#jen hatmaker

You don’t have to be who you first were. That early version of yourself, that season you were in, even the phase you are currently experiencing—it is all good or purposeful or at least useful and created a fuller, nuanced you and contributed to your life’s meaning, but you are not stuck in a category just because you were once branded that way. Just because something was does not mean it will always be.

Be the kind of friend you are hoping for. Trust me, no one wants a perfect friend who can’t offer a minute of transparency. We can get that on Pinterest. Our souls ache for real people in real homes with real kids and real lives. We may carefully curate online identities with well-chosen pictures and selective information, but doing so leaves us starving for something true. I seek only friends who bleed and sweat and laugh and cry. Don't fear your humanity; it is your best offering.

There is no scarcity in creativity. The world always needs good offerings. We cannot have too much beauty. There is no such thing as too much wisdom and literature and story and craftsmanship. There is room for you. Don't be intimidated by successful makers; be inspired by them. Creativity doesn't divide but multiply, finding new expressions in everyone inspired by someone else's gift. We can draw from our favorite writers, artists, musicians, thinkers, leaders, teachers; they sharpen and stretch us, laying pavement for our own gifts, offering possibility and permission to be even better versions of our own creative selves. No need to feel threatened or minimized by someone else's amazing talents. It is all fed by the same river that has no end, no threshold, no limits. Draw from your treasured mentors and then create what only you can; there is no one else who can do exactly what you do in the way you do it. Your story is yours alone. No one has already claimed your seat at the table no matter how similar the genre. Do your time; there is room for you.

Listen to those of us 20 years ahead of you: this life is not a race or a contest. There's enough abundance to go around. Your seat at the table is secure. And you have incredible gifts to offer. You are not in competition with your peers.