Happy Tuesday!

Today's been a crazy day with two finals ... I know, what a birthday gift 🙄. It's been a long day, so I'm just getting around to it now! But to celebrate my twentieth birthday before I return to studying (yes, I know, crazy), I'm writing my tenth and final newsletter of the year 🥳. A lot of y'all have joined me on my professional journey through my work in the nonprofit sector, but I hope y'all got to enjoy a little bit of the personal front, too! It's been a fun little exercise for the last few months, and I've loved it! I decided I'll be back in the new year (with my own style and theme) with new thoughts and musings if you'd like to join me :)

👀 My Musings

This is like a thing - where people (Ali, Cliff, etc.) share their "42 life lessons for turning 42" or "28 principles at 28." And I've decided, why not do the same? A lot of these were topics I wanted to write on (or already have that I felt like I should bring up again 😌), but only so many hours in a day 🤷🏽‍♀️. None of these concepts are new, but they make for a good reminder and have genuinely sat with me this year.

1. Be a Lifelong Learner 🤓: Innovation is always occurring, and new concepts are constantly emerging - find the themes. Once I leave college, the plan is always to take a manageable course/certification alongside my work so the learning never stops (or at least make time for reading!).
2. Read Books & Audiobooks 📕: We all have ignorance debt and need to pay it down so our knowledge can compound in the long run. Learn how to speed listen (and comprehend) to take advantage of audiobooks to the fullest :) Audiobooks are AWESOME.
3. Have a Bias Toward Action 🏃🏽‍♀️ & Trial Runs: You can't go to either extreme with learning or doing. What's the saying? Ah yes, "It's a lot easier to steer a moving ship than a stationary ship." A great way of getting over the fear of getting started is to do trial runs! You want to get consistent in the gym but don't know what works for you -- give it a 30 day trial run. I'm feeling iffy about starting a newsletter and not sure what people will like -- a 60-day trial run! It's okay if you're overthinking, as long as you're still "doing." Trial runs will help you clarify your purpose, goals, and feasibility without an expectation to do something "forever."
4. Cold Messages/DMs 🥶's: These can get you so far in life. I've probably cold-DM'd over two people a day this year. Reasonably, what's the worst they could say? "No." But, the return on a good conversation is so worth any sliver of anxiety it brings you (make it a comfort challenge 🔥!).
5. Comfort Challenges 🔥: Do little things daily that make you uncomfortable -- it'll build up your tolerance for tougher things over time. Cold DM that person, go somewhere new, or even cut out technology for a little bit. A 1% difference every day adds up.
6. Evidence-Based Study Techniques ✏️: Learn these!!! There are endless amounts of books and courses on the topic. Personally, I'm a Pomodoro Technique girlie (45 minutes on, 15 minutes off, repeat - works best for me so there isn't as high a cost for task-switching). Also, I'm a habit-stacker all the way, not even a study technique, but love it.
7. Condition Your Brain 🧠: There are some study spaces where I'll do nothing but work for a class cause I've conditioned my brain to feel weird doing anything else (sanctity of space). Another example of conditioning is if I watch an episode of Big Bang Theory, I'll automatically get sleepy. Use conditioning for your benefit (for real, I get better sleep after an episode of TBBT.)
8. Negative Feedback ❌: We all need to hear constructive criticism to learn and grow, but there's also just... stupid criticism. If you're taking the hate out of proportion remember, don't take criticism from people you wouldn't take advice from.
9. Sleep 😴: Without 7+ hours of sleep, I won't be my fullest self. Prioritize the things you need to recharge you the most. Heads up -- Essential oils and a diffuser as you get ready for bed, are the best tricks in the book for mindfulness.
10. Mental Rest 🧸: Listen to your body (when you can) to tell you if it needs some time to do nothing! Between my exams today, I curled up on the couch and watched my favorite show. Try to schedule this in a little morning and nighttime routine to set the mood for the day/your sleep.
11. Celebrate the Wins 🥳: Something I need to get better at but have been doing more of!
12. Go Ham on Your Goals 🐷: Consistency and volume of work is EVERYTHING! Many of those we deem "successful" will set their goals intentionally and shoot for the stars.
13. Friction to Getting Started 🚀 : To reach your goals, make things as frictionless as possible. Put that yoga mat out the night before if you want to create a ritual of morning yoga. And the alternative, if you want to STOP doing something, make it a pain -- log out of Instagram and have the password be super complicated to log in.
14. Feel-Good Productivity 😝: Whether you like what you do or not, you can make productivity fun; it'll create more sustainability in your work (back to Ali Abdaal). Why suffer in the short term for success in the long term if you can work to have both? I'm not saying it won't be tough, hard work, and dedication -- think journey before destination.
15. Switch the Definition of Productivity 🔄: It doesn't need to mean "create the most output." My definition is "spending your time with the most intention." Spending time with loved ones, sleeping, and attending a concert may be just as productive!
16. Take Time to Think About the "Big Questions" 🤔: The meaning of life, what success means to you, etc. This doesn't mean you need to come to an answer, but it points you in the right direction to clarify your values and priorities. If you're really stuck on making a big choice between two decisions, ask yourself "What would an 80-year-old you say 👵?"
17. Sunday Planning & Monthly Reflections 📓: This is everything!! Set your intentions and level-set for the week before you're back to actually doing. This is also the best space to practice fear-setting occasionally! This also gives you time to choose to be satisfied with all you've accomplished.
18. Seasons of Life 🌿: Change is inevitable, and sometimes you can feel the door closing, but it opens to new ones (whether you like it or not, so embrace it, haha!). We have to be open to new opportunities even if they don't take the shape or form we expect. Easier said than done, I know I know.
19. Inner-Circle 🫂: Once you find your 'girls,' you'll be set. Having a few people close to you is everything. It takes time to foster those relationships, but show 'em how much you care <3 Spend time with people who genuinely energize you and love them lots!
20. Casual Magic 🪄 : Find the magic in the mundane from every day. My favorite way of practicing gratitude is telling myself my casual magic every night as I fall asleep. I love all these other methods (journaling, affirmations, etc.), but I need to keep as little friction to it as possible! But reminding yourself of the casual magic in the everyday allows you to remember life for the little moments and be the main character of your own story!

