Photo by Jacqueline Harriet
Too often we see the stories of creative people and their careers boiled down to a highlight reel. We are shown their greatest achievements, but we aren’t reminded of all the moments they stumbled (and continue to)—or how they got back up again. No matter what stage of life and work you’re in, fear and failure are part of everyone’s journey. And sometimes we actually learn more from what hasn’t worked out rather than what has.
So for our second issue, I wanted to jump headfirst into these topics that can make us feel uncomfortable and vulnerable. Because as intimidating as fear and failure can be, they are the issues we need to be discussing more openly and with more compassion—both for ourselves and for our communities as a whole.
In our last issue, we explored all the different facets and parts of our creative communities and learned an important lesson: We are stronger together.
So with this issue, let’s work hand in hand to talk openly about the things that scare us. Let’s form new bonds and connections as we help our communities air out the issues we’re most afraid of and find the most intimidating. Because when we work together, solutions and support systems become clearer and problems become less overwhelming. There is always someone in our community who understands our experience, knows how we feel, and has an idea that can help us push through to the other side.
This issue is filled with stories of creatives who have faced challenges, asked for help, and learned new ways of looking at fear and failure that take the sting out of life’s most challenging moments. I hope you’ll find their stories, experiences, and advice as uplifting and reaffirming as I did. After finishing this issue, I felt a little less alone, a lot more connected, and infinitely more inspired to try harder and dream bigger. I hope you’ll feel the same.
xo,
