Practice in Public: The Uncomfortable Price of Unlocking Your Potential

There’s something deeply relatable—and confronting—about Steven Bartlett’s recent reflection after being named to TIME magazine’s “TIME100 Most Influential Digital Voices” list. While the recognition is monumental, it’s not what makes his message powerful. It’s what he admits about how he got there: by being willing to feel embarrassed, cringey, and uncomfortable in front of the world.

That’s not exactly the glamorous version of success we’re used to seeing online.

Steven’s story didn’t start in a boardroom or with a polished plan. It started in a bedroom in Manchester, pressing record for the first time, probably questioning whether anyone would care—or worse, whether someone would judge. And yet, that one vulnerable action—publishing before he was “ready”—kickstarted everything.

The Real Barrier: “Dave from Work”

Steven hits on a fear that silently governs so many people: the fear of being judged by people who barely know us. He calls it out perfectly: we don’t write the post, start the business, or record the video—not because we lack the skills, but because we’re scared of what “Dave from work” or “Jenny from school” might think.

How many dreams have died because someone was afraid of looking awkward in front of a high school acquaintance they haven’t seen in 10 years?

We’re not just battling imposter syndrome—we’re battling the imagined opinions of an invisible audience. And it’s costing us our potential.

Discomfort Is the Doorway

If there’s one line in Steven’s post that stands out, it’s this:
“Discomfort has so often been a doorway.”

The truth is, nobody starts off polished. Every creative, leader, founder, or speaker you admire once had to suck at something publicly before they got good. They had to put their work in front of the world, unrefined and raw. That discomfort? It’s not a sign you’re doing it wrong. It’s a sign you’re doing it right.

Growth doesn’t come from hiding. It comes from showing up—awkwardly, imperfectly, and repeatedly—until you figure it out.

We Need More Failure Stories

In a comment beneath his post, Steven added a detail that makes the whole story even more powerful:

“Ash Jones will tell you it took me 7 hours to record a 2 minute video the first time I tried to make a social media vid, cos not only couldn’t I string a sentence together 10 years ago, I couldn’t bear to see myself on camera.”

That is gold. Not because it’s entertaining—but because it’s real.

We constantly hear that “failure is the best teacher,” yet we don’t see or share enough of those early, messy, awkward chapters. Instead, we usually encounter success at the highlight reel stage—after the learning, after the stumbling, after the growth.

Honestly, I’m tired of hearing only from people who’ve already made it. Every time I scroll through a podcast feed, it’s another interview with someone who's already on top of the mountain, telling the story with hindsight. But where are the conversations with people in the middle of it all? Where are the stories from the trenches—ordinary people still figuring it out?

Lately, I’ve been wondering: maybe I should be the one to start that podcast. One that documents the messy, uncertain, unpolished parts. My own failure process, even. What if I stopped waiting until I “made it” and started sharing from exactly where I am?

Maybe that’s what Steven means when he says: practice in public.

The Branson Connection

Interestingly, even Richard Branson chimed in today on LinkedIn, unbeknownst to him, echoing this very same spirit. In his post, he leaned into his signature mantra: “Screw it. Let’s do it!”
He reflected on how that simple phrase has been the cornerstone of his success—choosing action over perfection, courage over caution, and learning by doing.

It’s the same message at a different altitude. Branson’s decades of entrepreneurial risk-taking started with that mindset, and Steven Bartlett’s story proves it still applies—especially in the digital age. One built Virgin; the other built a global personal brand. Both began by saying yes before they felt “ready.”

What unites them isn’t polish. It’s permission. Permission to try, to fail, to look silly—and to keep going anyway.

Practice in Public

Steven talks about the importance of “practicing in public.” It’s a phrase we don’t hear often, but we should. Because it reframes the journey. You’re not failing in public—you’re practicing. You’re not cringey—you’re courageous. You’re not unqualified—you’re just early.

And the only way to get where you want to go is to start before you feel ready.

So, What Are You Waiting For?

Ask yourself honestly: What would I do if I wasn’t afraid of being judged by someone who isn’t even part of my life anymore?

That question might just change everything.

Because as Steven reminds us—you’re going to die someday, and so am I.
So why waste your one shot at life trying to impress or appease people who don’t even really see you?

Let them cringe. Let them scoff. You’ve got a life to build.

TL;DR:
Steven Bartlett’s success isn’t just about influence—it’s about courage. The courage to show up before he felt ready. To press record when it felt awkward. To keep going when it felt uncomfortable. And to fail publicly, patiently, until it worked.

Even Richard Branson still lives by the same code: “Screw it. Let’s do it.”
We need more of those stories—the messy ones, the slow ones, the ones that almost didn’t happen.
Maybe even yours. Because that’s where the real encouragement lives.