Hiya,

It's been so long since I've emailed you, you've probably forgotten who I am and why you subscribed to this newsletter in the first place.

This means you definitely haven't noticed the name change. This used to be called A Self-Help Guide for Creatives. Now, it's The Escape Artists.

The Escape Artists is the name of my online community, and I want to make sure everything I create falls under one brand.

Alrighty, let's get into today's newsy. It's 2 minutes on...

I’ve written a lot about my inner critic.

But it wasn’t until recently that I began taking notice of a different inner voice

It's a more supportive and encouraging voice.

It has always been there, but I'm only now starting to hear it more clearly.

This is the voice that got pissed when I felt undervalued or dismissed at work. It would scream, “You’re worth more than this. You’re capable of so much more.”

Or with certain people in leadership positions, it would say, "WTF, Dan! You should have that role!"

Or when friends or peers were creating and building their own companies, it would say, “You can do this, too, Dan!”

I heard those things, but they never led to change. This is because...

I spent years believing the voice that doubted me and doubting the voice that believed in me.

Trusting the first voice over the second caused me to consistently accept work, roles and payments that were beneath me.

It kept me stuck in partnerships when I knew I deserved better.

Listening to that other voice is what caused my boundaries to hold up like a paper bag in a rainstorm.

It took writing a book, launching online courses and building an online community to finally start hearing the other voice: my inner champion.

No idea.

What? This a free newsletter?!

Okay, fine, I'll take a shot at it...

Our inner champions feed on our actions.

Our inner critics feed on our inaction.

So, write that book. Start that business. Work on your craft. Make that film. Launch that hotdog empire.

But you don't have to wait until you finish something before you can start hearing your inner champion. I know you already do. You just have to trust it.

When it says you deserve more or better, or different, it's 100% abso-fucking-lutely right. Listen to it. And act on its words and trust those feelings in your gut.

So far in my life, almost everything I've accomplished has been done to prove my inner critic wrong. Now, I’m focused on proving my inner champion right.

It doesn't mean there's no friction, but there's a lot less swimming upstream.

1. Start building your hotdog empire.

2. If this resonated, please like/comment on the LinkedIn version of this message here.

I do notice and appreciate your support.

And if you have any questions, hit reply and 🪓 away.