Welcome to this week’s 1-2-1 newsletter. A small pause to recharge, rethink, and reconnect.
Inside you’ll find one ideas I’m sitting with, two voices I’m learning from, and one tiny step you can take to feel more like yourself this week.
There’s a lot going right lately in my life. And a lot of roadblocks.
It’s our nature to focus on the roadblocks.
This week, it’s all about seeing them clearly and choosing to move forward anyway.
1 INSIGHTS
1. When it’s working… But it doesn’t feel like it.
I’ve heard this referred to as the messy middle.
You don’t have the momentum of the beginning.
And you don’t yet have the results of finishing.
You’re working. You’re doing the right things.
And you haven’t gotten what you want yet.
That stage carries a weight.
There’s a voice that starts to creep in:
What if this never works?
I just finished my Freedom Paradox ebook this week.
I worked late. I put in the time. I followed through.
And I haven’t gotten any calls from publishers.
It hasn’t cracked the New York Times Best Seller list.
Financially, I probably would have been better off flipping burgers.
And yet.
I’ve done work I didn’t like because I needed the money.
That was hard.
Now I’m doing something I’ve always wanted to do.
And it’s still hard.
So the imposter voice shows up:
You’re not good enough.
This isn’t worth sharing.
But it is.
If only because I wrote it and it meant something to me.
And more than that:
I learned how to write consistently
I learned how to build and publish an ebook
I recorded and edited my own audiobook
Those are real skills. Reps that matter.
So no, I don’t have results to show for it yet.
But it’s working.
And maybe that’s the part we need to understand.
Just because it doesn’t feel like it’s working does not mean it isn’t.
2 Voices I’m Learning From
1. Resistance Sounds Rational
Instead of showing us our fear, Resistance presents us with a series of plausible, rational justifications for why we shouldn’t do our work. - Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
Resistance does not show up as fear.
It shows up as logic.
As practicality.
As perfectly reasonable reasons to stop.
If it matters to you, there will be resistance.
Not as a sign to quit, but as a sign you are close to something that matters.
(That said, pay your bills. Do your work. This is not blind risk. It is committed effort.)
2.
The main thing is not to hurry. Nothing good gets away. - John Steinbeck
This is from a note written to his son in 1958.
This feels counterintuitive.
It can feel like:
you are running out of time
you are missing opportunities
you need to act now or lose your chance
But rushing creates as many problems as it solves.
You might miss some good opportunities by moving slower.
But you will also avoid forcing things that are not right.
Sometimes what you actually need is:
one more pass
one more week
one more steady step forward
The right things have a way of finding you if you are still in motion.
Lately, I’ve noticed both these voices in my head.
One says:
Keep going. Push. Stay disciplined.
The other says:
Slow down. Don’t rush. The good things won’t pass you by.
For a while, I thought one of them had to be wrong.
Now I’m starting to think they’re both right.
Push when the resistance is internal.
When it’s doubt, fear, or the feeling that you’re not good enough.
Slow down when the pressure is external.
When it’s urgency, comparison, or the sense that you’re falling behind.
Push to follow through.
Slow down to make sure you’re still aligned.
Keep moving forward.
But don’t panic about the pace.
Maybe the goal isn’t choosing one voice.
Maybe it’s learning when to listen to each.
1 REFLECTION / ACTION
Action:
For individuals
Where in your life are you expecting results faster than reality allows?
What would change if you treated this phase as part of the process, not a problem?
What does “good enough progress this week” actually look like?
For partners
What are we trying to build right now?
What are we willing to sacrifice? And what are we not willing to lose along the way?
How do we make this season feel like a life, not just a waiting room?
If this resonated, share it with someone who might need it.
Thanks for being here.
Jack
P.S. I’ve been thinking a lot about pressure and freedom lately.
I recently published a short essay called The Freedom Paradox.
It goes deeper into some of what I’ve been working through.
eBook + audiobook here:
https://jackjohnstonwrites.gumroad.com/l/freedom-paradox