Notes from the Community, Volume 11
More art, more comments, more links. Settle in and find a few things you'll like. 🛋️
Friends and readers, thanks for being out there! I’m so glad to be writing this newsletter and interacting with lots of people in the community. Here’s our 11th roundup of community notes, featuring reader comments, links, and more.
Popular Comments 📝
Most posts have the option to comment—and it’s so fun to see readers jumping in!
In this section I’ll highlight a few recent comments that were upvoted the most by the community. (These are edited lightly for brevity, without changing the tone. Read the full comments and many more on each post’s page.)
From
, on the post The 15-Minute, Alternative Autobiography'By reconnecting with these emotional milestones, you may find yourself more grounded in the present...'
Yeah, that's true. The act of remembering such impactful emotional moments in our lives naturally directs our thought and focus to the present moment.
It's a good practice for us to develop more present-mindedness.
From
, on the post Adventure Is Worthwhile In Itself,People say you regret more the things you didn’t do. I believe it’s because we think things would have been better if we made a different choice. There is no way to truly know what the outcome would’ve been in your life. So why have those regrets? Even if you bought Apple stock or whatever you may have other things happen (related to buying this stock that brought you money or a different place in life) that ended up being horrible. You may be happier not ever taking that path that you regret not taking.
And from
Adventure is Chocolate Croissants for Dinner. No, I meant adventure is so worthwhile! I am finishing an article on Malta today, where I spent a month or so house-sitting a while back. My girlfriend and I are nowhere near the travelers you are, Chris, but we've house-sat for stretches in many countries and fabulous places in the world, and despite there being some calamities on some of the ventures, the travel, the sights, the people, the cultures—so worthwhile!
From
, on the post The Family Who Doesn’t UnderstandLove this. At 65 I finally started pushing past the limits I’d put on myself to conform to what I thought was acceptable - I finally realized that it wasn’t all acceptable to ME. Which explains the recent nose piercing and the tattoo I’m getting in a few weeks (my first), which will say, “ Unapologetically Me”. It’s about time.
And from
I've been sinking more and more into this the last couple of years, and it's been wonderful. The extra fascinating thing has been that while some family members have been quite chuffed about it, I keep seeing my Mother slowly peeling back her own layers. Pretty miraculous!
From
, on the post The Counterfeit SelfSuch a good way of describing inauthenticity.
I have an interest in self-aware leadership and authenticity is the third direction of my self-awareness compass, so I was really interested to read this article.
The way I talk about it in my books is, "You can define authenticity as the extent to which an individual is true to their core values and acts in accordance with those values. If you don’t know what your core values are, you can’t act in accordance with them.... To be authentic, you’ve actually got to mean what you say."
From
, on the post "Never say yes automatically": A Conversation with Melissa UrbanI love her advice: go for walks. Read somewhere that we’re built for 12 miles a day. She actually suggests this twice: take hikes. Walking is powerful. Cheryl Strayed walked the pacific trail and kicked her heroin habit in the process. I would add to this something that has had a big effect on my mental health: take long drives. When I am home stewing in indecision and chewing on a problem I need resolved, no solutions come to mind. But if I leave the house and drive 45 minutes and more, the solutions find me. I have had so many aha moments while driving that it is my go to. Partly it is a much needed change of scenery but I am convinced other magic I cannot identify is going on.
And from
, on the post How to Do One Thing at a TimeThis is spot on. The amount of satisfaction I feel after getting one thing done in this way seems to inevitably set me up for getting a bunch more things done soon after (especially if I've been procrastinating). I've lately found that turning on do not disturb and leaving my phone in another room really helps when in this mode - anything to remove potential sources of distraction.
Art & Other Fun Things
Note: if you like any of these images, be sure to click through on the links. What’s included here is just a small selection of the full work.
They’re Stealing Colour from Your World by
Neon Pink Flowers - Spray paint on canvas, David Speed 2023
Posts and Stories I Liked
In addition to my regular browsing, every couple of weeks I do a public call for submissions. I’ll share many of the links that people send me in future posts.
Here are a few posts I’ve enjoyed recently:
Am I Too Old to Change My Life? by
My mom died & I didn't write a newsletter for 2 months by
"I wanted drama, but not that much." by
I did retail theft at an Apple Store (mostly he read fake marketing emails by Apple, but it’s a good story) by
Note: if you’re publishing a newsletter, feel free to comment in this post with the name of your publication so that other readers can find you.
