Hey all,
Happy Sunday from NYC.
I’ve spent a lot of time on my mental fitness over the past 1.5 years. Mental fitness for me is training my mind: being able to process things in the best possible state of mind, without being overly emotional.
I wouldn’t be able to operate Knight Vision without this work.
Why? It’s easy for me to fall into work holes, to obsess over building, re-building, starting again, ruminating on how a product is doing, making others happy, and continuing to be better every single day.
Don’t get me wrong, I still do this.
Even the other day, my wonderful boyfriend looked at me and told me he can tell when my mind wanders to a work thought.
Sometimes it’s to self-soothe about a problem, or entertain myself about something interesting, or even obsess about an action if it’s correct or not.
Especially in the startup world, where people attach numbers like “amount raised”, “valuation”, “ARR”, “big logos” to their work.
Side thought: Are big logos on your website in the startup world the equivalent of carrying a designer bag?
It’s easy to compare your journey to others, but everyone’s is different. And, our roads sometimes cross at interesting intersections of significant beauty.
If you take away anything from today’s newsletter, I want you to spend the next 5 minutes using this space as a place to stop and enjoy the work you do.
If the first thought that comes to your mind is “f-off, who actually enjoys work, Julia?”, I implore you to open your mind to the strategies I’m going to lay out.
Here are the things I do that totally maximize my enjoyment of work.
Today’s newsletter will cover:
The bare minimum it takes to actually like your job
Mindfulness habits that keep me sane during the chaos
What I do outside of work so I have something to come back to
I know, I know. A bit of a different newsletter from my typical marketing builds. If you want something more tactical, go read:
Let’s get into it.
The Bare Minimum:
Make sure you’re working in an industry that you actually like: You can train yourself to do this; it means you need to expand your knowledge outside the small slice of your company
Be excited about the industry at large: read the news (no, this doesn’t mean X). I read Bloomberg and scroll the different sections that are most applicable to work.
When you do work, if you WFH: leave your apartment sometimes. It’s so easy to wake up, roll out of bed, and start working immediately. This often leads to my most unhappy days.
Go to events and chill with people in real life: Fun founders are throwing events all the time at their offices now; VCs throw events; there are actual events organized by friends of mine like the Fibe team.
Be honest with your work friends about what you’re feeling: Gloating about your success is a waste of time. My work friends and I always talk about the challenges we are facing before we ever talk wins. This is because a win usually leads to growth, which leads to another challenge.
Make work friends that aren’t coworkers: these are people you have honest convos with about your experiences and get good advice from
Bonus tip - don’t try to compete with these people. I think it’s actually way more important to have good friendships w them vs. ones rooted in envy. It’s hard not to be jealous when you see other people succeed, but you have so much more to gain from friendship.
Mindfulness:
Make time to work out: I try to exercise 4x a week, whether it’s reformer pilates, The Fort strength training, or doing a Pilates by Izzy video (she has 2.4M subscribers for a reason!!!)
Take time for stillness and peace: WHY did no one pressure me into getting the Calm app before?! It’s so good.
Chill with people who work in a totally different field than you: LIFE IS BROAD. This will make your world expand, and your problems be less small.
Go to sleep early: 9:30P is my fav time to be in bed. I don’t usually hit this haha, but its fun to have a goal.
Sleep with phone outside of room: I’m so bad at doing this too, but it always makes me feel better
Blackout eye mask changed my life ($17 on Amazon, my fav one)
Do not check Slack when you first wake up (I know, this is hard)
Dress fabulously 1/3rd of the week. The rest wear comfy clothes.
Outside of Work:
Travel: Open your mind to the world. My favorite place I’ve ever visited was Vietnam. The Pu Long Rainforest + Hanoi were top cities.
Dogs, horses, animals!! I recently put a deposit down on a micro bernedoodle. More to come soon on my future child.
Listen to short stories: I love Greek mythology and listen to episodes on Spotify and Calm
Cupid and Psyche - listen to this amazing story (free 30 day trial with that link, usually 7 days)
Self-care is so important. When you look good, you feel good. When you feel good, you enjoy life more.
$45 blowout on Upper East Side + amazing haircuts!
Amazing sound baths in NYC for deep thought and peace
Lymphatic drainage massages are my favorite. I went through a phase where I went weekly, but am now just so busy. I go once a month or so.
Best meditation I’ve done recently. My friend Georgina sent it to me. You meet your 55-year-old self…lowkey trippy but amazing. It’s free on YouTube.
Plan things you’re excited about for the future: Concerts, trips, dinners.
If a restaurant can’t seat you when you walk in without a reservation, make a reservation there for a future date. I love doing this and then, a few weeks later, get to dine at a great place. It feels like no time passes.
Well, How’d I Do?
I want you to enjoy your life. That means you must enjoy your work.
Top builders have all found ways to like the ride.
This week, pick one thing off this list and try it.
I’m so grateful you spend part of your Sunday with me. I hope you have an incredible and productive week ahead.
Julia
