That statement, or idea, might seem too simple on paper, but give me a few minutes to explain what I mean. Then you can go ahead and poo-poo it if it still doesn’t fit. Think of that feeling when you’re stuck. Like you’re not making progress, not even a little bit. Or worse, you feel completely out of control. Your mind starts drifting into places it has no business being, and before you know it, you’ve become consumed by someone else’s foolishness. OK, I’ll give you an example of my own. I planned to edit a key chapter. Or maybe it was a blog post, or a note, even. I’d…
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When You’re No Longer Building Your Life on Fear
And making space for possibility. Have you ever noticed how differently we approach life when we’re excited about something versus when we’re scared shitless of it? Somewhere along the way, a lot of us—myself absolutely included—become frickin’ expert-level warriors when it comes to protecting ourselves in any and every situation, and for good cause, let me add. Looking back, it’s hardly an overly suspicious or shocking revelation that so many of us have built parts of our lives around fear. It’s seen as practical and responsible. I know I saw it as telling myself that I was making smart choices and, again to be fair, nine times out of ten,…
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What If You Actually Read Life’s Terms and Conditions?
Would You Still Sign Today? You know those terms and conditions that come with a new phone, laptop, tech, or shiny piece of equipment you want so bad? The ones that are about 50,000 pages long, damn near blurry, so that nobody actually or fully reads them? The first few scrolls of information start off pretty straightforward, clear, and engaging and so most of the time, we just continue the scroll to the bottom and willingly click “Accept.” Not because we agree wholeheartedly with everything or that we’re so comfortable with every condition. But because if we want the thing, then that’s the only option. And in thinking about it,…
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Big Age, Bigger Growth | Episode 02: Center Yourself Like a Man
Quick Post, Real Reminder And no, this isn’t about bashing the boys, but bolstering us babes, because having confidence is one thing, but centering yourself is a world unto its own. Shuffling through many a saved and poignant note, this one fell through the cracks and deserves all the oxygen. The example: When women (us babes) look at a job posting, we tend to over study the requirements like we’re preparing for the final exam of our life. Somehow some way, we think we need to be able to do 80%, 90%, maybe even 100% of the job before we feel qualified… ready enough to apply. Meanwhile, on the XY…
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How To Beat the “Later” Trap (It’s Lying to You)
Because when is later? Why later? And what has later actually done for you lately? Stop playing, I’m GenX, you know I had to do it! We’re locked in on our second chapter now, and I’ve decided this one is going to be A Best. Not The Best, because there were beautiful moments in the others too. Plenty of rough ones I could’ve skipped, no doubt, but still some good’uns. But this is the chapter we’re in now, it’s all ours, so what exactly are we still waiting for? More importantly, what are we waiting on? Yeah… What Are We Waiting On? Take finances off the table just for a…
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One Year of Writing: The Truth About My Good Struggle
Happy Birthday to SincerelyIreneB… yeah… me! So here we are. I made it! Twelve months of writing, blogging, posting. And I’m beyond excited about it! One whole year since I showed up to my own party, nervous but absolutely refusing to wait for the ‘Productivity Fairy’ to convince me that now was the right time to begin. One year since I typed out that first post, hit publish before I could talk myself out of it, and officially committed to Starting Sideways. So… how’d that go? Well, grab something and lemme tell ya. The Checklist, Revisited If you read my very first post, you know I showed up with a…
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What Did You Love Before the Internet Ate Your Brain?
We Used to Climb Trees. Now We Swipe Reels. For those of you working a 9-to-5 to maintain access to running water and the occasional bowl of gruel, do you also have a hobby or three? For fun, mental health, and prison-avoidance. And actually, this can also apply to you newly retired folks, the ‘I have more money than God’ peeps, or the ‘Work? What’s work?’ collective. #YaLuckyBastards. So… What Do You Actually Do for Fun? Another of the things I’ve realized as I keep getting older is that we really need something else to look forward to outside of work, and on a consistent basis. And if you are indeed…
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When “Don’t Worry, Be Happy!” Isn’t Remotely Helpful
Turning “Yeah, But…” Into Something Useful And hold it right there, no, I’m not knocking Bobby McFerrin’s fun-loving, ’80s hit… just the overly simplistic sentiment in those four words. You know the ones with the same vibe as those other well-meaning, Pinterest-pretty quotes that show up while you’re doom-scrolling at 12:49am on a workday. Do you sometimes pause, maybe even smile a little… and then immediately dismiss them?Like, yeah, right. Not for me. Too many of them come off as vacant, sounding lofty, and even aggressively positive. Now, I’m generally a positive person, but too many of them feel like they don’t quite fit me or where I am right…
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Are You Really Learning from the “Last Time”?
The very last time. Because it’s been 50–11 times now, so really, really… this is the last time. I love not only thinking about growth, but also actually growing. It’s not, nor will it ever be a perfectly straight path, but in my Big Age, the path is less curvy, less wobbly, and less riddled with self-inflicted obstacles. Paid to Learn, Paid to Leave “Lessons learned” at work is one thing. There’s more clarity there. You’ll do better with the time, budget, scope creep foolishness, or switch out the drama queen who contributed to the downfall. Simple. And believe me, I know there are those projects that will absolutely test…
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What Do You Love About the Way You
LookThink?I’ve been watching my brain lately… OK, wait… wait… hear me out. I haven’t completely lost it. I know you can’t literally watch a brain like how I watched—well, serial-inhaled—season 4 of Bridgerton, but honestly, I’m paying a heck of a lot more attention to my thoughts, and the way they feed into my reactions. And I’m loving it more and more. Too often before, my brain felt like a noisy, messy roommate that I couldn’t escape while we both worked from home… at the same company… on the same project. Now, in Big Age (and with nothing perfect, obviously), my brain is more like an enemies-to-lovers rom-com. Our beef has lessened, we…
