Feeling nervous about sharing your work? You’re not alone. When I started Common Exception, I worried too. Would people connect with it? Was it good enough? After years of making and starting new projects, I’ve learned this: you don’t need to be perfect. You only need to begin. As Loyle Carner says, “You make what you made now, you release it… and while that’s making its rounds around the world, you’re able to reinvent and re-refine the next batch of work.”
Activity: The Release Ritual
A simple way to honour the making — and let it go.
1. Pick one piece of work
Choose something you’ve made that you haven’t shared yet. A collage, a voice note, a sketch, a half-finished idea. It doesn’t need to be perfect.
2. Name the feeling
Write down how it makes you feel. Proud? Nervous? Embarrassed? Hopeful? Be honest. Acknowledge the emotion without judgement.
3. Write a note to yourself
On a scrap of paper, write a one-line permission slip: “This is part of my process. I’m proud I made it.” Or “Done is better than perfect.” Stick it somewhere visible — or on the back of the piece.
4. Share it (your way)
Post it, pin it, send it to a friend — whatever feels right. The point is to let it out into the world, then keep making.
