Candice West | Self-Trust Architect

THIS WASN’T PART OF THE PLAN.

When this photograph was taken, I was standing on stage in front of an audience with absolutely no idea what I was going to say next.

I’m not exaggerating. 🫠

A pretty significant part of my production hadn’t gone as planned.

The Graffiti artist arrived without the canvas, which meant the mural that was supposed to be created and woven into the final part of the experience wasn’t happening.

And there I was.

With 25 minutes left in a show I’ve spent months meticulously creating.

No script.
No backup plan.

Just me, a microphone, and a theatre of people.

An earlier version of me would have been internally LOSING HER SHIt.

The need to control. The fear of disappointing people. The pressure to get everything right.

And yet, in this moment, I wasn’t any of those things.

I was present.
Connected.

Trusting myself to navigate what was unfolding instead of fighting again against what wasn’t.

And here’s the wild part.
After the show, people came up to me, sharing how deeply move they were by my very words I hadn’t planned to speak.

Let that sink in.
Some of the most impactful moments came from the part I couldn’t control.

And I’ve been sitting with that.
Because how often do we convince ourselves that we need to know how something is going to happen before we give ourselves permission to move?

How often does uncertainty become the very reason we don’t try?

I’m stepping into some pretty big unknowns right now.
Things I have absolutely no roadmap for.
And this photograph is a reminder.

Not that everything will go according to plan.
But that I don’t need it to.

Maybe the greatest thing I’ve gained through all of this work isn’t the ability to control what happens next.

It’s the capacity to trust myself when I can’t.

And THAT is a version of me I’m pretty damn proud of.

🫶🏼🫶🏼