26. The critic

Prompt : Who are the people you seek to serve that can give you advice? Who are the loud voices that you will eagerly ignore? And your internal voice: which are the triggers that you listen to that sabotage your work, and what are the ignored bits of wisdom you’ll need to do a better of job of heeding?

Perfecting Your Party

Prompt : Who are the people you seek to serve that can give you advice? Who are the loud voices that you will eagerly ignore?

I touched on this previously in one of my prouder dailies, Perfecting Your Party, where I outline the types of people you need in your life to elevate yourself and your craft to the next level. Here is a small preview…

It’s simple: if the people you associate with don’t fall into any of these buckets, :mute: them. Simple as that, everyone else is just noise.

Being “Worthy”

And your internal voice: which are the triggers that you listen to that sabotage your work, and what are the ignored bits of wisdom you’ll need to do a better of job of heeding?

This is a bit of a touchy subject for me, but I’ve always struggled with the idea of being “worthy”. I have had an idealized version of the person I wanted to be, and every year pre-covid I failed that to become person. Birthdays were especially the worst: it was a recurring reminder of my failure to become anyone worthwhile, and anyone who dared celebrate it felt like a mockery to my entire existence. A “you tried” sticker in a sea of undeserved pity.

Going Lunar :rocket::full_moon:

And I’ll see that the only real reason I couldn’t get out of this is cause I fought it yeah

• Softheart in “Lunar”

Sometime after COVID hit in full-force and the country went into lockdown, I finally had time to reflect on where I was going in life. Through uninterrupted self-reflection, exploration of the past, and meeting with some choice people in the present, I experienced the turn [link to daily pending]. Though the turn, my mentality finally shifted, and instead of brooding on everything I wasn’t, focused instead on everything I could be. And it was beautiful.

Worthiness Across the Workshop

The theme of self-acceptance and being “worthy” is trending around the workshop, and they all came around the same time I was concluding on my own personal answer. Here are some of the highlights:

@laurasanto and the idea that it’s okay to be not be okay sometimes.

Her: One step at a time. Being scared is fine, to a point. But you’re spiraling. “What ifs” aren’t useful right now.

Me: holding in tears I’m fine.

Her: You’re not fine. And that’s okay to admit.

Me: My family needs me, we need each other right now.

Her: And they need you.

Me: I’m not fine. She breathes deeply

Her: No one said you had to be.

@madebyal and the idea that despite our flaws, we will always be worthy.

What I learned over the years – the thing, if I’m being honest, that’s still taking a little while to sink in – is that no one should have to work to be loved. No one should have to earn it. By virtue of being a person in the world, love should already be rigged in our favour.

The first step, of course, is believing that you’re worthy of it in the first place.

Loving yourself 10/10 doesn’t mean you’re perfect. It just means that you love all of you, even your imperfections.

@natashakuhn and the idea that the gift of being alive is celebration enough.

So on the days when I feel like I am not good enough for this world, I look at this picture and walk through another day with dignity of human life. Not with pride because I am something more than anyone else, but with humility because I am still here.

also @annastone but she puts out this great energy everyday in her dailies so it’s hard to pinpoint a favorite quote :rofl:

This Ain’t Been A Dream in a Long Time

Can you only really want what you don't have enough?
Everything you ever wanted adding up 
To be the reason you can't stand it now

Eden in “wings”

We often take for granted everything we already have, and instead pine for everything we don’t have and are not. In my best @philkastelic impression, my invitation to inquire about informed self-care to you, the reader, is this:

How much do you love yourself?

If the answer is less than anything than 100%, why is that? You’re awesome!!! If you’re not going to do it then dang it, let me be the first. Me and the rest of the workshop will be here every step of the way for ya :^)