Accept the unacceptable

I was reading an article on the futility of New Year’s Resolutions by time-management guru Oliver Burkeman, where he shared a fascinating idea: find what you are always trying to fix about yourself and your life and simply accept that maybe you will never be able to get rid of that struggle. You will have to spend the rest of your life with that part of yourself.

It is a scary idea, but also, he argues, extremely liberating, as by accepting it, we remove the mental energy we use to fight against it. This then gives us the freedom to focus on what we really want in life.

So try, at least for a while, to accept that part of yourself and imagine life without the constant struggle. I’m sure you will find the results quite comforting and liberating.

🚨😱 7 Twitter (or other social network) posts for emergencies!

Coming up with content ideas can be challenging, which is why it is great to have a cheat sheet. Fortunately, Josh Spector has shared one for us:

• Choose a well-known person or company (preferably in your industry)

• Research and find an interesting fact about them

  

• Pick a book relevant to your industry

• Find reviews/summaries and choose an interesting, actionable, or valuable idea

• Share it, crediting the author and the book

• Choose a relevant topic and Google statistics for it

• Pick one or two interesting stats.

• Bonus points if you can include some personal analysis

• Google quotes from a person or book relevant to your audience

• Share it and try to add your own perspective

  

• Pick an influencer relevant to your niche

• Share them and say why you recommend them to your audience

  

• Find a popular social post - either through your feed or the search field

• Share it and add your own thoughts - it can be a good way to bring attention to yourself

• Find a podcast on a topic relevant to your audience

• Look at the summary and choose an interesting point discussed

• Tag the podcast and share why your audience should tune in

You can read more and see the examples Josh shares here.

📚 Shelf Shocks 💥

1. Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman

We don’t have enough time to do everything - so Oliver Burkeman invites us to start by admitting defeat. In fact, he states that our pursuit of more and the desire to be super productive often make us feel worse about ourselves.

His advice is to accept our limitations, focus on what matters, and do our best to ignore everything else. The book does a fantastic job of helping you realize how misguided your productivity mindset is and help you not stress about your to-do list, but instead, become more present and fulfilled.

2. Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown

It is easy to get lost in the countless things we want to get done, and this often leaves us unfulfilled and stressed. Greg McKeown suggests a way out - the way of the minimalist.

This book will teach you how to separate the important from the trivial, why you should say NO more, and how to value small wins and the right routine. You will learn that you DO have a choice on how to spend your time and why you should start investing it in what matters most.

3. Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life by Arnold Schwarzenegger

How to lead a meaningful and successful life? Who better to ask for advice than successful bodybuilder, actor, and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger? In this book, he breaks down his personal philosophy into seven clear rules that you can apply to your life.

His advice is deliberate and honest, but Arnold remains encouraging and positive, and you can feel how much he genuinely wants to help you find your purpose, think big, and believe in yourself and your potential.

Fun Links ⏰ ❗️

1. Is your email headed to the spam folder? Find out here!

Worried that your email will be marked as spam? Test your deliverability with Glock Apps. They provide powerful email tools, which can help you achieve great results for your email campaigns. For example, they offer the adorable Gappie, which provides reports about your email domain and security.

Another great free email deliverability checker is GMass. If you’re after a more professional experience, see Everest by Validity.

You've reached the end of my newsletter. Hooray! If you’d like to see more of my work, you can GET MY BOOK Write Better: A Simple Guide to Better Business Writing or connect with me on LinkedIn for more fun and educational content.

If you have any comments or would like to share what you enjoyed the most, feel free to get in touch! See you in two weeks!