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What is Mastering Mediocrity?

07 Jan 2021

Mastering Mediocrity by Zeeshan Akram Jabeer The wake of the pandemic normalised remote working and the direct-message relationship, all boundaries became virtual, and that pushed society a little towards re-evaluating their values, goals, and perspectives. I was one of them, and “Mastering Mediocrity” was a result of it. A podcast is often perceived with a well-lit studio, professional audio equipment, and engaging conversations with people who've seen it all, hosted by someone oozing charm and charisma. But Zeeshan, what's a podcast you ask? A podcast is an episodic series of on-demand digital audio and video files that often focus on a particular topic or theme. i.e.: The Joe Rogan Experience, This American Life, My Favourite Murder. Being stranded at home, I didn't have access to a studio nor the equipment. For once, my only outlet of expression was taken away from me; I couldn’t create, I was uninspired, and I was truly lost. I didn’t want to let my idea of the perfect podcast rid me of an opportunity, I didn’t want the pandemic to be something I was limited by. Albeit sans the above mentioned, I did have a hint of charisma that only came out in front of those that I was very close and comfortable – either intentionally or unintentionally; I knew this could be a small step towards something.  A little lightbulb above my head sparked. Though there are only a handful of English podcasts and talk shows in Sri lanka, all of them focused on bringing guests who were already well-known and successful. More often than not, these were centered around overly glorified stories that are deeply unrelatable. It lacked a sense of authenticity and general accessibility.  We can all relate to leaving everything behind and moving into the city of glamour with 20 something bucks in hand and building a net worth over $ 20 billion, right?  Real conversations weren’t the norm, they were trapped between closed circles out of the fear of being discarded as uninteresting or, god forbid, to be judged. Mediocrity is undervalued, mass media and society as a whole has us programmed to live these unrealistic and picture-perfect lifestyles; standards set by the influencers of the magnanimous silver screen and your smartphone’s screen alike. Mediocrity is looked down upon as a form of underachievement and discarded as an outcast of the existing social bubble. The underlying narrative is that, as much we try to make our lives seem interesting on tiny squares on Instagram, the truth is, outside the square, life in all its essence is mediocre – and that's okay, and just like the tale of The Ugly Duckling, the mediocrity of life needs to be told and heard. Like a phoenix born from the ashes, the podcast came up with the idea of ripping off the facade and having a real conversation to give you an essence of mastering your mediocrity. These conversations are the down-lows of all journeys – the ones that were successful, the ones that were a lost cause and everything in-between.  
In the weekly podcast, Zeeshan Akram Jabeer, a Sri Lankan serial creative, filmmaker, and entrepreneur takes you through what Mastering Mediocrity really is like. Join us every week as we indulge in what can only be summed up as a close-to-the-bone reality of individuals who thrive in a varied range of industries. From business insight to everyday life, we talk about everything controversial and mundane.
  New episodes of Mastering Mediocrity are out now on YouTube, Spotify, Google, Apple Podcast, etc.   YouTube: https://bit.ly/3gbUANs Google Podcast: https://bit.ly/3mNCYvL Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/3kLJDFa Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3mN3vcI Pocketcast: https://pca.st/ecyujizl   Instagram page of the Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/masteringmediocritypod/ Facebook page of the Podcast: https://www.facebook.com/masteringmediocritypod Personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zeeshanakramjabeer/  


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