Are you waiting for permission?
Asking for Permission
No one is invested in your work. That's the truth. But raise your hand if you've ever let one negative comment derail months (or years) of enthusiasm.
Mmm. I just had to put down both hands to finish this newsletter.
So what does not waiting for permission look like? It means locking the door until your project is ready for feedback, criticism, failure, success. It means creating blindly, doggedly, madly, until the cake tester comes out clean. It means not asking for someone’s permission to create when that someone is not invested in your work. It means doing the work because you want to.
“When you're going up a hill on an Icelandic pony and you're about to jump over a little stream, you must completely believe in the horse and fate. Because if you show fear, you'll spook the horse and the horse may stumble. It's not being reckless. It's being unfettered by doubt. That's my definition of trust.”
—Patti Smith, “What I’ve Learned”
Your New Winter Soundtrack
I've been listening to Lucius’ album Good Grief on repeat. Especially “What We Have (To Change).” (h/t David for the rec!) Here's the whole shebang on Spotify.
Thank you for reading.
Love, Kara