8th Edition: December Birthdays, Daring To Be Successful & DIY Course Creation
Thanks for being here
Hey everyone, hope you’re having a wonder-full week :)
Today’s my birthday: December 1st!
In university it came at the worst time: the start of exams… *shudder*. I could’ve easily been gypped—but thankfully my core people always found a workaround to celebrate.
Now at 32, I appreciate the “jumpstart” to reflect on the year past and the year ahead. That’s the upside to being in sync with the calendar year.
My latest “tour” around the sun was action packed. And launching a freelance career was the biggest adventure. Finding the courage to take a leap into the unknown was originally meant to be my birthday gift to myself. But after a long overdue vacation and some seaside soul-searching, courage found me in August and it was all systems go from there.
Leading up to then, there were some not-so-exciting challenges. Like enduring burnout and intense periods of isolation due to Covid measures closing businesses and imposing Province-wide curfews. But everything played a role in sharpening me mentally without hardening me emotionally. And for that, I’m grateful.
Butterflies have long been my favourite symbol because they represent transformative growth. The nature of patiently awaiting a pivotal moment to break free from darkness and constraints in the most expansive, colourful way.
So it seemed synchronistic to stumble upon this doorway-turned-mural during that pivotal time in my life:
Speaking of growth, here’s my latest addition to my art collection: an Audrey Hepburn portrait bursting with flowers and infused with gold. It’s my daily reminder to nurture my curiosities and go after my dreams because no matter how intimidating it can be—or how dumb I might look—a growth mindset is the style I want to emulate.
As I gear up for the year ahead, I’ll be making a bigger shift from “student and consumer” to “teacher and creator”.
I have a couple of exciting projects on the horizon which I’m excited to bring to life.
💌 Stay tuned!
In the meantime, here are three gems I want to share with you:
An Experience To Inspire: Dare To Ask
Last Wednesday teacher, coach and podcaster Ozlem Ozkan ran a workshop to promote her new course Dare To Ask.
I left feeling inspired and motivated to ask for more in my both my personal and professional lives. Because as Ozlem teaches us, we tend to default to waiting for offers—job, favours, you name it—when we could expedite and multiply these opportunities by asking for them outright.
Ozlem’s inspiring story includes how she went from being homeless to living in a monument, as well as how she landed podcast guests Seth Godin and Zainab Salbi (who was interviewed by Oprah in 2015).
My favourite quote from Ozlem’s bio encompasses her philosophy on creating opportunities:
I deliberately practiced the magic of asking and putting myself out there until I mastered it and it became my nature.
—Ozlem Ozkan
🔥 Click here for information on her course and register by December 3rd.
A Resource To Consider: My Course Creation Guide
Back in August, I created version 0.1 of a guide for aspiring course creators to package what they know into profitable courses. My intention was to offer free consults to anyone who wanted to test it out and use their feedback to improve it x1000—but since I didn’t have a network of suitable users, nothing much came of it.
I’m planning to reboot this project later this month. So if you want to take it for a test drive and schedule a free consult in exchange for your feedback, you know where to find me!
This was my first attempt at making a site (not to mention with videos and graphics) so needless to say it has a long way to go—and having learned a thing or two about landing pages in the months since, I realize I made a lot of rookie mistakes. Oh well.
The important thing is I’m excited to get the ball rolling again! After all, it can only get better.
✍️ Check it out and let me know if you want a consult.
A Question To Ponder: Keeping An Eye On The Prize
Since it’s my birthday and I’m in full reflective, “anything is possible” energy, I want to ignite that fire in you too.
💭 My question to you is, what’s one professional goal you’re gunning for in the year ahead—something that scares you but you’re determined to shoot your shot at?
Try writing it down somewhere visible to you—whether that’s on a giant poster board or a brightly coloured post-it. The trick is to keep your eye on the prize!
Thanks for reading my *eighth* newsletter
My goal is to prompt reflection within this vibrant community of ours, so I’d love your feedback on how I can make future editions beneficial.
Got an idea or burning question I could address? Hit reply and we’re off to the races!
Have a wonder-full week,
Taking the time to learn Excel and how to manage a budget for a learning program.
Happy Birthday!