The new cool is saying no without feeling like you owe an explanation.
It’s ok to say no.
As we continue to explore the ingredients that make cool cool in 2026, going into 2027, something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately is the concept of owing an explanation to everyone who contacts you: why you are choosing to work on something, why you are not going out that night, why you go to this gym and not that one, why you chose to wear all black, and every single aspect of your life that is being inspected by others. And through all that, You’re allowed to say no without explaining why because Not everything needs to be explained. Of course, we are not implying being a bad friend and simply saying no and disappearing, because that’s disrespectful to our peers and not a good thing. But maybe (just maybe) we are alluding to boundaries, and to making sure the people around us acknowledge and respect them, because Without boundaries we are bound to lose our values and, over time, our self-respect - Something that will very soon trickle down to the creative work as well, which IS a big, big, big, very big problem to deal with as creatives.
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