There is a classic Far Side cartoon with two Roman soldiers standing on the parapet of a castle. Below them, there is an attacking army, and flaming arrows are whizzing past the two soldiers. One soldier looks at the other and says, “They’re lighting their arrows. Can they do that??”
That cartoon is a perfect illustration of how so many people lose track of permission.
Back when I played bass in the Boston Pops, I often found myself wondering how I managed to get the gig, when so many other people who tried to do it fell short. I also wondered how I had managed to successfully publish books and plays, when again, so many others had tried and had fallen short.
There was hard work involved, but at the heart of it, the real secret was that I had given myself permission to do it. Without that, no amount of talent will get you anywhere. And it is truly amazing just how often people get locked up in losing their sense of permission.
