“We are born with only one obligation – to be completely who we are.”
– Mark Nepo
Born With One Obligation
To Listen
“To listen is to lean in, softly, with a willingness to be changed by what we hear.”
– Mark Nepo
Zen Garden
This is incredibly calming to watch.
Modern Bird Feeder
I am in love with this modern, sculptural bird feeder! (I know, I know, it’s price-y!)
Shared Earth
Never not dreaming of a simpler life.
(via)
Photography by Raf Maes
What stunning images. I would hang a large print in my home, for sure! Consider me a fan, Raf Maes.
Never Too Small
What a beautiful small space!
(via)
Hand-Free Leash
My kids and I are thinking of adopting an adult or senior dog. (Squeal!) As I have been talking about it with friends, the internet is of course promptly serving me up ads for dog related products. Here’s one that made me look: A hands-free leash. I am wondering if dog-owners are shaking their heads at this or if this is actually useful.
Fewer Regrets
“For me, success is not a public thing. It’s a private thing. It’s when you have fewer and fewer regrets.”
– Toni Morrison
(via Kai)
Pleated Pitcher
This pitcher makes my heart sing.
XOX Toilet Paper Holder Shelf
Alright, this is clever. It made me chuckle.
Storm
“Every storm runs out of rain.”
– Maya Angelou
Link Pack
Tenderly by Roland Tempelaar
– How Should We Meet? And Who Decides? by Priya Parker
– This is so real and shows how broken most of the web is today: This is how we experience the internet today.
– I like the look of this refillable mouthwash container.
– These ceramic heads make me smile.
– Whoa, design-y toilets from France.
– Random and weirdly delightful: Teaching cats to ring a bell
– Parents Are Not Okay. We’re not even at a breaking point anymore. We’re broken. By Dan Sinker
– Nature Track is a podcast that opens a window on the beautiful sounds of the Australian wilderness. These long, uninterrupted soundscapes are the perfect relaxing soundtrack for your work, exercise, meditation or sleep.
– You’re Still Exhausted, by Anne Helen Petersen (via)
– A few years back, Lara Hogan wrote the book Demystifying Public Speaking. Now she made it available online, for free. (Via Kai)
– Yes to these ultra-absorbent, washable cloths. They are free of all plastics, petrochemicals.
– Questions Jason Fried asks when checking references. (The question I always ask is “Would you hire this person again?”)
– Hair-ties that look like bracelets. Smart.
– Ikea is launching a furniture buyback program
– Stoop concerts. I love you Brooklyn.
– The Humane Home, a sustainable living guide. Via Kai Brach’s remarkable Newsletter Dense Discovery.
– Come work with me! CreativeMornings is hiring a Support Coordinator. You will make friends around the world. Seriously.
– Pretending is fun. Put some Tattly on you.
_ A big thank you to Studio for sponsoring my blog this week. Studio helps Freelancers by providing support, structure, and accountability in its curated community of creatives.(Whispers: I wish Studio would have been around when I was a freelancer, many moons ago.)
Completely Undone
“For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.”
— Cynthia Occelli
Finding Your Hammer
Adam Robinson shares some wonderful nuggets of wisdom in this DO Lectures talk from 2017. My favorite: “In any interaction, create fun and delight for the other person with enthusiasm!” And the notion of ‘rehearsing your best self’ every day.
When A Lot of Things Start Going Wrong All at Once
“When a lot of things start going wrong all at once, it is to protect something big and lovely that is trying to get itself born—and that this something needs for you to be distracted so that it can be born as perfectly as possible.”
– Anne Lamott
♥ / Studio Gives Creative Freelancers a “Team”
A big thank you to Studio for sponsoring my blog this week. (Whispers: I wish Studio would have been around when I was a freelancer, many moons ago.)
Let’s be honest. Freelancing is great, but it can be lonely and hard. Studio helps by providing support, structure, and accountability in its curated community of creative freelancers.
Studio has a number of community based programs, including an 8-week workshop that starts on September 7th.
Check out Studio if you’re craving more community and structure to grow your creative business.
Something & Nothing Seltzers
I arrived back in Brooklyn after two weeks in Switzerland and my friend Yvonne filled my fridge with Something & Nothing Seltzers as a welcome home present. The branding, the packaging and even the taste have me in a tizzy! A good tizzy! (I recently hit my 6 month mark of not drinking alcohol and fun Seltzers like these give me life!)
The Best Cover Letter Ever Written
Benedict Cumberbatch Reads “the Best Cover Letter Ever Written”. Glorious.
Every Sport a Bowling Ball
This is beautifully absurd.
Prismatic Portraits by Lui Ferreyra
Loving these portraits by Denver-based artist Lui Ferreyra.
Soften
“The habitual tendency when things get tough is that we protect ourselves, we get hard, we get rigid. But…that’s the time to soften and see how we might play or dance with the situation.”
– Jeff Bridges