Admitting What Is Obvious

This week we refocused Every around one big question: “What comes next?” It’s a powerful thing to organize a company around a core question. In order to answer that question for Every, I first had to answer it for myself. I needed to know: Who am I? What do I really want to do with my life? It was almost exactly a year ago that I realized I wanted to be a writer. Everything that has happened since at Every has come from understanding that truth about myself. It seems obvious in hindsight, but sometimes the most obvious truths are hidden from view. This piece chronicles my journey to that realization, and it seemed like an appropriate time to bring it back. I hope admitting what is obvious helps you as much as it has helped me.—Dan Shipper

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It requires you to go about your day numbing yourself to the reality of who you are and what you want—which is a waste of time for you and everyone around you.

By contrast, admitting what is obvious is freeing and motivating. But it’s terrifying to do it. Sometimes the most obvious truths about ourselves are hard to see because the consequences of those truths seem so dire. 

This happened to me recently. I admitted a truth that was probably obvious to everyone around me, but not to myself: I’m a writer. This sounds so obvious that it feels like it is a joke. I write a weekly column at a newsletter that I started—of course I’m a writer.

But this is one of those truths for me. And I’m glad I can admit it.

If there are obvious truths like this for you, you should find them, and admit them, too.

Why you can’t admit the obvious

Become a paid subscriber to Every to unlock this piece and read about:

• The invisible bag of unacceptable truths
• Admitting the obvious as a path to growth
• Finding examples that align with your true self
• Taking small steps toward admitting the truth