Hiya,

Today, I'm writing about two different kinds of career stress.

I hope this short email inspires you to pursue more of one of them.

Let's get into it.

This is me 2 weeks ago, ten minutes before I gave a talk to 80 people. 

Relaxed, chatting with one of my favourite humans, and my first-ever connection on LinkedIn, Stephen Bailey.

2 years ago, I gave a talk for this esame organization (h/t Creative Pulse).

Ten minutes before THAT talk, I was so nervous I thought about pulling the fire alarm just to get out of it.

This path of creating for myself hasn't been easy. This whole time, I’ve felt like Frodo. But without Sam.

But one thing has become clear to me over the last 5 years:

Not all stressful work is created equal.

When you’re a full-time employee or a freelancer, and you’re working on a stressful project, the reward at the end is often, "Hallelujah, it’s f*cking over!"

You might get a couple of days to rest your brain and maybe even see the sun or a friend, before the next project begins.

But the stress I experience while pursuing my own creative projects (my book, courses, talks, workshops, etc.) is different.

It still sucks, and each time I think to myself, “I need to stop this shit and get a job like a normal person.”

But once those projects wrap, the reward I feel afterwards is growth. I feel taller somehow. More capable. More energized. More valuable. 

And I start to think to myself, “Well, shit, if that was inside you, what else is in there???”

It's like realizing my potential in real-time. And there’s no better drug on this planet.

So now, instead of fearing and avoiding this type of stressful work, I’m chasing it.

Both paths are hard. But one eats away at our souls. And the other one feeds it.

And it can also feed your family.

I highly recommend improving your ratio.

• Please like/comment on this LinkedIn post. I notice and appreciate every single one.

• If this resonated with you, add your email to the waitlist of my Escape Artist Community. I opened it last year to 50 people. It's for creative professionals wanting more of the good kind of stress. Later this year, I'm opening it up to 50 more beauties.

Thanks for being my favourite reader.

Dan