Why is it so terrifying to truly try? According to writer and creative entrepreneur Jamie Varon, it’s because trying means opening yourself up to rejection. It’s easier to self-reject, to stay small, to convince yourself you didn’t really want it anyway. But what if the real risk isn’t rejection—it’s never trying at all?
In this episode, Jamie and Alice unpack the deep emotional weight of putting yourself out there. They explore why self-rejection is often the biggest hurdle, how social media tricks us into idolizing effortless success, and what happens when you stop chasing external validation and start trusting yourself instead. Jamie shares the raw reality of her own career—the disappointments, the setbacks, and the turning point when she finally decided to stop letting rejection define her.
If you’ve ever struggled with self-doubt or felt like giving up, this episode is your reminder that the only way forward is through.
Find Jamie online:
📖 Read Jamie’s Books:
📕 Radically Content: Being Satisfied in an Endlessly Dissatisfied World
https://www.amazon.com/Radically-Content-Satisfied-Endlessly-Dissatisfied/dp/B09VY6CLR6
📘 Main Character Energy
https://www.amazon.com/Main-Character-Energy-Jamie-Varon/dp/0778334201/
🌎 Jamie’s Website:
https://www.jamievaron.com
📱 Follow Jamie on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/jamievaron
Chapters:
00:00 The Fear of Self-Rejection
05:27 Rewriting the Narrative After Failure
12:45 Why Trying is a Vulnerable Act
18:32 The External Validation Trap
24:51 Effortless Success is a Myth—Here’s the Reality
30:16 Building a Career on Resilience, Not Luck
37:04 Radically Opting Out of Societal Conditioning
43:18 The Fork in the Road: Do You Keep Going or Let Rejection Win?
Let me know if you need any more tweaks!