The Fear of Mediocrity

"We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience." — John Dewey.

There is perhaps no greater fear for a creative person than the fear of mediocrity. To create something that is neither outstanding nor terrible, but simply... forgettable. A piece of work that inspires no strong reaction, that is seen and then immediately discarded from memory. This fear lingers in the minds of artists, writers, musicians, and thinkers alike—what if all this effort amounts to nothing?

The dread of mediocrity is paralyzing. It whispers that it is better to not create at all than to create something unimpressive. It tricks us into believing that if we cannot achieve perfection, we shouldn’t try at all. But this mindset is a trap, one that prevents growth and stifles creativity before it even begins.

"Facing mediocrity" by John Ransom

Philosopher Søren Kierkegaard spoke of the “leap of faith”—a concept that applies not just to spirituality, but to any endeavor that requires courage in the face of uncertainty. To create is to take a leap of faith, to embrace the possibility of failure and mediocrity, trusting that the process itself is worthwhile. Every great artist, every celebrated thinker, has at some point faced this same fear. The difference is that they chose to create anyway.

Hannah Arendt, in The Human Condition, explores the value of action as a fundamental aspect of human existence. For Arendt, creativity is a form of action that brings something new into the world. She warns against the dangers of inaction and passivity, suggesting that fearing mediocrity is more dangerous than never participating in the creative process at all. To create is to contribute to the world, regardless of how history judges the final product.

When we stop seeing creativity as a performance and start seeing it as an exploration, something shifts. Instead of aiming for immediate brilliance, we allow ourselves to discover, to play, to fail without shame. A painting that doesn’t turn out as expected, a novel that never quite finds its rhythm—these are not failures but necessary steps in the creative process.

The irony is that in our avoidance of mediocrity, we often find ourselves producing nothing at all. The only way to escape this trap is to embrace the possibility of imperfection. A mediocre first draft is better than an unwritten masterpiece. An uninspired painting is better than a blank canvas collecting dust. Every act of creation, no matter how flawed, is a step forward.

Jean-Paul Sartre, in Existentialism Is a Humanism, argues that existence precedes essence—meaning we define ourselves through our actions. A person who creates, no matter how imperfectly, is more alive than one who remains paralyzed by self-doubt. Sartre would say that fearing mediocrity is a form of bad faith, an excuse to avoid responsibility for our own creative potential.

So write that story. Paint that picture. Play that melody. Let go of the need for perfection and simply create. Fear of mediocrity is no reason to live a life of hesitation. In the end, the greatest tragedy is not producing something ordinary—it’s never creating anything at all.