraph of the article really resonated with me -- "The artwork that will finally make the invisible visible." And so, I've chipped away at the idea here and there, but I find myself continually put off by "the gap" - even though I know it's to be expected and is totally human. Part of me wishes I had never dared to dream so big and wishes I could let the idea go entirely. Another part of me is mad and ashamed for thinking like that about a personal dream. Anyway, don't know where I'm going with all this. Just felt like remarking on the article since it struck close to home. P.S. if you haven't seen the Ira Glass video, I'd take a look. It's pretty inspirational. Here's Part 3 which is what the article was referencing. [VIDEO]

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Sources

Video by warphotography, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

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