How to Build a Bridge to Your Future Self

Struggling with impostor syndrome or creative blocks? This gentle guide helps you identify what's really holding you back and offers practical steps forward. Includes free workbook.

How was your Thanksgiving? This weekend, my tween and I saw Wicked. Have you seen it? It’s magnificent. While walking to our seats, I wasn’t sure how he would respond to the movie. He was either going to complain it was boring or complain that he didn’t like musicals.

But, you know what? I sensed him lean forward during the transformation scene. It’s the scene where Elphaba finally embraces who she’s meant to be. As the Tween’s face lit up, I couldn’t help but think about our transformations as creatives.

That’s where we are in our strategic planning journey. We’re standing in the wide gap between who we are today and who we’re meant to become. Now, if you’re just joining us, or if you missed Part 1, take a minute to reread that post. I shared the “Who Are You?” exercise that’s essential groundwork for today’s newsletter.

Here’s the truth: that gap between our current and future selves can feel as vast as the distance between Kansas and Oz. But unlike Dorothy, we don’t need a tornado to get there. We need clarity.

Today’s exploration aims to give you that clarity. And it just so happens that this exploration comes in three acts (yup, I’m sticking with the theater metaphor :-)

Act 1: The Mirror Moment

First, let’s look at our current reality with the same precision we’d use when mixing colors for a sketch, toning an image, or editing a manuscript.

Go on and grab a notebook to answer these questions. You can also download the workbook that accompanies this post.

Before you begin, don’t be surprised if you feel resistance. That’s normal. Your body might start itching. You may begin to feel ill. Don’t worry, that’s normal.

Move your body first - stretch, walk, dance. Movement drives breath. Breath drives clarity.

- What stories do my daily habits tell about me?

- What rhythms govern my days?

- What dreams have I buried beneath "someday"?

- What fears have I cleverly disguised as practicality?

- What habits am I using to procrastinate on working on my passions? (Hint: Check your screen time.)

Act 2: The Vision Ahead

Now, close your eyes. Take three deep breaths. One breath. Two breaths. Three breaths.

Let your mind drift through cold seasons, warm seasons, glorious sunsets, through storms until you settle on a version of you three years in the future. You’ve viewed Future You at a celebratory dinner. Notice the ease with which they talk to the people at the table. Notice the ease on Future You’s face. They wear a certainty and confidence that you’ve experienced before.

Write down the details of what you notice, as if you’re recording state secrets.

- How does Future You move through the world?

- What light or IT factor does Future You carry?

- What gifts does Future You share with their community?

- What work does Future You create to warrant this dinner?

Act 3: Minding the Gap

Here’s what I’ve learned from conversations with retired artists and creators: their biggest regret isn’t failing—it’s not trying. It’s letting fear disguise itself as practicality.

While you won’t always escape fear or doubt nipping at your heels, remember one way to cross the divide is through deliberate and consistent action. Each action you take creates a section of the bridge you need to cross that divide.

The gap between now and your vision typically shows up in three ways:

1. The Canyon of Competency

When you see where you want to go but don’t believe you have the skills to get there. It’s like dreaming of that gallery show when your current work feels "not ready."

2. The Identity Divide

Often when your future self feels so different from your current self, the transformation seems impossible. Like finishing the first draft of your screenplay and hoping it will place at a film festival.

3. The Resource Ravine

Sometimes, the gap feels unbridgeable because of limited time, money, or support. When that happens your creative dreams feel like luxury items you can’t afford.

Your Mission This Week:

Identify which of these gaps feels most like home right now. Write it down in your own handwriting, the way you’d write a letter to someone you’re trying to forgive. Don’t try to build bridges yet - that’s for next time. For now, just stand at the edge of the gap and let yourself feel its width, depth, and possibility hidden in its shadows.

Remember: The space between who you are and who you’re becoming isn’t empty at all. It’s fertile as spring soil, waiting for seeds. It’s blank as a canvas, holding every color you haven’t used yet. It’s quiet as dawn, ready for your voice.

And like Elphaba discovered in that moment of defiance and flight, sometimes the very thing that marks us as different - our deepest wants, our wildest dreams, our most impossible visions - might be the very thing that sets us free.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about this series. Which questions resonated the most with you?

Stay Creative,

Martine x

P.S. Download the companion worksheet here to work through these exercises in more detail. Next week, I’ll be back with tips on how to review your year. Have a good week!