Worried about saying the wrong thing? Try this.

Today I thought I’d write you a bit of a personal note, along with a prompt that I’ve found useful in my life and work.

As I write this, spring is getting closer, but it’s still pretty cold and wintery where I live. I’ll be honest: at times, the promise of better weather and a post-pandemic world — and, for that matter, a peaceful world — seem very far away to me. I work hard to look after my mental health, but there are times in the past months when depression has taken over my headspace. It’s like a hard crust of ice that I find it hard to break through.

Yet spring IS coming. And the seasonal change is something that’s always inspired me. Those first purple and yellow crocuses pushing their way through the cold, snowy soil and up towards the light: this to me is the ultimate reassurance that things change in their own due course. Life persists.

And so do we. The pandemic has felt unforgiving and relentless at times, but one thing that has helped me is committing to showing up.

Here’s how I look at it. You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to be eloquent and graceful or “boss” at all times. But when you show up consistently, something amazing happens over time. Your efforts become more than the sum of their parts.

So, kudos to you for continuing to tell your stories, to lead, and to share your unique perspective with the world. I promise that commitment will add up. Even if you can’t see it right now, in time the seeds you are planting will bust through the earth.

Meanwhile, here is a prompt that I’ve found useful.

It comes from my sister-in-law Julia, who is also my virtual assistant. (She’s also the co-founder and artistic-director at Shakespeare BASH’d.) Julia shared this prompt with me just before my Storytelling Mastery Summit.

I’d expressed something to her along the lines of, “ugh, I hope I do well as a host and facilitator!”

In response, Julia shared a phrase she uses in theatre as a director and acting coach:

“Instant forgiveness.”

The prompt, Julia explained, acknowledges that things will inevitably go wrong, and that’s okay. We can practice “instant forgiveness” — take a breath, let it go, and move forward.

As Julia told me, “perfect is boring, inhuman, and no one wants it.”

She’s absolutely right.

This goes for storytelling of all kinds: Being vulnerable, authentic, and willing to be wrong is far more important than trying to be perfect.

And it’s pretty good life advice, too.

So, keep on showing up and sharing your stories. You got this.