🪄 Casual Magic

You!

🧠 Tips, Thoughts, & Productivity Advice

If you've been following my newsletter, you've probably heard me name-drop Ali Abdaal a handful of times. He graduated first at Cambridge, became a doctor, and then left to pursue his passions in teaching via his YouTube channel/online courses/podcast, and all things content creation. When I think of inspiration for how I want to live my life, he's largely that. From finding the productivity niche, to reading more often (via Audiobooks 😉), to doing test runs on projects, enjoying the journey, and even the intentionality with what I do -- he's changed the game for me.

​

First, when it comes to thinking with thoughtfulness and purpose, he does it better than I ever could. The video above is the perfect example of that. Watching someone else's authentic journey over the years showcases the reality and effort put in to build something. If you haven't already, find your inspiration/muses in the people around you as you start to determine your personal principles and values.

As Ali says, journey before destination! So find those people and things that energize you and lift you up <3

🥳 Community Event Spotlight

One of the groups I love and adore, Community Leaders Drinking Coffee, is hosting our final happy hour of the year. We're already full but if you're looking for some philanthropic fun, networking, and dinner, join us afterward. Since I'm organizing the dinner, you would be silly to miss out 😝.

Location: The Loading Dock - 1053 (1053 E Whitaker Mill Rd, Raleigh, NC)

Date: December 14th, Community Leaders Dinner & Drinks 🥂 (6:30 PM/after)

❤️ My Favorite Things this Week

Here are my top recommendations for each category this year! And for most, I couldn't choose just one, so here's two or three for each category ;)

1. 📕 Book:
   • ​Diary of a CEO: The 33 Laws of Business and Life by Steven Bartlett - The title is misleading since I saw it as one of my favorite books with some of the most tangible advice on living your life with intentionality. It was one of the first books I read during the semester and shared some great frameworks and reminders.
   • ​The Great CEO Within: The Tactical Guide to Company Building by Matt Mochary - This one is certainly more business-focused, but if you are interested in business, this is a great place to start. I just ordered the physical book to read and listen to simultaneously- it's just that information-dense.
   • ​Feel Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You by Ali Abdaal - This hasn't come out yet, but this read would be totally up my alley. It's worth a pre-order as Ali also hosts an Annual Planning Retreat for those who purchase!
2. 🎙️ Podcast:
   • ​You're Not Lazy: How To Learn Anything Faster - I swear I've listened to this episode once a week at this point. Maybe it's my favorite podcast episode of all time? I jive with the intentionality, thoughtfulness, and planning discussed in this episode.
   • ​9 Secret Habits That Made Me A Millionaire - You can take away a lot of the great tidbits from Diary of a CEO, here. The conversation and dialogue are 100% worth listening to.
3. 📱 Productivity App:
   • ​Audible - Of course, listen to your books!
   • ​Speechify - My favorite text-to-speech app that will read any text out to you.
   • ​Forest - A little Pomodoro timer that will plant a tree in your "forest" every time you complete a session. Might as well gamify work and make it fun!
4. 🚀 Nonprofit:
   • ​General Services Foundation - For my last newsletter of the year, I have to go with General Services Foundation (duh!). For those who don't know, when I was 16, I founded a nonprofit teaching high schoolers how to get into the do-good world. This was because many young people want to do good, but just don't know how. We wanted to students back that power. So, we provide funding, resources, and mentorship to give students back the power they often don't have.
   • ​Activate Good - They are an amazing Triangle-based nonprofit focused on mobilizing volunteers to make a difference in their community through people-powered projects for good. They work with individuals, families, businesses, and those in between. I have learned so much through my time on their board!
   • ​Leadership Triangle - Who doesn't like leadership development? Goes back to principle #1. Think about joining their Transforming Leaders or Regional program.

✍️Quote of the Week

“Life can be much broader, once you discover one simple fact, and that is that everything around you that you call 'life' was made up by people who were no smarter than you. And you can change it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that other people can use.” ~ Steve Jobs, Secrets of Life (my favorite quote of all time)