If you don't feel ready, read this

Well, if you're opening this email, it’s likely because you don’t feel ready. However, you probably also know that readiness is a myth, yet you continue to believe in it. Truth be told: part of you is terrified of what might happen if you’re ready.

Readiness comes with a risk.
Telling yourself “I need to figure this out first,” “maybe next month,” really means:
“I don’t know who I’ll have to become if I let myself be seen right now.”

Be seen not only by others but also by yourself. By how capable you can be of achieving whatever you wish.

And I get it. In a world obsessed with polished identities, showing up in the process can feel like self-sabotage. But ironically, avoiding the step you need to take is the actual sabotage.

Here are some (of many) situations where this can show up:

• The draft you never posted because it doesn’t feel “on brand”

• The personal project you postponed until you feel more “aligned”

• The aesthetics that look perfect but feel emotionally hollow

You mask your own hesitation as “strategy.”
Or, with better buzzword names like “refinement,” “alignment,” “clarity”. So common nowadays in our narratives.

But let’s be real. It is JUST fear. Not fear of failure, as a lot of people believe.
Failure we can recover from.

It’s actually exposure.

Being misunderstood.
Called out.
Cancelled.
Having people see parts of us we’re still wrestling with.

Deep down, you know that being seen is also being felt.
And if people feel you, then your work isn’t aesthetic anymore. It’s intimate now.

By now, I assume you know that feeling ready is not a prerequisite for starting something. It is a consequence. A side effect of taking the leap.

We love to talk about self-trust in the creative world.
But trust won’t come from thinking. It comes from experiencing yourself showing up again and again, even if you “fail” or “cringe.”

Think about your favourite writer, your favourite director, painter, musician, etc.
If they waited until they had everything figured out, you would never be reading their words, watching their movies, being amused by their art or listening to their songs.

You find yourself through the work you do.
No amount of thinking or preparation can give you that.

If you’re still here with me, I know you’re someone who feels deeply.
I also know that you probably want your work to be of high quality. To be meaningful. To matter.

So, I invite you to think:

• What if your work doesn’t need to be “good” to matter?

• What if starting before you feel ready is precisely what makes it powerful?

• And what if who you are right now (not the future version) is already enough to make an impact?

After more than 14 years in the creative world (and just as many years in and out of psychoanalysis, both as a patient and a deeply curious student) I’ve managed to do a lot of what I set out to do:

Try different creative jobs.
Create my own path.
Move abroad alone.
Become a teacher, a writer, a mentor, a content creator.

It’s a lot, I know.
But none of it came from being fearless.
None of it came from a 5-year plan.

Every shift came from facing something deeper. Something I didn’t want to look at at first.

My insecurities.
My perfectionism.
My fear of being seen and not being “good enough.”
The parts of me that felt like too much or not enough.

That’s the work that changed everything. And that’s what I mean when I say all of it came from the same place: my shadow.

So I created something that might help you find that inner gold too. It’s a 50-prompt workbook that offers space to explore the parts of yourself you’ve been pushing down.

I haven’t launched it to the general public yet. I like to share things first-hand with you here. Also, you don’t need to buy my workbook, you can absolutely dig through the internet and piece things together yourself. I say that with full honesty.

But if reading this part made something inside you tense up, if the mention of “selling” triggered discomfort, resistance, or even judgment, it might be about how you relate to visibility. To ask for value. To allow yourself to take up space and get paid for your gifts.

Shame around selling is often shame around being seen in your full worth.
And that’s part of the shadow, too.

I also know how tired we all are of the constant flood of information online, which can leave you feeling overwhelmed. Again.

So I gathered everything I’ve learned through years in the creative field and in self-actualization work, and blended it into a 20-page document. It’s not for everyone, and that’s okay. It’s designed for those who are ready to build more resilience and self-trust, to keep moving and building the kind of creative life they actually want.

If this resonated with something real for you, the Shadow Workbook might be a powerful place to start. And maybe, from there, you begin creating from a place that finally feels honest. And if it’s not for you right now, that’s okay too, you’ll still find plenty of value in what I share freely across platforms.

You’re more ready than you think.
But more importantly, you don’t have to wait.

Thanks for reading,
Yoli