Ep. 19 - Give Yourself Permission to Suck

October 23, 2023

Episode Highlights

Embrace Imperfection: Understand that your first draft as an author may not be perfect. Giving yourself permission to create without the pressure of perfection can fuel your creativity.
John Mayer's Wisdom: John Mayer, the singer-songwriter, emphasizes the importance of persistence in the creative process. He encourages creators to push through, force it if needed, and just start creating.
Discovering Your Story: By diving deep into your thoughts and persistently creating, you'll discover the story, message, or change you want to convey through your book.
It's Okay to Suck: Remember, your initial drafts may not be masterpieces, and that's okay. The key is to start, even if it's imperfect.
Overcoming Perfectionism: Spending too much time trying to create the perfect idea can lead to paralysis. Imperfect beginnings are better than not starting at all.
Continuous Improvement: Your first draft is for your eyes only unless you choose to share it. Each revision you make brings improvement and helps you refine your work.

Actionable Insights

The First Step: Aspiring authors, give yourself permission to create, even if it's not perfect. This is the first step toward creating something beautiful. 📝🚀

John Mayer Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhbpo5Bv4Vs&t=3315s

Podcast Website: www.juxtabook.com/podcasts/beyond-the-book

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Episode Transcript

[00:00:00] Sometimes we need to give ourself permission. Permission to, well to not be perfect. To mess up.

[00:00:08] Or in other words, Give yourself permission to suck.

[00:00:12] I'm Zach Kristensen, and this is Beyond the book presented by Juxta book.

[00:00:17]

[00:00:26] As an author, the first draft of what you produce is probably gonna suck. So give yourself permission right now to not produce perfect manuscript, perfect written words from the very beginning. Because it's going to stifle your creativity.

[00:00:47] In a recent interview with singer and songwriter, John Mayer, he imparted some wisdom about his creative process. He emphasized the importance of being persistent to push through it, to push through[00:01:00] the creative process until you find what you're looking for.

[00:01:04] You just need to start. He said, and keep pushing, keep going until you create something. Force it if you have to, it doesn't matter what comes out initially. And if you watch the interview, you can see him showing an incredible example of this, where he picks up his guitar and just starts playing it and having the words come out in whatever he's thinking about and he's doing. And it sounds amazing because he's done this process so many times.

[00:01:37] As you dive deeper and deeper into your thoughts, what's in your mind, you're going to discover the story that you want to tell. The message that you want to convey or the change that you hope to incite in something through your book?

[00:01:52] But keep in mind that your initial drafts may not be masterpieces and that's okay. In fact, they're probably going to [00:02:00] suck. But that's precisely why you need to give yourself permission to suck.

[00:02:04] The real message that I'm wanting to convey here is just start. You can spend hours, days, weeks, years, mapping everything out and creating and trying to create the most flawless idea in your mind. But until you sit down, put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard and start writing those first words. You won't make any significant progress.

[00:02:28] Believe me, starting in perfectly in anything is better than being paralyzed by the illusion of perfection. The best part, if your first draft sucks, you're the only one who has to see it, unless you decide to share it. Once you get those initial thoughts down and out of your head, you will be able to start to refine them. Each revision brings improvement.

[00:02:50] And going back to what John Mayer talked about. Sometimes with the creativity process. You're required to force it. You need to keep pushing, keep [00:03:00] going until you unearth that unique voice within you that you want to share.

[00:03:05] To all the aspiring authors out there give yourself permission to suck. That's the first step towards creating something beautiful

[00:03:13]

[00:03:18] If you have any questions about a recent episode, I'd love to hear from you. Visit juxtabook.com/beyondthebook and click the appropriate button to leave your question and we will include it in our weekly Q&A episode.

[00:03:34] Your book is just one chapter in your author journey. Think beyond the book as you craft your path. Thank you for your questions and thank you for listening.

Ep. 19 - Give Yourself Permission to Suck

Episode Highlights

Actionable Insights

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