The Quiet Battle Behind Every Breakthrough

Take It or Leave It Creative Advice

Welcome to Take It or Leave It, the weekend edition of Create.Repeat. It’s a space for the ones who are serious about building a creative life, not just dreaming about one.

Every week, we answer real questions from real creatives walking through real struggles.

And if we’re honest, the struggles you’ll read today aren’t unique to the people who asked them.

They’re universal. They’re the quiet battles that every creative faces behind closed doors—staying consistent, finding the courage to start, clearing the fog so you can think and create again.

You are not alone in what you’re feeling. You are not broken. You are on the path.

But the truth is, the path isn’t easy.

It will ask more of you than you sometimes think you have to give. And that’s exactly why spaces like this matter.

Take It or Leave It is a commitment to honesty, growth, and showing up when it would be easier to walk away.

If you believe in that… if you see yourself somewhere in these words…

I want to invite you to invest in your own creative journey by becoming a paid subscriber for just $5 a month.

Not out of obligation. But out of belief.

Belief in our mission and what we’re trying to build.

Belief in the work you’re called to create.

Belief in the person you are becoming.

We’re just getting started. And there’s room for you here.

Let’s dive in.

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Hey @hoax.avi,

Thank you for this question.

Consistency is hard across everything. Your health, your finances, your relationships, and especially your creative work. The good news is, even if consistency doesn’t come naturally, it can be learned through practice.

A lot of people overlook the second part of our name. They see and connect with the word “Create,” but they forget about “Repeat.”

Whether you’re trying to get better at your craft, grow an audience, or open new doors for your career, it all starts with the same ability: doing something well, and then doing it again and again and again.

We talked about this in a past newsletter called Success is Boring:

Anyone can start. That part’s easy.

Starting is intoxicating—it’s the rush of new ideas, the fantasy of where it might lead. But success doesn’t come from starting. It comes from staying.

From making when no one cares. From posting when no one responds. From pushing through the point where most people stop.

The truth is, the work that changes your life looks a lot like the work that doesn’t.

And that’s why most people never get there.

They crave the dopamine hit of something new. They expect every project to be a breakthrough. And when the grind sets in—when the work turns slow, quiet, unglamorous—they leave.

That’s the part that separates pros from amateurs.

When I struggle with consistency, I try to identify what feeling is blocking me.

Like I said before, anyone can start. But when things get tough (or worse, boring), that’s when most people quit.

For me, when I realize I didn’t follow through on something I said I would, it’s almost always because the motivation behind it got twisted. It’s easy to call everything “inspiration.” But if the inspiration is secretly tied to validation, or a goal you can’t celebrate until you reach the finish line, you’re poisoning your mind without realizing it.

And as creatives, protecting your mind is part of the job.

Let’s be honest, we’ll always, in some way, seek validation.

Goals aren’t bad either. But when they rule you, they blind you to the real gift… the process.

I’ll say this until the day I die:

The final product is for them. The process is for you.

Stop trying to rush through the process just to get to a result where people will finally like you, or respect you, or think you’re smart, or whatever deep thing you’re chasing.

And here’s the flip side: even if you do achieve the validation or goal you wanted, it can be just as paralyzing—because now you’re afraid you’ll never live up to it again.

That’s why the answer is simple: Commit to the Repeat.

Do it again, and again, and again.

Fall in love with the process of creating, learning, and improving your craft. Let the results fall where they may.

Do you think the Beatles sat down trying to write a hit every time John and Paul picked up a guitar or sat at the piano? No. They wrote because they loved writing songs.

The Beatles released 213 songs. About 50 of them are considered “hits.” That’s roughly 25%… and they’re THE GREATEST BAND OF ALL TIME.

Give yourself some grace.

Focus on the process, not the outcome.

Show up for yourself because you deserve it.

Create. But don’t forget to REPEAT.

Hope this helps.

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Sorry for the annoying paywall.

Behind it, you’ll find two more questions—one about conquering the fear of starting, and another about clearing brain fog—as well as a mood board of some things that have been inspiring my Create.Repeat designs lately.

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