008: The hidden generosity of vulnerability
Sharing your behind the scenes can feel really vulnerable, like putting your heart out on a platter for the world to judge. But it might just be one of the most generous things you can do.
Episode transcript:
Hello. Good morning, Daily Peppers. It's Friday. We made it. So I don't know about you, but one of the things that fascinates me most in the world is the creative process of people I admire and look up to. I love seeing the development of an idea. I love it when fellow creatives share their journals and their first drafts and generally all things behind the scenes. But we increasingly live in a world that is super shiny.
We see everything through filters. We see the grand reveal, and generally we see the final versions, not the messy drafts. Rarely do we see the messy and unglamorous process that often led to the thing. It's a bit like how the world stereotypes us as creatives and doesn't see the very boring act of sitting down to do the work when it is really hard. For the last couple of weeks, I've been thinking how I would love to see more of that shit. And I often wonder how much of a great culture shift would happen if people shared more of that. I'd love to see more of the ideas that didn't work out, the thoughts that never made the light of day. And the project set nearly immediately got put into the metaphorical shit pile.
If one of my favorite musicians put on an exhibition that showed their journals, early recordings, song lyrics, they scrapped all that good stuff we never get to see, I would go in a heartbeat. I remember going to see an exhibition of J.K. rowling's work and seeing the piece of paper where she plotted all the novels was just. Just amazing. I've spent literally hours going down the rabbit hole of how creatives I admire work and how they develop their ideas. And I know I'm not alone in that. We all love behind the scenes, but we almost love it, with a caveat that is, as long as it isn't our own. Because it can feel really vulnerable.
It can feel like putting your heart out on a platter for the world to judge. It can feel like pulling the curtains back on your own life. And, well, that's because pretty much that is exactly what it is. But here's the thing. We can moan about it until the cows come home, but that doesn't really change anything. Major shifts in culture start at home and they start with us. And here's the added bonus of all of this that I don't think anyone's talking about. It is not just about you.
In sharing your process, you are giving other people permission to do the same. Permission to have messy first drafts, permission to fuck up, permission to have ideas that don't work out, you're giving others the encouragement and reassurance they so desperately need that creative work is very rarely linear and and that we all have shitty first drafts. I want to live in a world full of dreamers and doers. I want to live in a world where projects see the light of day instead of being confined to beautiful and unused notebooks. I want to live in a world where messing up isn't the be all and end all and it's just seen as part of the process. And maybe, just maybe, then, we'll be able to have more nuanced discussions and make huge shifts when it comes to talking about life too. How life is messy, how no one has their shit together no matter how much they try to make it look otherwise. And how life isn't linear and how the narrative sometimes changes before we can even turn the page.
And how that's okay. So whatever project you're working on right now, I dare you to share. How? Have a Think of how you could share something behind the scenes. Think of one thing you could easily do right now in under five minutes, because it doesn't need to be a whole project in and of itself. And remember, this is so much bigger than you and me. If you share something imperfect or half baked, and it encourages even one person to go back to an idea or give something a go, then surely that makes the fear worth it. Have a fabulous weekend and I cannot wait to see you back here on Monday.
Episode transcript automatically produced by Castmagic.io
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A short, snappy and sassy daily podcast to keep your internal - and external - dreamshitters at bay!
The Daily Pep! is the rebel-rousing, daily podcast for couragemakers, creative, multi-passionate and unconventional women. If you’re surrounded by people who don’t get who you are or what you do, if you want reminders you’re on the right path (no matter how scary it feels), or you’re sick of being your very own worst enemy, this is the podcast for you.
Every weekday, your host - writer, coach and professional rebel-rouser - Meg Kissack helps you build a creative and wholehearted life, one day at a time. Through short and snappy insights, reminders and stories, The Daily Pep! is here to remind you you’re not alone, and that everything changes when you believe you matter. Each episode is short and snappy, designed to fit in with (or help you start) your habits and routines.
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