When the newsletter idea came to me last September, I was excited but uncomfortable. As I wrote in my first letter, “Who am I to send stuff to people’s inboxes? Where am I going with this?”
Since I hadn’t worked on a creative project like this before, I had to learn new skills: how to collect ideas, distill stories down to their essence, and assemble them in a (hopefully) creative way.
But the most monumental challenge was mental: the doubt of hitting send. The first twenty newsletters were the most difficult. I would rework my draft a dozen times, often filled with doubts. Sometimes I rewrote the entire letter and realized the previous version was better.
After experimenting for 40 weeks, the creative process remains challenging (and fun!), but I have begun to develop a sense of what I like and what may resonate with you. Most importantly, shipping the newsletter feels progressively more natural.
My weekly goal is simple: give my best effort and hit send. If I manage to do that, I know I have made my following week a tad easier.
