Maps are created by someone who has already done the journey. Your journey ahead is uncharted territory.
There is no shame in struggling to do what you love
There is no shame in struggling to do what you love.
To be honest, establishing what the hell you even love and feel passionate about in the first place can be a big enough struggle. Then you feel like you have to convince your loved ones to believe in and back you when really you’re shit-scared and full of doubt.
You feel this intense pressure to love every single second of it because you’ve fought so hard for it, for this thing you love. And this is where the shame comes in. Because the reality is, you don’t love every second of it. But you feel like you can’t let anyone know, it’s hard enough admitting it to yourself. Those naysayers, they’d love to hear that it’s not working out wouldn’t they? Told you so. Told you you can’t make a living out of doing what you love, doing something different etc.
Can you name me one person who has actually loved every single day of their work, a project, of pursuing a dream, their romantic relationships, their life even? (Rose tinted glasses don’t count). THEY DON’T EXIST. And if you think they do, either they are lying to you or you are making assumptions.
Exploring and pursuing anything you love is an opportunity to learn about yourself. And setting up and running a business is a vertical learning curve in an accelerated fast lane. You are not going to love every single second of it and that is ok. That is normal. There will be tears, panic, frustration, loss, change, doubt, rejection, mistakes, failures, times you want to quit (the list goes on, you know the deal).
Your job is to learn how to keep driving through these thunderstorms. Please take this inordinately unrealistic pressure that you must love every single moment of it off your shoulders. Know that there will be tough times - plan for them, schedule them in even, ask for and accept help. But most of all, be gentle with that heart of yours. Know that you can and always will steer yourself through to the other side where the land of new adventures awaits you. And you don’t need me to tell you how good that place feels and how worth it it is when you arrive there.
the barriers in the way of your creative life
Planting the seeds for your creations
When you’re the gardener of your own creations, it can be easy to focus too much on the fruit and forget about the seeds and soil. People rejoice in your garden when the fruit is ripe. But it can be lonely when you’re planting and watering.⠀
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It takes patience and love to tend to the soil. It can be hard to trust that more fruit is on the way.⠀
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I love catching up with clients months and years after we’ve worked together. So much of what we do together is on the ground, sleeves rolled up, planting seeds & tending to the soil of their ideas & creations. It’s so special to be there with them during this time of toil. And it’s a joy to reconnect and see which seeds have bloomed, both inside of them and outside in their creations.