24th Edition: Beacons of hope, Practicing feedback & Writing on LinkedIn
Thanks for being here
Hey everyone, hope you’re having a wonder-full week
It’s crazy how someone we barely know can have such a huge impact on our lives.
How someone’s story becomes a story we tell ourselves. A go-to reference for anyone we know struggling with a similar challenge.
That was Nalie Agustin’s story for me. We’d met a few times through mutual friends but like many people—in the Montreal community and around the world—I began following her journey on social media when she was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer at age 24.
Since then, she’s been a beacon of hope.
Her story’s outlined in the article below by Conquer Magazine, titled The Power of Hope: Thriving with Metastatic Breast Cancer. But her Instagram is where you’ll truly feel her spirit, her energy, and her illuminating sense of hope. It’s where you’ll find her heartfelt words, her authenticity, and her courage to share what most of us couldn’t.
Nalie passed away yesterday.
My heart broke when I saw the photo above posted with the following message:
Nalie will continue to be an inspiration to me and many others. She will always be a beacon of hope.
📘 To support her cause, you can buy her book—The Diary of Nalie—on Amazon.
Sending all my love to her loved ones and followers around the world.
May we continue to live as authentically as she did, and help others by sharing our stories of challenge and hope. ❤️
Now, here are 3 gems I want to share with you:
An experience to inspire: The feedback gym
Feedback is fuel for learning and improvement.
Having a trusted group of peers to get it from is the ultimate unfair advantage. That’s why I’m grateful to the Write of Passage crew for hosting daily "Feedback gyms" to push our writing to its potential.
For the last two weeks, these gyms have been my biggest source of Monday motivation—helping me go from creatively blocked to a state a flow.
🏋️♀️ Challenge: Think about how you could create a routine practice for the type of feedback you need. You can get started with one other person and build from there.
A resource to consider: LinkedIn’s article feature
A good course marketing funnel means being top of mind within your network.
The best way to stay top of mind? Share updates on your work, and your broader journey.
If you’re looking for ways to do this, someone recently shared with me how to “write articles” on LinkedIn. Here’s a screenshot of this feature (see the option to “write article” in the bottom right corner).
What I love about this feature is it allows you to embed images in your text—a huge advantage when you’re explaining a process or sharing examples.
I took a stab at posting my first article last night. It’s called 3 tips to go from "aspiring writer" to "writer"—you can read it here.
📈 Challenge: Consider how publishing more often could support your marketing funnel. If you post on LinkedIn, consider the article feature as a resource.
A question to ponder: Finding courage
In celebration of Nalie Agustin’s life, spirit, and courage, I want us to be inspired to chase our dreams.
💭 Question: What’s the next thing you’ll do that scares you but that you know will enrich your life?
A gesture to consider: Donating to Ukrainian relief efforts
As we continue to support Ukrainians, here are some causes you can donate to (though I recommend doing your own research):
🏥 Ukrainian Red Cross (You can become a monthly donor like I have)
May we continue to support Ukrainians until they’re peacefully home. 💙💛
Thanks for reading my 24th newsletter
We’re now 112 people within this vibrant community. And my goal is to nurture the art of reflection amongst us.
I’d love your feedback on how I can make future editions beneficial. So if you have an idea or burning question I could address, hit reply and we’re off.
Have a wonder-full week,