“Summer has good in it too—most notably, a reminder to play and take your time.” ⛱ ~Kendra Adachi
I was listening to a recent Lazy Genius podcast episode where Kendra Adachi talks about how hard it is to be a human right now. Not only is it summer, and we are still in the middle of a pandemic. But even before all of that, we as a collective were dealing with ALOT.
She is currently experiencing a season of overwhelm. She is dealing with a lot of projects and feeling like she is drowning. And she mentioned how we often use these water metaphors to talk about this state of stress.
She shared these feelings with her therapist, who asked her a crucial question:
“What if you just stopped trying to get out of the water?”
🤯. Just permit yourself to stay where you are right now.
Then she asked:
“What do you need as you stay in the water?”
Kendra brought up the idea of life jackets (isn’t this water metaphor great?) - things that won’t necessarily change her situation but give her opportunities for rest and relief during this season. So she has been going to the pool with her family and reading more often.
This concept is something that I think a lot of us can relate to. #Adulting can be rough at times. So when you find yourself in the water, first realize that it’s OK to stay there in the water. It may just be the season you are in right now. And second, find some simple ways to offer yourself some relief.
While I feel closer to the shore than in recent weeks, it has made me less stressed to accept that I am in the water right now. And that’s OK. I have also been trying to find my life jackets -- reading, dancing, and vitamin D.
What season are you in right now? What are your life jackets?
On to the picks!
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#loves 😍
💰. Learning: Lazy Guide to Affiliate Marketing. Lizzy is making updates to this course and running it live this month. She has made over $100K in the past year from affiliate marketing alone and does it in a very low-stress way. I’m looking forward to getting a refresher on this income stream and thinking about ways to add it to my business.
🎧. Listening: Is it a side hustle or a second career? Jasmine Lawrence, the founder of Eden BodyWorks, joined Fast Company to talk about the company she started when she was 13. I love how instead of thinking about and referring to it as a side hustle, she considers it one part of her dual career. She covers how she started her business, how she balances it with her 40-hour a week tech job, and tips for setting boundaries.
📚. Reading: 56 Days. I am not sure why I decided to pick a book focused on COVID times since they are not quite over, but I love a good thriller. I just finished it the other night, and it was so good. Here’s a quick take from Book of the Month: “Shack up with your quarantine bae, they said. It will be totally awesome and not terrible, they said...” Cue suspenseful music. 😱
#reads
My 90-minute workday — sarahavenir.com
“The system I developed is very, very simple. The object of the game is to get the “work” (i.e. the stuff that I have to do) finished as quickly as possible. And then I’m free to do whatever I want.”
I always come back to this post when I’m looking for some semblance of structure. Sarah reminds us that you can get a lot done in a focused 15-minute session. During her 90-minute workdays, she can make progress on 4-6 different projects. This is an approach I want to start taking with my business projects.
She also includes other principles that help her with this approach, like checking email twice a day, doing fewer projects, and embracing your free time.
How top creators avoid burnout — davenemetz.com
“As a creator, you’re not conditioned to replace yourself. Your audience and business revolve around you. Like me during the early days of B/R, you feel the pressure to be on all the time. Except there’s no endpoint in sight.”
Dave Nemetz wrote about tips for avoiding burnout. And I was surprised to see my response about taking a #jesspicks break earlier this summer.
Here are a few tips mentioned:
Take regular breaks (this is something I need to work on)
Re-runs (I like this idea of repurposing content when you can)
Bring in a guest host or writer (It was fun doing a #guestpicks with Kandice Cole)
#icymi
😍. Last issue’s top pick was: 15 Ideas You Can Steal to Make the Next 12 Months a Period of Remarkable Growth
#lifevibes
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