27th Edition: Inspired learning, Building goal paths & Asking questions that elicit big answers
Thanks for being here
Hey everyone, hope you’re having a wonder-full week
I’m still reflecting on my whirlwind visit to San Diego.
I was there for a summit on the future of work and education, and someone said to me on arrival:
“I don’t go to any of the talks. I do 1:1 meetings and social events. Then I watch the recordings.”
Now I get why. The talks were interesting—but there’s not much incentive to see them live given:
Opportunities to ask questions were minimal. You could’ve just as easily submitted a question online or asked someone directly on Twitter or LinkedIn.
The turnover between talks was 10-minutes. So it was hard to chat with the speakers unless you missed the next panel.
I still had great takeaways from each. Especially when panelists had differing opinions, given their debates made me reflect on where I stand.
But the best part was catching up with people outside—in the beautiful California weather—for dinners, lunches, and rooftop happy hours. Experiencing life as normal post COVID-measures felt really good.
💌 My trip inspired me to organize a creator meet up in Montreal. Stay tuned for details—and if you’re in Montreal, let me know.
Now, here are 3 gems I want to share with you:
An experience to inspire: Write of Passage finale
Write of Passage—the online writing course I mentored over the past 5 weeks—ended last week with as much gusto as it started.
The experience was ultra smooth—but I know as a Learning Designer how much WORK goes into guiding 300+ people through this rigorous journey.
That’s why I’m deeply grateful to this team I got to be part of:
As a mentor, I had the opportunity to learn from:
the Write of Passage team
other mentors & stewards
the students
I’m thankful to everyone for their patience, empathy, and joyfulness. And I’m excited to see where their writing journeys take them.
✍️ If you’re looking to improve your writing amongst community, join the mailing list to be notified about the October cohort of Write of Passage.
A resource to consider: Powerful questions
Write of Passage ended the same day the summit did.
Ironically, the online send off inspired me more than the in-person ones I attended at the summit.
Upon reflection, it all came down to a question—followed by a pause.
The course instructors wrapped up our last session with success stories of past students who’ve gone on to start companies, become industry leaders, build wealth—you name it. They reiterated that the consistency of writing beyond the course transformed these graduates’ personal and professional landscapes. Then they asked us:
“Are you next?! In cohort 12 (~2 years from now), how will we mention your name?”
They paused for a few moments to let us reflect. And that space they created, pushed me to dig deep about my goals. A week later, I’m still reflecting—in the best possible way.
🤔 Challenge: Think about a “big idea” you want to leave students with and craft a question around it to prompt reflection.
A question to ponder: Mentions a year from now
The key to achieving goals is determining what the end state looks like and working backwards to break the path up into steps.
I encourage you to think about your goals for the year ahead, so can can ensure you’re on the path to achieving them.
💭 Start by asking yourself this question: A year from now, how do I want people to mention my name?
A gesture to consider: Donating to Ukrainians
Here are some causes you can support (though I recommend doing your own research):
May we continue to support Ukrainians until they’re peacefully home. 💙💛
Thanks for reading my 27th newsletter
We’re now 121 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,