Oh Jenny, the very idea that anyone could not like you. Your posts have been such a balm to my heart and my anxiety - to know I am not alone, a reminder to write from the heart, showing my full self. Because when YOU do, your people, your community shows up. We don’t always hear the applause but it’s there. We might not always get the heart but there is as much love in the reading as in the writing. And please, whenever you find those gremlins getting loud please know that you have changed my life for the better and continue to do so with every post.
Thank you Maghan!! I can't tell you how much it meant to see your comment and encouraging words — it soothed all the negative self-talk I was accumulating mid-vulnerability hangover. Thank you, for everything, always! And I'm so delighted to know I could make an impact in your life with my words — truly the highest compliment on Earth.
I'm saving Cheryl's wisdom for the next time I spiral about sharing too much, being too vulnerable, being too much.. Thank for Jenny. Your work is a balm 💕
Thank you Clare! You are one of the most courageous (and beautiful) writers I know — your vulnerability and (never) "too much-ness" are such an inspiration to me and so many others.
Oh WOW. There are so many lines I want to quote from this! The one that hit the most was this: “Wanting to be liked makes me soft, and not in a good way.” I need to paper my office (aka writing room) with this Doh! I am working myself up to my next book and this was an essential primer on the place I need to write it from (deep dish lasagna deep).
Thank you Susan!! Ooh, I love the idea of deep-dish lasagna deep! What was so interesting was Cheryl describing how, at those deepest layers, if we are willing to go there, we even surprise ourselves. She might argue that writing that doesn't excavate new information and insights and shadow sides isn't even worth doing. I'm so thrilled to know that you're working yourself up to a next book* . . . your words when I was first starting out were such a beacon to me—especially the parts of your story where you described struggles, even moreso than the solutions to them! The world needs your gold dust! And it just so happens to be deep in the mine (or lasagna dish :)
*P.S. What a great way to phrase that . . . it takes so much courage to even admit there's a next book brewing, let alone start working on it 😅
Thanks, Jenny! Your writing is one of the few things giving me courage (and justification) to write from a really deep place. I feel like my first book impacted people much more profoundly than my second book did.
I wrote my first book from a very naive (and free?) place. Social media wasn't really a thing, and I was blissfully unaware of the commercial realities of the publishing and speaking industries. My editor actually told me I was being too authentic (and therefore might not come across as a credible expert, ha!). We removed entire chapters!
As I've become "successful" I've become so much more cautious. I'm realizing that in today's world, with AI and all, the only way to survive and have an impactful voice IS to be profoundly human. So I'm going to go for it. Sometime soon, ha! (still procrastinating)
So many things to respond to here. Heath Ledger, 10 things I hate about you, struggling with this very thing myself while trying to write on here, milky-toast! But I'm on my phone, so I'll be back to leave a proper comment. Just wanted to quickly say, thank you ❤️
Thank you, Kyle!! Haha, I love "milky-toast" — we can add that to our epic breakfast line-up :D Talk about courageous, vulnerable writing — your recent posts and Substack notes have given me so many permission slips in return; it's a delight to get to know you and your process better, and I thank you for sharing about where you are with your business so openly, too 🙏
I'm glad you like them! Because I also wrestle every week with if any of it's resonating and trying to find the balance between writing for me but also writing in a way that's interesting to others.
Thank you Paul, right back 'atcha!! I *loved* your most recent conversation with Khe on his Examined Life pod — you two could have an ongoing spinoff series that I would gladly subscribe to :D Can't wait to continue following your work on the new money book! 🙌
You're sooo not alone in your plight. It's tough not to care and so important to care at least a little. Balance is a bitch and so is living in the silence of the void after pressing 'Publish'. Thank you for living your truth, even when it feels a little needy and not-so-true.
Oh Jenny, the very idea that anyone could not like you. Your posts have been such a balm to my heart and my anxiety - to know I am not alone, a reminder to write from the heart, showing my full self. Because when YOU do, your people, your community shows up. We don’t always hear the applause but it’s there. We might not always get the heart but there is as much love in the reading as in the writing. And please, whenever you find those gremlins getting loud please know that you have changed my life for the better and continue to do so with every post.
Thank you Maghan!! I can't tell you how much it meant to see your comment and encouraging words — it soothed all the negative self-talk I was accumulating mid-vulnerability hangover. Thank you, for everything, always! And I'm so delighted to know I could make an impact in your life with my words — truly the highest compliment on Earth.
I'm saving Cheryl's wisdom for the next time I spiral about sharing too much, being too vulnerable, being too much.. Thank for Jenny. Your work is a balm 💕
Thank you Clare! You are one of the most courageous (and beautiful) writers I know — your vulnerability and (never) "too much-ness" are such an inspiration to me and so many others.
Gah, thank you so much Jenny 💕 That means the world to me coming from you!
Oh WOW. There are so many lines I want to quote from this! The one that hit the most was this: “Wanting to be liked makes me soft, and not in a good way.” I need to paper my office (aka writing room) with this Doh! I am working myself up to my next book and this was an essential primer on the place I need to write it from (deep dish lasagna deep).
Thank you Susan!! Ooh, I love the idea of deep-dish lasagna deep! What was so interesting was Cheryl describing how, at those deepest layers, if we are willing to go there, we even surprise ourselves. She might argue that writing that doesn't excavate new information and insights and shadow sides isn't even worth doing. I'm so thrilled to know that you're working yourself up to a next book* . . . your words when I was first starting out were such a beacon to me—especially the parts of your story where you described struggles, even moreso than the solutions to them! The world needs your gold dust! And it just so happens to be deep in the mine (or lasagna dish :)
*P.S. What a great way to phrase that . . . it takes so much courage to even admit there's a next book brewing, let alone start working on it 😅
Thanks, Jenny! Your writing is one of the few things giving me courage (and justification) to write from a really deep place. I feel like my first book impacted people much more profoundly than my second book did.
I wrote my first book from a very naive (and free?) place. Social media wasn't really a thing, and I was blissfully unaware of the commercial realities of the publishing and speaking industries. My editor actually told me I was being too authentic (and therefore might not come across as a credible expert, ha!). We removed entire chapters!
As I've become "successful" I've become so much more cautious. I'm realizing that in today's world, with AI and all, the only way to survive and have an impactful voice IS to be profoundly human. So I'm going to go for it. Sometime soon, ha! (still procrastinating)
So many things to respond to here. Heath Ledger, 10 things I hate about you, struggling with this very thing myself while trying to write on here, milky-toast! But I'm on my phone, so I'll be back to leave a proper comment. Just wanted to quickly say, thank you ❤️
Thank you, Kyle!! Haha, I love "milky-toast" — we can add that to our epic breakfast line-up :D Talk about courageous, vulnerable writing — your recent posts and Substack notes have given me so many permission slips in return; it's a delight to get to know you and your process better, and I thank you for sharing about where you are with your business so openly, too 🙏
I'm glad you like them! Because I also wrestle every week with if any of it's resonating and trying to find the balance between writing for me but also writing in a way that's interesting to others.
I am sticking around no matter what you write
But really loving these recent personal reflections.
Thank you Paul, right back 'atcha!! I *loved* your most recent conversation with Khe on his Examined Life pod — you two could have an ongoing spinoff series that I would gladly subscribe to :D Can't wait to continue following your work on the new money book! 🙌
Haha we should it would just be our self therapy
You're sooo not alone in your plight. It's tough not to care and so important to care at least a little. Balance is a bitch and so is living in the silence of the void after pressing 'Publish'. Thank you for living your truth, even when it feels a little needy and not-so-true.