What About Me 62°

Author

Micael Balioni
January 28, 2026

WHAT ABOUT ME?

Micael

not super inspired recently

 

This What about me could be about many things. But this week, I want to talk about inspiration — or, more precisely, the illusion of it.

We often believe that when we start a creative project, inspiration should be there every time we show up. That a piano player should only play when they feel inspired, and a writer should only write when they have something meaningful to say. But writing this newsletter — more often than not — has made me accept that this simply isn’t true.

Recently, during my trips to both Brazil and London, writing here felt more like a burden than a pleasure. And that made me think a lot. This was a project I created for myself, and to share with friends and family. So when I feel exhausted or don’t really have much to say, I sometimes ask myself: why do I keep this? What would be so bad about skipping one edition?

However,

  • A singer on tour won’t feel inspired to sing the same song 250 nights a year. And yet, the song is sung. And maybe — even if they weren’t inspired when they started — they might be by the time they finish.

  • By the same token, going to the gym isn’t about the thrill of the first week of January. It’s about going anyway — whether you’re tired, emotionally drained, or worried about life. And somehow, we never regret going once we’re already there.

This isn’t a job obligation. It doesn’t pay my bills. No one is depending on it. It’s simply a commitment I made with myself — and with the reader who faithfully opens it.

And recently, I realized that that’s exactly the point.

It is not — and it never was — about being inspired. It’s about doing the work. When inspiration comes, we welcome her. It’s a gift — writing feels exciting, almost effortless. But when it doesn’t, I write anyway. I follow the promise anyway.

  • Looking back, many of my favorite texts were written when I wasn’t inspired at all. The same goes for music — some of my favorite pieces came from moments when I almost had to force myself to write.

Creative work isn’t sustained by inspiration. It’s sustained by consistency.

There’s an amazing book about creativity that talks exactly about this tension between inspiration and discipline — The War of Art — and I’ve been resonating with it a lot lately. Highly Recommend it.

Maybe there will be a time when I’ll skip an edition. And when that time comes, I’m sure you’ll understand. But for now, I’ll just keep writing.

With love,

Micael.