As a creative in my early twenties, rejection was just part of the game. Trained as an Interior Architect, and then as a Graphic Designer and Photographer, I was thirsty and hungry for projects and so went after them like a wildfire. Then something seems to happen as you progress more into your career, and in your early thirties, being rejected starts to go from a quick sting into hurt, that bruises and sticks around awhile. A combination of caring more about your work and the ego beginning to understand the long game of it all and a deeper comprehension of creativity is a dangerous combination indeed. We can begin to get a little shy, a little nervous. And most creatives flounder at this time.
But as Dave Trott says, if we avoid rejection, we avoid opportunity. Opportunity is the result of courage, and grappling with our ego, and moving forward regardless of our fears. A brilliant creative welcomes rejection, and understands that the seeds of success lie with failure.
So today I ask you, where are you consciously or subconsciously protecting or hiding yourself? And what are the steps to step up out of that?
Written with love,
Jac x
L E T T E R from Jac – The Opportunity Cost of Being Scared
