Everyone fails, but you usually only see your own failures very clearly, while everyone else hides their own and presents their strongest points.

The key for me is to compare myself to my yesterday-self, have I improved in any way or am I stationary? If I am stationary, what is the smallest achievable improvement I can make today? Remember that even 5 mins of (repeated) practice on something is good, you don’t have to become a specialist within a week. It is also okay to take a day, or a week off without feeling guilty about it.

On the other hand, if you consistently put in the work and still don’t see any results after multiple months, even after changing your approach, you need to take a hard look in the mirror, be honest and consider if you should further pursue that activity or look at something else. That is still fine! We are not all built for the same things.