Beware of passport checkers

July 07, 2007 11:45 AM

(I’m in Leysin, Switzerland for the next two weeks working with YPO, and I thought this post was appropriate…)

In The Artist’s Way, Julia Cameron explains, “When people meet you, they often want to check out your creative passport to make sure your skills have been stamped in all the right places.”

Have you ever met someone like that?

Someone obsessed with approval?
Someone who felt they needed to validate your worthiness?
Someone who felt they needed to “check out” your credentials?

HERE’S A CLUE: ignore them.

They’re insecure.
They’re saboteurs.
They’re super-serious people.
They’re jealous you might surpass them.

Specifically, be on the lookout for questions like these:

*Is this your only job?
*Where did you study?
*Do you do this full time?
*What degrees do you have?
*How many copies have you sold?
*Where did you get your training?

If you get the sense that someone is trying to check your creative passport, all you have do is respond with a big, fat smile … and one of these three questions:

1. Why do you ask?
2. Why do you want to know?
3. Why is that so important to you?

Usually they’ll respond with something defensive like, “Oh, well, I was just curious…”

Yeah. Sure you were.

Look, passport checkers are everywhere.

You can’t EVER let one of them murder your creative nature.

So be on the lookout.

Be prepared to handle them when they approach you.

And never let them (or anyone) make you second-guess yourself.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How do you handle passport checkers?

LET ME SUGGEST THIS…
Share your best techniques here!

* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
That Guy with the Nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com

Are you the luckiest person you know?