What We’ve Covered So Far
We’re now 33 weeks into the year. So far we’ve covered:
Introduction, It Was Going So Well, Unhelpful Life Advice, From Rejection to Reflection, Overthinking, A Couch Can Make You Happy, “I Wish I’d Made That Change Later,” Why This Now?, “Your Voicemail Isn’t Working,” Your Last 40 Minutes, Imposter Syndrome Isn’t What You Think, Consider the Opposite of What You’re Worried About, How I Use (and Don’t Use) Adderall to Focus, You Can Be Better than You Are, Is It Always Best to "Do What Makes You Happy"?, A Tale of Two Yoga Teachers, The Felt Sense, No One Teaches You How to Breathe, The Trauma of Adult Undiagnosed ADHD, “What matters to me right now?”, Lessons From Your Six-Year-Old-Self, Try This When You Aren’t Sure What To Do, Time Anxiety: Can You Take a Quick Survey?, If You Can't Learn Math It's Not Your Fault, Consider this if you like taking care of people, Time Blindness, The Perks of Being Misunderstood, You’re Always Going to Lose at Something, Election Anxiety Is Real, So Make a Plan to Disengage, Attention Has a Cost, What Is "Demand Avoidance"? A Case Study, Can You Be Much Happier than You Thought?, Do You Have a “Granny Hobby”?, 15 Ways to Self-Sabotage, Why Is It Hard to Be Different?, Why Do I Put Off Seeing My Friends?, Exposure Therapy, You Are Not the Failure Point, Antidepressants Save Lives, Who Should Read “A Year of Mental Health”?, “Everything changes as long as you keep moving.”, What If You Could Work Only One Hour a Day?, Unlearning, Gentle Productivity: 5 Tips for Neurodivergent-Friendly Work Habits, “What matters to me right now?”, Take Moderate Risks Every Day, The Myth of Laziness, A Year of Mental Health Is Now 100% Free, Don't “Eat the Frog,” Practice Structured Procrastination Instead, Why Is It So Hard to Do Small Things?, Executive Functioning and the Limits of Hyperfocus, “Bad with Money?” Maybe There’s More to It, The Importance of Talking to People Who Understand You, A Short List of Things I Never Learned to Do, The Neurodivergent "Bad With Money" Task Checklist, The Family Who Doesn’t Understand, Adventure Is Worthwhile In Itself, The Counterfeit Self, 8 Ways to Have More Time, Develop Your Dominant Questions, Congratulations On Your New Life, Everyone Is Making It Up As They Go (Really), Lack of Strategy as a Core Value, How to Do One Thing at a Time
Also! A set of simple activities that can each be completed in 15 minutes or less:
As well as an interview series, featuring people with something to say that the world needs hearing:
"The world is a better place when I take up space": A Conversation with Marc Typo
“Wellbeing is about capacity”: A Conversation with Emma Gannon
"There’s no one life script for everyone": A conversation with Sari Botton
“Laziness Doesn’t Exist:” A Conversation with KC Davis
"Uncertainty is the gateway to possibility": A Conversation with Jonathan Fields
"Am I truly paying attention to my life?": A Conversation with Nora McInerny
"Minimalism is not about restriction.": A Conversation with Shira Gill
"I’m better when I am still": A Conversation with Ryan Holiday
"Never say yes automatically": A Conversation with Melissa Urban
I’m looking forward to seeing these lists expand as the year progresses.
Special Thanks to our Paid Subscribers
As promised, most content on A Year of Mental Health will be completely free. Paid subscribers make this possible.
Even though most posts are freely available at the time of publication, many of you have already upgraded your subscriptions—and I am grateful! Thank you. 🙏 🙏 🙏
Whenever someone upgrades, the platform offers subscribers a chance to write a note to the creator, which can be shared with the subscriber’s permission.
Here’s one that I received this week from Susanne
"Thank you so much for your kind email and the discount - I just found your message in my spam folder... Your newsletter is marvellous, so much great advice and such an amazing community!"
Again, I want this project to be helpful and valuable to you. We’re just getting started, and there’s much more to come.
Scholarships Available Upon Request
What if you want a paid subscription but can’t afford it? It’s all good, we’ve got you covered! 🤝
Specifically, we now have a scholarship plan where you can pay whatever you can afford. These scholarships are covered by our Founding Members—thank you, Founding Members!
If you’d like one, just send a note to team @ chrisguillebeau .com with the word “Scholarship” in the subject line. We’ll help you get whatever option you need.
On the Horizon
That’s it for now, but I’ll be back Friday at 7am Pacific time. Upcoming topics include: codependency, ketamine therapy (still working on this), and more on planning with ADHD.
And maybe a surprise guest or two! Like I said, there’s much more to come. 🎁
Cool! Thanks for the mention! My 15 minutes of Warholian Fame... :-)
Thanks for the shoutout. Glad to be a part of the community!