Hi Friends-
This newsletter arrives laden with goodies to share today. And also a slightly new format, which includes this intro and updates section, followed by a reflective essay, then some nourishing linky bits, and finally, a roundup of my current offerings (including the return of my "Finding Your Voice" course!).
If you're a Hurry Slowly fan, you'll be pleased to hear that the podcast is finally back in action! I'll be adopting a more relaxed, experimental format this season, which is hopefully going to allow me to release episodes more frequently and have more fun doing it.
Because, guess what?! Not making things hard is my new thing! And tbh, it's feeling kind of revolutionary.
Speaking of, in the first episode of the new season, I reflect on the process of unwinding from the limiting beliefs that we hold that create so much hardship. Asking: How can we take our expectations of struggle, turn them inside out, and transform them into an opportunity to feel even more free?
βListen to: "Things don't have to be so hard"β
(This episode pairs well with the essay about "worry, my least favorite condiment" that you'll find below. : )
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I'm also thrilled to share that my online course RESET, a cosmic tune-up for your workday, is now open to new students for the first time since 2022!
I'm relaunching the course in a new, self-guided format that allows folks to take it anytime they want and go at their own pace.
If you're not already familiar, RESET is a 4-week course about how to move from a frantic, speed-obsessed way of working into a new "heart-centered approach to productivity" that feels nurturing, energizing, and inspiring.
RESET shows you how to build intention and celebration into your productivity system, how to align your energy and your attention with the natural rhythms of your body, how to set boundaries and say NO, and how to open up to more creativity as part of your daily workflow.
To celebrate the relaunch of RESET, I'm offering a special, limited-time $60 discount through the end of October. The full price of the course is $379, and with the discount it comes down to $319.
If you would like to get the discount, or you just want to learn more about the course and see if it's the right fit for you, I created a neat little mini-podcast and newsletter series that walks you through: why we fall into burnout, what "productivity shame" is, and how RESET can help transform the way you work.
βClick here to opt into the RESET mini-podcast & newsletter series & save $60 on registration ββ
RESET is one of my favorite things I've ever created, and I poured 10 years of research into it. If you're in need of a tender productivity tune-up, I would love to have you join! : )
Much love,
Jocelyn
Why "worry" is my least favorite condiment
One of my favorite icebreaker questions is: If you could only use three condiments for the rest of your life, what three condiments would you choose?
This question floated back into my mind this morning because I was thinking about condiments β but in a moreβ¦ existential way.
Early on in my life, I received quite a bit of conditioning that worrying was valuable and productive work. That if you were worrying about something, you were doing something. That worrying was an integral and essential part of dealing with life's challenges. I felt like: If you weren't worrying, were you really acknowledging the problem? Were you really trying to solve it?
A few weeks ago, in the midst of some deep healing work, I came into a new perspective on this conditioning. I had this vision of worry as a horrible condiment that I was constantly reaching for, and applying, to the meal of my life. I pictured that sad moment where you pick up the salt shaker to sprinkle a little flavor on your food, and the cap falls off and a huge pile of salt pours out, ruining your meal.
I could suddenly see that worry was this horrible flavor that I was willingly adding to the meal of my life β and that it was completely unnecessary. That worry was simply a condiment that I could choose to add, or not add, to any situation. That it didn't actually serve any real function or offer any nutritive value whatsoever.
More recently, this condiment metaphor came back to me as I was dealing with a money-related challenge, and I noticed myself feeling that it was really important and valuable to worry about it. My unconscious thought process was something like: This is a problem that impacts your financial security. In order to keep yourself safe and secure, you need to be worrying about it.
But in that moment, I was able to catch myself and take a step back and see that the worrying was serving no real function with regard to solving the problem. That what would actually solve the problem was to simply acknowledge it, seek to understand it, and then take some actions to ameliorate the situation.
I realized that worrying doesn't do anything. That its only function is to make me feel more miserable and unhappy as I move through my life and deal with the problems and challenges that will inevitably arise. I had mistaken worry for action. When, in fact, worrying is almost always a way to postpone taking action.
Now I see that the acknowledgement, the understanding, and the action is all that matters. You can be present and playful and joyous in the process of solving the problems that come your way, or you can be worried and anxious and miserable. The outcome is going to be whatever the outcome is going to be. The question is: How do you want to feel in the process?
Life is serving you this meal β and you get to decide how it's going to taste. Do you want to sprinkle it with some joy or lightness, or maybe even dark humor? Or do you want to dump a dry, salty, desert of despair on top of it?
They may or may not affect the outcome, but the "energetic condiments" that you bring to the table completely change the process. And that is all life is: process.
I'm still deepening into this awareness, but it feels liberating to begin to see the sheer superfluousness of my life-long predilection for worry. To see that it really serves no function, that it has absolutely no nutritive value, and that I can make a different choice.
