No One Wants Your Perfectionism But White Supremacy

For The Worldbuilders Ep. 080

Lorna Simpson, ⁠did time elapse⁠ (2024) Materials: Acrylic and screenprint on gessoed fiberglass Dimensions: 259.1 x 365.8 x 3.5 cm / 102 x 144 x 1 3/8 in. "Together, Simpson’s incandescent paintings draw attention to the danger hidden in beauty and, conversely, the beauty hidden in danger. Bringing us face to face with phenomena rarely witnessed by the human eye, they ask us to locate ourselves in the context of the cosmos." (Source: ⁠Hauser & Wirth⁠)

Dear Worldbuilder,

At first this episode was titled “There Is No Rigor In Perfection, There Is Rigor In Your Play”. In a recent episode of one of my favorite podcasts Hidden Brain, psychologist Paul Bloom describes why play is an essential choreography of aliveness for most human and non-human species. He says it’s essential because it’s a container for “safe practice”. I keep thinking about this phrase, “safe practice”. Oftentimes perfectionism is mistaken for rigor. These two are NOT the same. Perfectionism stops us from starting, rigor invites us to try. The fear rooted in perfectionism is an indication of feeling unsafe inside our practice. My intention inside this episode is to offer spells for cultivating a felt sense of safety inside our practice through rigorous play.

Tune into the 80th episode “No One Wants Your Perfectionism But White Supremacy” on the podcast For the Worldbuilders via Spotify or Apple Podcast.

Then let me know what you think by replying to this email. 💌

Black and white photograph of me wearing AYZACO workwear and smiling into the distance. Photographer: Stephen L.A. Miller

Let’s Work Together 1:1 on Launching Your Newsletter

Over the course of 8 weeks, let’s work together 1:1 on seeding, deepening or returning to your public creative practice. We will uncover the ways perfectionism might be conveniently masking subconscious fears around our felt sense of worthiness, belonging and the faith our power demands.

Permission to Pivot is an 8-week creative writing and coaching container offering 1:1 support with launching a newsletter in alignment with your audacious desire instead of external validation.

By the end of our work together you will have seeded a creative writing practice and created 3 newsletters you’re logistically and energetically ready to publish. You won’t just be writing, you’ll be transforming through your writing.

What this coaching container is and is not:

• This is not a container for critique. I’m not here to tell you whether your newsletter essay is “good” or “bad”, that’s your business. This container is for releasing perfectionism, though. It is for cultivating creative permission to pivot and move from working inside your Zone of External Validation to working from inside your Zone of Desire with guidance and support.

• This is not a container for re-constructing your “personal brand”, instead we reconstruct your personal narratives which reconstructs your life. This is a container for composting the stories and identities that no longer serve you so that you may drop into deeper ease, alignment, resonance and congruence inside your work.

• This is not a container for focusing on newsletter metrics and optimizing for a high number of subscribers. This is a container for reclaiming your voice and locating your truth. While there are 12 months of workshops and guided meditations for creative marketing guidance and support inside this offer, this is not a creative marketing container. This container is about creating your own medicine so that you may receive it first.

Book a free Discovery Call if you’re ready to give yourself permission to pivot. Inside this call we will use the Element X Quadrant to locate the work rooted in your Zone of External Validation and strategize the ways you can spend more time working inside your Zone of Desire.

So be it, see to it, breathe through it,

Ayana