Last weekend I went to a friends’ house in North Carolina, where five of us holed up on her 14 acres and talked shop. Instead of wishing we had more time to chat about our work in between conference sessions or in a crowded ballroom with tons of background noise, we just did our own thing.
We were intentional: we round-tabled with questions to help think through the why of our work, we thought of our three most logical projects to work on this year (along with one to drop), and we each shared our genius ideas (and our past idiot moves).
Photo by Emily Freeman
I highly, highly recommend doing this in your line of work, if you haven’t yet. Real conversation, no brand sponsorships, whatever we want for dinner, working in yoga pants: all ingredients for a fantastic work weekend, in my opinion.
This weekend’s links come from the women who inspired me last weekend.
• An introvert’s guide to having people over :: Our host shared her thoughts on introvert hospitality, and it was magical. “Every time I’m with people it starts with me sweating and wishing I wasn’t there, wishing I could just turn into a cat and lay on the floor. And most times end with me being really happy I pushed through, because people can be the worst, but they can also be the very best!” via The Nester
• A playlist for the nervous traveler :: Her sister, Emily, flies a lot for work, but she doesn’t love it. “It was in this moment that I realized I needed to be more prepared next time. In moments of potential panic, I have very specific requirements for the kind of music that is allowed to sing to me in my ears.” Good choices in her list. via Emily Freeman
• 11 books that are better in the spring :: Anne’s taste has never steered me wrong. “I had in mind themes that coincide with earth’s bursting to life after a long, cold winter: books about renewal and rebirth, about second chances and making things new.” Good choices here, too. via Modern Mrs. Darcy
• Learning how to be kind to myself :: Emily Lex has a heart of gold, and I love her thoughts on treating herself like she would a good friend. “I actually say these rude things to myself! Things I would never say to a friend and words I don’t even believe to be true.” via Jones Design Company
• A year ago, here on AoS—Producing, consuming, and why both matter :: “In fact, I’d argue that whatever I produce is typically better when I sprinkle a bit of good-for-me consuming on top. There’s evidence to back up our innate need for downtime—which means there’s zero need to feel guilty about enjoying it.”
A new look for our email!
If you subscribe to AoS via email, you got an email from us this weekend….and it looks a little different. We’ve decided to tidy up your inbox, so starting this week, instead of an email every time there’s a new post, we’ll send you one short, friendly email per week with a summary of new posts and podcast episodes. (They’ll look just like the email below.) Simple, no?
If you’d like to get this short-n-sweet digest, sign up below and you’ll get a summary of the week, straight in your inbox.
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Have a great weekend, friends!
“That is one good thing about this world…. there are always sure to be more springs.” -Anne Shirley, Anne of Green Gables
(Cuppa reads is a post from The Art of Simple.)