From Loren Yaskin:
This is me in my senior year of high school, pictured with two iconic Arizona women: Representative Polly Rosenbaum (Arizona’s longest-serving state legislator) and Governor Rose Mofford (Arizona’s first female governor).
My parents had just uprooted our family from Connecticut for my final year of high school (yes, really). For an Arizona Statehood Day writing contest, I had to write about an Arizona treasure. A friend asked, “What do you know about Arizona? You just moved here.” I dove in anyway, writing about the desert’s preservation, imagining how a Native American might see it, weaving past and present into the piece. My teacher handed back a whimsical “B” with no explanation. I wasn’t happy … until I learned I was the 12th-grade winner in the state.
That moment stuck with me: Creative work is subjective. Whether I’m shaping a communications strategy, producing a video, or drafting a news release, there will always be opinions: “Do it this way,” “We don’t need that,” “That sounds like AI.” Critique is part of the process, but it doesn’t define the value of the work.
Keep creating. Keep learning. Keep showing up – and persevere despite critiques. Your voice, and the work you believe in, will find its people.