The Let Go Menu: A Toolkit for Artists in Overdrive

I’ve learned that one of the hardest things for artists to do isn’t creating—it’s letting go.

Letting go of anxiety. Letting go of the fear that we’re not doing enough. Letting go of the pressure to fix, control, or prove something.

Whether you're standing in a rehearsal room, sitting at your desk, or lying awake at 3 a.m. overthinking an email, letting go is not a passive act—it’s a practice. It’s something we can choose, and like any physical or artistic practice, we get better with time.

I created a Let Go Menu—a short list of active tools that help me move through anxiety and emotional intensity when it shows up. This menu isn’t about erasing feelings; it’s about responding to them with care.

The Let Go Menu

1. Physical Reset

Sometimes, the body just needs to move to release what the mind is holding.

• Shake out your hands and arms

• Roll your shoulders and jaw

• Do a one-song dance break to shift your energy

Mantra: “This doesn’t live in my body anymore.”

2. Breath Break

Letting go can be as simple as one exhale that says, not mine to carry.

• Inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 8

• Whisper “I release” on the exhale

• Imagine the thought or tension dissolving with the breath

Mantra: “I breathe out the weight. I breathe in space.”

3. Say It & Seal It

Sometimes the act of naming what we’re carrying is enough to set it down.

• Say out loud or write:

  • “I’ve done what I can.”

  • “This doesn’t need more from me.”

  • “I’m choosing peace now.”

• Then close the book, tab, or room.

Mantra: “It’s okay to stop holding this.”

4. Redirect the Flow

If your brain is stuck, move your focus somewhere that says yes to your capacity.

• Walk it off, even for five minutes

• Do one small task you can complete

• Organize something. Make something. Care for something.

Mantra: “Where do I actually have power right now?”

5. Symbolic Gesture

Create a ritual. Let the body feel the release.

• Toss a crumpled note

• Light a candle or blow one out

• Visualize placing the thought in a box on a shelf

• Hold a small stone and transfer the energy into it

Mantra: “I’ve held this long enough. I let it rest now.”

6. Gentle Reassurance

Meet yourself with the same compassion you’d offer a student or castmate.

• Place a hand on your heart

• Say:

  • “I am safe.”

  • “I’m allowed to be okay.”

  • “I trust myself to return if needed.”

Mantra: “Letting go doesn’t mean I don’t care. It means I care for myself too.”

7. Sing Frozen’s “Let It Go”

Yes, seriously. I do this. Especially when I’m stuck on something ridiculous that I know doesn’t deserve more airtime in my brain.
Belt out the chorus—especially:

Let it go, let it go
Can't hold it back anymore
Let it go, let it go
Turn away and slam the door
I don't care what they're going to say
Let the storm rage on
The cold never bothered me anyway

Laugh at yourself. Lean into the ridiculousness. It works. I feel better every time.

Mantra: “Let it go, let it go” / “The cold never bothered me anyway”

Letting go is not the absence of care—it’s an act of radical self-trust.

So the next time your body says “hold on tighter” and your mind says “spiral faster,” try saying this instead:

“I trust myself to let go. I trust myself to return if needed. I trust myself to know the difference.”

If this resonates, I’d love to know which Let Go Menu item you return to the most.

—L.