Leap of Faith from liz-green.com“The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating — in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life.” ~Anne Morriss
MJ, one of the very loyal and resourceful readers of this blog, sent me this quote a few weeks ago and its been milling around in my mind ever since. I’ve been thinking a lot about boxes – the ones we put ourselves into, the ones we put other people into, and the ones others put us into. I’ve been thinking of taking a more freelance approach to my life and work, and this potential is causing equal amounts of anxiety and excitement. I feel like I’ve got one foot firmly planted on a ledge and one hanging in mid-air. To combat this feeling, I focus on my breath until the anxiety passes.
And then this quote by Anne Morriss will pop into my mind. Perhaps a commitment to this new road is what I need to put the fear to rest for good. Rather than going round and round about the possibility, what I may need to do is stop waiting and just leap. What I’m doing now feels akin to holding my breath, freezing so that I won’t slip or stumble. We exhibit the freeze response when we encounter fear that we feel like we can’t fight or flee. The fear is all around us and so we hold, hoping it passes us by without seeing us.
This fear I have at the moment is different. It doesn’t really ever subside because it’s in anticipation of a step I know I must eventually take. Just today, I spoke with 3 good friends who have come to the realization that they need to have greater control over their careers, and that means taking their careers more into their own hands rather than leaving their promotion entirely at the hands of others. One just joined a start-up, and two are considering their own ventures entirely. All came to this conclusion: they are their own best bosses.
Not perfect and certainly not without its own challenges, but as good as it gets.
What entrepreneurship gives us, as Anne Morriss so brilliantly gets at in her quote, is the removal of walls and barriers to our potential. So long as we allow someone else to put us in a box constructed completely of their goals, performance reviews, rules, and visions of success, then we give someone else the power to define our future. The only box I’m ultimately interested in is the box I put myself into because I always have the option to break out of that one and redefine its boundaries. Perhaps its time for some re-imagineering of just how my time is spent, with whom, and for what.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
6 thoughts on “Beginning: Tear Down The Walls to Your Potential by Commiting to Your Own Road”
Re-imagineering is my new favorite word!!! You’re an inspiration my friend!!!!
Ideally, your dream should go hand-in-hand with pragmatism.
For example: it would be wise to have a back-up plan. Do you have enough money saved up? Do you feel comfortable leaving your job to start a new business venture like Compass Yoga?
What if things don’t work out. In the long term, of course, things will work out, but what if things are not as per your expectations in the short term?
These are not negative thoughts, but thoughts that every entrepreneur has to think about. We all need a cushion to break our fall, after all.
Even after you start your company, you will find that things will pick up very slowly. You will need patience and a long-term perspective. Start-ups are never easy. It takes time to convert dreams into a reality.
Just something to think about. Hang in there. Keep your chin up.
I totally agree, Archan. I’ve been saving a lot the past four years exactly so i could build up a safety net, and I like having a multiple income stream life. Eases teh anxiety and gives me so many more options. All the same, I love you advice and appreciate your concern. The plan is coming together!
Re-imagineering is my new favorite word!!! You’re an inspiration my friend!!!!
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Thanks, Urs!! I’m a big fan of this word and action, too 🙂
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An absolutely perfect post. Just what the doctor ordered. Thanks.
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So glad, Alex. Let’s tear down those walls and toss those boxes!
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Christa,
Yes, but it is equally important to be realistic.
Ideally, your dream should go hand-in-hand with pragmatism.
For example: it would be wise to have a back-up plan. Do you have enough money saved up? Do you feel comfortable leaving your job to start a new business venture like Compass Yoga?
What if things don’t work out. In the long term, of course, things will work out, but what if things are not as per your expectations in the short term?
These are not negative thoughts, but thoughts that every entrepreneur has to think about. We all need a cushion to break our fall, after all.
Even after you start your company, you will find that things will pick up very slowly. You will need patience and a long-term perspective. Start-ups are never easy. It takes time to convert dreams into a reality.
Just something to think about. Hang in there. Keep your chin up.
Cheerio.
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I totally agree, Archan. I’ve been saving a lot the past four years exactly so i could build up a safety net, and I like having a multiple income stream life. Eases teh anxiety and gives me so many more options. All the same, I love you advice and appreciate your concern. The plan is coming together!
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