Things That Make Me Happy

[ID: Image one is a photo of Lil Wayne in a pool at a party. He is wearing socks, which underwater look very much like hooves.

“When we were kids, the Phonics Wizard came to our town to show off how the letter E can change the sounds of vowels. He turned a can into a cane, a pin into a pine. This one kid had a cap and he changed it into a cape, that kind of thing.

Bad criticism is not the end of the world. As far as I know, no one ever died of a bad review. Take a deep breath and accept whatever comes. ... Put out a lot of work. Let people take their best shot at it. Then make even more work and keep putting it out there. The more criticism you take, the more you realize it can't hurt you. ... Sometimes when people hate something about your work, it's fun to push that element even further. To make something they'll hate even more. ... If you have work that is too sensitive or too close to you to expose to criticism, keep it hidden. But if you spend your life avoiding vulnerability, you and your work will never truly connect with other people. ... You have to remember that your work is something you do, not who you are. Keep close to your family, friends, and the people who love you for you, not just the work.