That I can choose to move through life's challenges with joy and lightness and faith, rather than imagining that everything has to be so fraught and difficult and hard.
Thinking about all of this has added a new, existential flavor to that icebreaker question: What are the three condiments you can't live without?
If you'd asked me a month ago, I would have said: Bragg's vinaigrette, Cholula hot sauce (garlic, obvs), and spicy mustard.
Today, I say: Joy, Lightness, and Faith.
xo
LINK ABOUT IT
βHow Lauren Groff, one of our "finest living writers" does her work. I adored Lauren Groff's recent novel The Matrix, which is somehow a gripping page-turner about a 12th century nunnery, magic, visions, and faith. (Also queer love!) This piece about her creative process in the NYT is wild: "When Groff starts something new, she writes it out longhand in large spiral notebooks. After she completes a first draft, she puts it in a bankers box β and never reads it again. Then she'll start the book over, still in longhand, working from memory. The idea is that this way, only the best, most vital bits survive." π€―
β"The debt I will carry with me forever, like a shadow that informs all of my decisions." A meditation on the American Dream, the false promise of meritocracy, and class: "Like my grandfather, I have 'made it' without 'making it.' I have completed my graduate studies in writing at an Ivy League. I was awarded many scholarships. I was given fellowships. I went to school on a Pell grant and at 25 I began to teach undergraduate classes at Columbia. At 27, I became a New York Times-bestselling editor at a big five publisher, which is almost unheard of. At 28, I have a novel coming out that people are 'anticipating.' I have been broke through it all."
βBoundaries, burnout, and the Goop-ification of self-care. Tressie McMillan Cottom talks to Dr. Pooja Lakshmin about the systemic failures at the root of burnout and why real self-care requires... setting boundaries! This is a conversation that we all need.
βThe body electric. A fascinating new 6-part series by TED radio and Manoush Zomorodi about the relationship between technology and our bodies. Lots of great insights about why you should get up from your computer every 25 minutes and move your body, how the laptop is the least ergonomic thing ever created, and more!
AI roundup: Very wild and incredible, pretty disturbing, oh you mean there are things they aren't telling us? (start at minute 36).
βA daily cloud. This is sweet if you need a pick-me-up.
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An apology: In the last issue of this newsletter, I mistakenly referred to writer & poet Andrea Gibson with the wrong pronouns. They use they/them pronouns. If you missed it last time, this interview with them is amazing.
Offerings: How you can work with me β β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β β1-1 energy session bookings are now open. I recently opened my books for Oct and Nov energy sessions via the Light Heart Project, and I have a few spots left. I particularly like to work with folks at key inflection points: stepping into a new creative incarnations, new identities, new careers. You can learn more about what working with me looks like here. Note that I'm currently working exclusively with folks who have already participated in one of my online courses or energy offerings, such as RESET, Hi-Fi, Radiate, Tender Discipline, Channel, or Leaning into Self Trust. β Finding Your Voice: Attuning to your sacred self-expression is coming soon!! You may recall that I was planning to lead a course on "finding your voice" last spring but had to cancel due to a health situation with my co-teacher. Well, good news: FYV is coming back... and soon! This time I'll be leading the course solo as we go on a deep journey into creating a new relationship to self-expression that really allows your gifts to flow freely. The course will run for four weeks from mid-November to mid-December, with registration opening in early Nov. Stay tuned for details in the next newsletter!! β βThe recording of Higher Love: Casting Spells of Worthiness is now available. Higher Love is a new event series about opening a conversation with your highest self. Each gathering combines a talk from yours truly, a guided energy meditation, and a brief reflection and integration period. At the first event on August 27th, I talked about the power of language and casting spells of worthiness. I've had a few requests to buy the recording, so I just made it available. Learn more about "casting spells of worthiness" and purchase the recording here.β β βRESET, a cosmic tune-up for your workday, is now open for registration! As mentioned above, RESET, my 4-week course about moving into a heart-centered approach to productivity, is now open to new students on an ongoing basis. To celebrate its relaunch, I'm running a $60 off special through the end of October. To get the discount, click here to opt into a wee email series about breaking free from productivity shame and how RESET can help. β β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ β¨ |
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SHOUT-OUTS:β
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βThe illustrations are from: Gary Tsang, who is based in Hangzhou, China.
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βLink ideas from: Andrew Glei, Ann Friedman, Sebene Selassie, and Dense Discovery.
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βYou can support me & my work by: Participating in one of the many offerings listed above! : )
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Website: jkg.coβ
βTwitter: @jkgleiβ
Copyright Β© 2023 Hurry Slowly LLC, All rights reserved.
Mailing Address:
βPO Box 832, Woodstock, NY 12498
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