Inspiration

Every week on Friday, I share a list of the most interesting and inspiring content I’ve read lately here on my blog. You can expect thoughts on productivity, happiness, balance, spirituality, politics, and more. Subscribe here to get updates. See archives here.

I loved this list of ways to help the people and land of Australia as they fight these catastrophic wildfires.

A great podcast episode (from my business coaches!) about the decisions that helped grow their business last year.

If by some miracle you missed Google’s Year in Search for 2019, you can watch it here. I look forward to these every year. Every year I sob uncontrollably and watch it three times in a row. (I just watched it again linking to this and cried again. I don’t know how they do it.)

Reminder to myself & you: the muse whispers in quiet moments. We have to make space for the magic!

Super interesting TED talk asking the question: how much does it cost you to work at that full-time job? How much of your weekly paycheque is spent paying for things you need in order to earn that paycheque? Fascinating.

A great Twitter thread about people’s biggest insights or lessons from therapy.

Cooking is not just cooking! Loved this piece on the emotional labour of preparing food.

THIS. Not every second of our lives needs to be scheduled. We don’t need plans in order to have an excuse not to make plans. We can just…not make plans.

Newly obsessed with the Tiny Spells daily self-care newsletter! Such great, simple tips and it never leaves me feeling overwhelmed or guilty about all the things I’m not doing.

Pre-written canned emails for a variety of situations! Sometimes the hardest part of writing a tricky email is knowing how to start. These might give you an easy starting place!

Some truly great, thoughtful advice for building an audience of true fans.

From me: my word for 2020, 2019 in Review, 2019 in Reading, and my 2019 1SE video.

---

Hello hello! I’m back to weekly Inspiration, mostly because my Inspiration Google Doc was getting way too full! It needed an outlet. I hope the beginning of 2020 is treating you well. I am happy to be back to work and am enjoying being back in my daily routine. But I tell ya, taking 2 weeks off was WONDERFUL for my mental health. I had the capacity to read more challenging books! I felt like I could handle meal prep! Sure signs I’ve been too stressed lately. Excited to try to hold onto this relaxed feeling as we move through 2020. I hope you have a wonderful weekend! xo.

Every week on Friday, I share a list of the most interesting and inspiring content I’ve read lately here on my blog. You can expect thoughts on productivity, happiness, balance, spirituality, politics, and more. Subscribe here to get updates. See archives here.

Last weekend I went to see Donovan Woods play at Koerner Hall. The space was so inspiring, as was his beautiful music and understated performing style. He is humble, kind, and so, so talented. Highly recommend checking out his latest songs if you don’t already follow him!

I was also lucky enough to be invited to Céline Dion’s concert this week! She is also supremely talented, so funny and charismatic, and damn, she had the most amazing costume changes. Have been jamming to her new single ever since.

I am back into knitting again, y’all!! Currently on my needles: this lovely little hat from Purl Soho (my fave place for free patterns). I’m trying to slowly teach myself Continental style and so far it’s going pretty well.

My friends at Make Lemonade launched a special “Boss Bonus” freebie this week which is so fun! Basically, it’s how you can give yourself an end-of-year bonus if you’re your own boss. So creative, fun, and interesting.

I really liked this podcast episode about the self-help books that changed the hosts’ lives. Some I’d read but others were new and I’m excited to check them out!

I had the last session of my July group coaching program on Wednesday and was so inspired by the progress they’ve made, inside and out. So powerful! (Check them out here and here)

---

Another full week! I was teaching my fave course, Operations 101: Do More In Less Time at Make Lemonade this week (but you can still get it online here!), ended a cohort of my group program, went to a couple concerts, a baby shower, and another workshop, had client calls, welcomed a new member into The Foundery (yay!) and couldn’t sleep because of the full moon. Anyone else?! It’s been a wild ride and will continue to be until the holidays. This weekend I have a friend’s birthday dinner and am prepping for the holiday party I’m throwing for all my clients on Sunday. Should be a lot of fun! I hope you have a wonderful weekend too. xo.

PS. This is my last inspiration post until 2020! Happy holidays to you and yours. I’ll see you in January.

Every week on Friday, I share a list of the most interesting and inspiring content I’ve read lately here on my blog. You can expect thoughts on productivity, happiness, balance, spirituality, politics, and more. Subscribe here to get updates. See archives here.

The most inspiring thing I did this week was join Wandering Aimfully!! I am such a huge fan of Jason & Caroline and how they run their business, and already (just one week in!) I’ve gotten an incredible amount of value from my membership. And I’ve only scratched the surface! (I also love Jason’s reading list and plan to make one of my own)

After a tough entrepreneur week last week, this letter from Paul Jarvis gave me a lot to think about. Such a good reminder that entrepreneurial life is hard, entrepreneurs are human beings and that you should treat them with respect.

Through the WAIM Slack group, I also discovered this amazing Duolingo case study – such a fascinating look into what makes a good user experience!

Putting together this slideshow made me feel so emotional as I celebrate one year of my group strategy program!

Over on my business blog, I wrote about my favourite strategies for making big decisions.

---

We’ve had a super wintery week here in Toronto which has meant insulating my windows, drinking copious amounts of tea, going to cozy house concerts, hanging up Christmas decorations and fairy lights, and staying inside with my space heater. Oh, and I’m getting back into knitting which is lots of fun! It’s also been fun to dive into a new community of entrepreneurs (see above), play with my new phone holder (so I can do Instagram stories more easily!) and diffuse my new holiday essential oil blend. So festive around here! This weekend I’m going to a workshop, an author talk, and a baby shower. Lots of activity! I hope you have a wonderful weekend too. xo.

Every week on Friday, I share a list of the most interesting and inspiring content I’ve read lately here on my blog. You can expect thoughts on productivity, happiness, balance, spirituality, politics, and more. Subscribe here to get updates. See archives here.

I really liked this interview with one of my favourite coaches, Amy Young, about boundaries, codependency, and relationships.

A beautiful article about the mindset shift that I personally need to embrace for this (and every!) wintertime.

Related: Sarah Von Bargen’s best tips for embracing and thriving during wintertime. So much good stuff here & in the comments section.

So cool to hear the Basecamp team talk about their thought process and experimentation as they launched their new product, Basecamp Personal. I love the way they approached this shift.

I like Notion a lot, and I really enjoyed Thomas Frank’s video about how he uses it for his production schedule. I’m still trying to find my groove with it, but really liked these ideas!

I had a coworking day at East Room this week and: wow. One of the coolest spaces I’ve been to in Toronto, coworking or otherwise. I would love to spend more time there.

I also went to see a student show at the National Ballet School of Canada and it was stunning! They are so talented.

---

Whoa, it’s been…not the best week. Everything is okay, but it was busy and a little more stressful than I’m used to! So I’ve been self-medicating with romance novels and getting back into knitting in the evenings. It’s working! I’m looking forward to the weekend, which I hope will be low-key and restorative. Wish me luck! I hope you have a wonderful weekend too. xo