I remember writing my first book, The Nine Modern Day Muses (and a Bodyguard).

 

In my head, the company of ruthless naysayers taunted me:  “People are going to think this is silly," "No one is going to take you seriously.”  "Who do you think YOU are?"

 

The fact that I had promised the book to a large group of people gave me the urgency of having to get it done and therefore, to survive all this painful self-doubt.

 

I needed a plan.

 

The antidote: To just write what I want to read in the way I want to write it:  With humor, illustrations, and irreverent and unconventional suggestions. After all, it was about creativity and creativity is made easier with fun. If I did that, at least I’d have something I’d like at the end of all that.  Turns out, five publishers also liked it and Penguin/Putnam ended up first publishing it so I learned to trust my own intuition.  

 

I’m not perfect about letting go of what people think of me. That’s pretty normal. But in the moments where I am audaciously sipping from the fountain of confidence there is a sense of remarkable freedom that not only leads to my willingness to share my creativity without a care, but also to a relationship with myself that feels satisfyingly steadfast. As strange as that sounds, it is  important because I’m the one I’m around the most.

 

Truth is, when I wasn’t worried about what people thought, I was having a blast writing that first book. Even more so with The Awe-manac. If you are a writer, musician, business builder, architect, craftsperson, artist, or human, don’t you want to be free enough from the restricting nature of caring what people think to have fun and feel free? Creativity works best that way

 

 

I’ve invited some well-known experts on the subject of letting go of what others think to share their wisdom. For each quotation I have a question or a suggestion for you so you can move in a liberated direction if you so desire.

 

The first one is Georgia O’Keefe. Find out her powerful thought in this short Moment with a Muse: Georgia On My Mind Podcast

 

Lao Tzu: “Care about what other people think and you will always be their prisoner.”

 

Michel de Montaigne: “I do not care so much what I am to others as I care what I am to myself.”   How would it feel if you adopted this belief? Could you just adopt 5% more of it?

 

Author, Suzy Kassem: “Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will.” Where have you or are you letting doubt kill a dream? Where can you start again to revive it?

 

Actress, Angelina Jolie : “Some people say you are going the wrong way, when it’s simply a way of your own.”What way of your own would you travel more on if you were able to be okay with it being different? Maybe you ARE okay. I think that’s great.

 

Cynthia Kersey :“Believe in yourself and there will come a day when others will have no choice but to believe with you.”  Imagine that. No really, go ahead and IMAGINE that.

 

 

 

 

 Onward, Jill

 

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All podcast episodes are based on principles, tools, and liberating thoughts from the the Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coaching Certification training. In its seventeenth year. Next training is January 2026.  More about KMCC here.

 

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Take Angelina Jolie's quote, “Some people say you are going the wrong way, when it’s simply a way of your own," and write about your "own way."

 

Suggestions: Make a list of adjectives, nouns, and verbs to describe your own unique way and people who have helped influence it.