“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~Melody Beattie
Jay Clouse shared something in his newsletter last week that has stuck with me ever since.
You can't be grateful and angry at the same time.
In a lot of ways, this year has been a dumpster fire. All the emotions: sadness, hurt, anger, and just sheer exhaustion. But we've also experienced the good too: love, joy, healing, and connection.
When I take time to think about things that I'm grateful for, my anger and sadness seem to fade away. It makes me wonder if this is something I should include in my morning routine. 🤔
Here are a few things I'm grateful for:
My friends and family. This year has come with a lot of loss and challenges but I'm glad to know that I have an amazing support group that has my back. From bringing me meals, to sending me puzzles and books to read while I healed, to just being spaces where I could lean if I needed to.
My health. With this pandemic swirling, I am so grateful for the strength of my immune system. And even with my first serious injury, which was scary and painful, my health helped me get to the other side of it. Now the focus is on continuing to get better and stronger.
YOU. Words cannot really express how grateful I am for all of you. I decided to go all-in on #jesspicks this year - making growing it and improving it my #1 focus. We hit 200 issues this year, doubled our subscribers, and found new ways to monetize. It all feels so good and aligned with the business I'm trying to build. And I couldn't have done any of it without you. I truly appreciate you reading, replying, sharing, buying coffees, and ads. You help me keep going in more ways than one. 💖
As we start saying goodbye to 2020 and planning to welcome 2021, I'd love for you to reply and tell me at least one thing you're grateful for.
On to the picks!
Note: This email may contain affiliate links. If you click through my link and make a purchase that means I may receive "thank you money" at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products that I use and love.
#loves 😍
🎧 Listening: This is Christmas. Since Thanksgiving is over, it's officially time for me to listen to Christmas music. This is one of my favorite albums. Luther Vandross has such an amazing voice and was a true loss to the music community. The title song especially is a great listen.
🌠 Tool: Pixistock Annual Membership. This is the one Black Friday deal that I bought and loving it already. Thousands of diverse stock photos, a social media content calendar with prompts for 2021, quote templates, social media images and more. Looking forward to diving in to all the things. And it's great to support a fellow black woman entrepreneur. Sale ends on 12/2.
📚 Reading: Antebellum Awakening. I finished Mabel's School for Girls last week and OMG - I definitely got Harry Potter vibes, but think if Hermione was the main character and her family was cursed and this Miss Mabel was the only one who could remove it. And she is an impressive villain. On to the second book!
#reads
Need to be more productive? Play First. — kandicecole.com
You know I am big on self-care because hustle culture is not really sustainable. Kandice Cole is a big believer in self-care and more specifically every day self care. Not having it be something you do once you burn out.
In this post, she talks about how self-care can just become one more thing to do. She encourages you to think about other forms of self-care including play.
"Play is a powerful form of self care that is easy to overlook, especially when we are full on adulting."
I know for me, playing with LEGOs or coloring or jigsaw puzzles remind me of being a kid. What are some forms of play you can include in your self-care routine?
THE 2020 holiday gift guide for entrepreneurs — www.marketingpersonalities.com
If you are looking for a gift guide for your friends or want to give hints as to what you would like for the holidays, here you go! And bonus: the gifts are sorted by personality type.
#icymi
😍 Last issue’s top pick was: How to grow to 10k, niching down, and top subscriber sources
🎧 Chatted about creating a curated newsletter with Tara McMullin (this interview is awesome if I say so myself!)
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#lifevibes
#supporters ☕️
Thank you Kristen, Liz, Katherine, Monale, Betsy, Melissa, Lindsay, Jennifer, Kayla, Madison, Rae, Stephanie, Christine R., Christine M., Frances, Hannah, Chris, Brandy, Mea, Kristian, Maria, Avery, Adam, Monale, Barbara, Shenee, Desiree, Lisa, Kandice, L'Oreal, and LaVerne for being #jesspicks supporters!! ❤️
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