I have never been a person interested in opening up about my life, my career or what I am up to – not because I am all that, it just does not come naturally to me. To an extent today, I admire people that find it easy to share their lives, thoughts – but I know I will start in the next Keeping up with the Kardashians but I am beginning to realize that I may need to unlearn and relearn a few things.
That thought is part executing and mostly freaks me out. I think I also feel a sense of losing something – that privacy that I have always held so dearly. But you know what, I am willing to try – maybe I will fail miserably and just dig a hole a few inches deeper than what I started with, or maybe I will blossom and find the right balance between privacy and self promotion – wish me luck.
My first step in this process is reading a book – Show your Work by Austin Kleon. I am a few pages in and I love it already.
Austin suggests flipping the script on the idea of self promotion and seeing it instead as an opportunity to generously share what you know or what you are learning. A mantra I picked from the inside cover of the book is open, generous and brave. It does feel a little easier for me to think about sharing more in terms of being generous – there are some people who would like to learn from what I know so far, and I think I have learned and achieved a fair bit in my lifetime personally and professionally. It would make sense not to deprive the world of learning from me.
Openness, this has always been a struggle for me. I honestly believe that I don’t have the capacity to maintain a wide network of friends – I simply don’t know how. And to be frank, I am fine with that. I think a good place to start with openness is within the small circle of friends I do have – connect a little more and share more details. I’d try that.
Brave – Yup, this is going to take a fair bit of bravery but I think I am off to a good start given that I am writing this blog. In some ways to hold myself accountable to the book I am ready, as well as a realization that I d o have something to say and share even if it is my attempt to navigate this new world permission less world of the internet.
Look mommy, I am doing it😁