The six stages

Of everything you want / Issue 1,201

Oh, hi friends!

Joy and intrigue.

That might be the first stage of your project. Possibilities! A pull in a new direction. Infinite vistas.

Gathering.

We love to research. Hunt and gather. Crumbs everywhere. Google Docs a mile long. Nothing’s fraught because nothing matters yet.

Visioning.

The big picture. What it could be. What you might build. This may involve whispering to people about what’s in the works.

Absolute miserable grind.

Wait…what? You mean…it gets hard? Like, really hard? What happened to the joy, the crumbs, the vision? These are your longest and most difficult days. They’re also the most important. But you can’t recognize that in the moment. Because you are here.

Spotlighting.

Suddenly, all eyes on you. Public consumption time. Feedback time. Heart-in-throat time. You do it, and it’s terrifying, and you’re glad.

Deflation.

The balloon pops. You wander. You wait. You might wait a long time.

Until…something over there catches your eye.

Intrigue.

And the cycle starts again.

Wherever you are, keep moving through.

Each stage is necessary, each stage will teach you, each stage makes you better.

You are limitless.