PHOTOGRAPH BY INSIGHTING
/smäg,smôg/
Noun
(Situations and or people who’s intentions are meant to cloud your vision, waste your time, knock you off course and prevent your growth. JDWII)
As far back as I can remember I’ve always been a visionary, with big dreams and aspirations. From my childhood years until now, the birth of a new idea or creation gives me this high that is unmatched. Naturally in the excitement of the moment my enthusiasm would take over and I’d want to share my ideas with those around me.
I’ve never been one to think small, which caused some to view my ideas as outlandish. I now know however, that my aspirations weren't too big but it was that some people found them to be intimidating. Because of this I’d receive negative feedback, and people saying things like “you could never pull this off” or that I was ill equipped for the task, surprisingly a lot of this negativity came from people I considered close. For a time this definitely did cloud my vision and cause me to question my own ability but, I had to grow out of this and learn how to persevere and be my own hype man.
A lot of my resilience comes from my parents, mom who’d often tell me “to guard my vision” because “people in their own insecurities will project their fears on you and if you're not careful it will cripple you every time”. Simply put she’d say “keep people out of your business”. I can see her face now. Mom plays no games, she’s to the point and unapologetic, gotta love mom. My guy, pop as suave as can be would say “Daniel you need no ones approval, as long as what your doing dose not compromise your integrity push forward boldly”, or something like “Don’t be boggled down seeking the approval of other, God gave it to you now do it”. Having these two constantly in my ears, motivating me is what I needed. But, the truth is not everyone has this, which can make the journey of a creative/visionary sometimes daunting. So thank you Maggie & Ease.
I am a firm believer that there’s really no gain in thinking small. You have to be willing to step outside of your comfort zone and push. Its not going to be easy and the road won’t be paved with daisies, but push anyway. Anything truly worth having is w0rth fighting for, I don’t know about you but I fight tooth and nail for whats mine.
If you only remember one thing from this post let it be:
That it is absolutely essential as creatives to guard our vision, no one is going to understand it like us. Don’t get caught up in the smog. Stay focused, always on your grind, because Your future self depends on it.
THE LOOK: BOOJUU, GAP, ZARA & NIKE.