Hey {{first_name}} ,

I sent seventeen reschedule messages this week.

Same message to everyone: "I'm sick and just moved house. Need to reschedule."

Every single reply? "Get well soon."

That's it.

No anger. No disappointment. No passive-aggressive "this is unprofessional" energy.

Just... get well soon.

Three words that exposed years of unnecessary anxiety.

See, I used to disappear when life disrupted my business. Moving house? Radio silence. Getting sick? Complete cocoon mode. Family emergency? Vanish without explanation.

I'd hide until everything was perfect again.

The silence was supposed to protect my reputation. I believed disappearing meant no disappointment.

I was wrong.

The silence created exactly what I was trying to avoid. Clients wondered if I'd abandoned their projects. Prospects assumed I wasn't reliable. Partners felt disrespected by the sudden disappearance.

My cocoon strategy was destroying relationships faster than any honest update ever could.

This week changed something fundamental.

Instead of hiding, I sent those seventeen messages. Simple truth: I'm sick, I moved house, I need to reschedule.

The responses taught me what I should have learned years ago.

People understand that humans get sick.

Moving house is exhausting - everyone knows this.

Sometimes life happens - nobody disputes this.

What they don't understand is sudden silence. Unexplained disappearances. The person who vanishes without a word then reappears pretending nothing happened.

That's what actually damages trust.

Nobody tells you that momentum returns.

The old me believed every pause was permanent. Miss a week of content and the audience forgets you. Cancel a meeting and lose the client forever. Break your streak and start from zero.

So I'd push through illness. Force myself to perform while moving house. Maintain momentum even when my body screamed for rest.

Then get sicker. Need longer to recover. Create an even bigger disruption.

The cycle fed itself.

Now I see momentum differently.

Momentum rests, then returns. Like waves pulling back before crashing forward. Like lungs exhaling before inhaling. Like winter preceding spring.

The pause is part of the pattern.

Tomorrow, I'll unpack my office. Friday, I'll return to my calls. Monday, the content rhythm resumes.

Today I rest without apology.

Because sustainable success requires sustainable humans.

And humans need to pause.

Your clients already know this. They're probably pausing right now too. The only person demanding your perpetual motion is you.

So next time life disrupts your perfect schedule, try something radical:

Tell the truth.

"I'm sick and need to reschedule."

"Family emergency - can we move this?"

"Just moved house and need a few days."

Notice how quickly "get well soon" replaces the judgment you're imagining.

Honesty creates more trust than perfect attendance ever could.

And momentum returns naturally when you stop forcing it.

The cocoon strategy assumes people can't handle your humanity.

But they're human too.

They get it.

If you ever feel like this, reply to my email.

Talk tomorrow, 

Jack. 

P.S. If you're hiding in your own cocoon right now, worried that acknowledging disruption will cost you everything - this is your sign to send that update message. Your silence is creating more damage than your honesty ever could. 

P.P.S. I'm supposed to add a CTA here, but telling you to join my community while advocating for rest would make me a hypocrite. So today, no ask. Just rest if you need to.