🦁  Stefi’s Shorts #9 - the person you are

March 15, 2024 • 3 min read

Dear friends,

This week, while sorting through some old notes, I stumbled upon a quote from Grey’s Anatomy that I want to share with you all:

On average, our hearts beat 70 times per minute. In the same 60-second period, we blink between 10 and 15 times, swallow once, and take up to 20 breaths. Our hearts beat. Our lungs breathe. Our bodies keep us alive. And most of us barely notice. We just take it all for granted. So much of the world operates without us ever thinking about it. We expect it to work out in our favor. And most of the time it does. We worry about the future and think about the past. And we so often miss what’s right in front of us. We take what’s good and easy and working for granted. Until it’s no longer good and easy and working for us. It’s normal, but we can do better because there are tiny, beautiful gifts we’re given every day. And it’s up to us to appreciate them to the fullest while we can. — Meredith Grey

This quote resonated with me and serves as a reminder of how fragile and unpredictable life is. Life can change in an instant. Let’s focus on what’s right in front of us and try to worry less about the past and future.

3 Ideas That Made Me Think This Week

3 Ideas That Made Me Think This Week

• The Lifeguard Hack an idea from Seth Godin that aims as a reminder that the end goal usually with things like writing an article, giving a talk etc. is to help others. If you keep that in mind it can be easier to silence the voices of doubt that are holding you back from sharing your insights.

I believe this mindset shift could help me push through procrastination as well as other excuses I make to not write an article or start a project. We might be surprised at how many people you can help along the way by sharing your work/ideas/learnings.

This week I’m trying to finish up an article about if it’s worth doing a tech bootcamp. I wanted to drop it but I remember that I was once in a position not knowing what to do and thinking it might serve others is my motivation to finish and publish it.

• The creation process fluctuates between divergence (capturing and organizing ideas, notes, etc.) and convergence (distill, express).

In divergence mode, you want to open up your horizons and gather information on a topic while in convergence mode you have all the information you need and you’re putting it together to share it. Deciding in which mode you want to work when sitting down can be such a helpful decision as doing both at the same time is really challenging.

Now when I am sitting down to write an article I make a conscious decision about what the session will be. Am I going to get the notes sorted and looks for some extra resources or will I just work on getting it done? - ideas from the Building a Second Brain book.

• Whatever the work is, do it well—not for the boss but for yourself. - An old [article](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/06/05/toni-morrison-the-work-you-do-the-person-you-are) I read that stayed with me long after and reminds me of my grandpa’s work ethic.

There were moments at work when maybe I am annoyed or I don’t feel I am valued enough but independent from that I always reminded myself of this line. I want to do excellent work for myself, for the person I am, and for the standards I have. I want to go the extra mile and be able to help colleagues and be a team player. I want to put out great work for the people that will see and use my work. I get satisfaction from this and I also get to grow. It’s not always easy but having such reminder keeps me going on days I’m less energized.

Here are the 4 ideas from that article:

1. Whatever the work is, do it well—not for the boss but for yourself.

2. You make the job; it doesn’t make you.

3. Your real life is with us, your family.

4. You are not the work you do; you are the person you are.

YouTube Video or Podcast of the week

A powerful video I saw a while ago that I want to share with you today ✨

Lifestyle

Not sure if it’s because I’m getting older, or because I’ve been moving less lately, but my back mobility has drastically decreased. So, I decided to take on one of Oleksiy Kononov’s challenges. I did one in the past and felt way better. I can do it at home in the morning in 30-40 minutes. Here is one of the rest day routines that I really enjoy doing.

Quote of the Week

“Hard decisions are only hard when you’re in the process of making them.” – Debbie Millman

Stefi

Read More:

• ← 🦎 Stefi’s Shorts #8 - find your home
• 🧑‍💻 Navigating Career Transitions: Is a Bootcamp Right for Me? →