I have the ability to cut really nice dovetails. I'm proud of the over-sized Condor Tails that are a focal point of nearly every bench I ship.
But these will not be beautiful Dovetails.
That wasn't the point. When I set out to make the drawers for this Student's Desk, my goal was to get the dovetails to fit "off the saw." I was less concerned with the looks than I was with speed. I had to be.
It takes a good deal of time and focus to get the Condor Tails on my benches to look the way they do. But I can't put that level of focus into an entire chest full of drawers. Not if I want to earn a living while I do it.
In this case I had only three drawers to make. I could have fussed over them and made them perfect. But I've got a lot of other things on my plate. And since this is a personal piece, it was just a little bit easier to set aside my compulsion to try to make it about perfection. I chose, instead, to make it about practice.
So my goal in making these joints was speed. That's it. That BH was the most important part of the job.
Do you ever set goals like this? Are you willing to set aside your pride in the name of improving your skills?