One Vision

I thought it was no coincidence today that I came upon this (surprisingly new to me) Queen video on YouTube tonight.

Really, I swear.... this is relevant, it's not a gratuitous Queen post.  Hear me out.
This 9 minute-plus video chronicles the band's process of making one of their biggest 80's hits, "One Vision".  If you're at all familiar with the song, and you watch the video, you'll notice that a LOT of what's included here sounds nothing like the finished product (for example, Freddie's ad-libbed line, "one sex position" didn't make the final cut, sadly).  It's rough, it's in bits and pieces of sounds and lyrics, and the band haggles ad nauseam over drum beats and words.  It's a rare peek into the laborious, rough process of creating one of their signature, well-crafted tunes, and I'm sure this video represents only a small snippet of the entire process it took for the band to get to the end product that's amazing.

It's much like the hard work of therapy (I told you it was relevant!).  On two separate occasions this week, I've  had clients process their fears and doubts about the hard, uncomfortable work  that they have to do in therapy in order to be able to reach their goals in treatment.  An idea that often comes up in these types of conversations is the client's idea that everyone else seems to have it figured out, life seems perfect and easy for those "other people" they see or know.   And I say to this two things; one is that things aren't always what they seem; some people are just really good at hiding their hang-ups or dysfunctions.   And two, is that yeah, sometimes people really do have it all figured out, and life is easy for them.  But they didn't get there by magic; a lot of hard work and personal growth, (however it came about) almost always precedes happiness, acceptance, and confidence.    It's easy to identify a certain point that we want to get to, whether it's increased self-confidence, less anxiety, or to get past a traumatic event.   Yet, getting there requires some hard, often tedious work that can be downright uncomfortable, anxiety-provoking, and intimidating.  I sometimes tell my clients that my professional duty is to make them uncomfortable for this very reason.

And in my own geeky way, watching this video tonight totally confirmed this point.  These four guys put in countless hours and effort into each of their songs, with the vision of the final product in mind, and they didn't stop working until they'd crafted it.  (The album Hot Space is the exception to this rule; if you've read my previous posts, you are by now well-aware that that album blows.)

One day in the future, should I come across a client who's a Queen fan, I very well might show them this video to make my point.  Without hard work and deliberate intent to commit oneself fully, there is no amazing end result.   There are no shortcuts anywhere worth going.