There’s a particular kind of disappointment that settles in when you realize that doing good work isn’t always enough. That no one is coming to hand you the opportunity you’ve been waiting for, no matter how dedicated or capable you are. That visibility doesn’t just happen on its own, even when your work is solid, beautiful, meaningful.
It took me longer than I care to admit to understand this. I thought that if I just kept showing up and doing my part, someone would notice. Someone would open a door. Someone would say, “You belong here,” and things would shift. But most people are too consumed with their own deadlines, their own questions, their own sense of urgency to look up and see what’s unfolding around them.
The people who get noticed aren’t always the most prepared, the most experienced, or the most thoughtful. Often, they’re the ones who decided to step forward. Who found a way to speak, even when their voice shook. Who made space for themselves in the room long before anyone officially invited them in.
And I don’t say this to discourage you. I say it because there’s something powerful about claiming your own presence, especially when no one else is doing it for you.
You don’t need to be loud, but you do need to be visible, intentional and strategic, showing that you know what you stands for.
If you’ve been waiting, hoping someone would notice, recommend you, lift you into the light, consider this your interruption: you’re already here. The work already exists. What might change if you stopped waiting and started showing yourself?
What would it look like to be seen on your own terms?