“We did it, sister!” Brené Brown says, excitedly high-fiving me. She comes over with her paddle, and we do a celebratory tap with our eternal nemesis— ahem, I mean, our friendly, recreational pickleball opponents. This, my friend, is not the recounting of a fever dream. It’s a story about how I met THE Brené Brown at pickleball last week. photo credit: Brené’s instagram. the woman loves pickleball I was in my fourth hour of playing when, post-match, a sunny-dispositioned woman comes up to me....
29 days ago • 4 min read
I've spent the last couple months house-sitting in Honolulu. And part of my task was to keep a couple of plants alive. Succulents, specifically. Which should be easy enough, right? "Can you take care of a few plants?" my friend asked."Yes, of course," I said. "With a doubt." Because how hard could it be. Succulents.Low-maintenance. Thrive in neglect. The chillest of houseplants. But I fussed over it.“I’ll water it now just in case I forget later.”“This sun is intense - better top it off.” “If...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, I want to tell you a story about raspberries. One of my clients planted a raspberry cane last year. Just a stick in the dirt. No leaves. No roots to speak of. Nothing that promised it would thrive. She didn’t expect much and that was kind of the ✨magic✨ of it. The raspberry was planted out of curiosity more than a commitment. But by the end of the season, it had taken over her garden. Branches everywhere. Bright green leaves. Even a few small berries. It wasn’t supposed to grow...
2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear friend, I hope today brings with it chuckles and chortles. Laughter, essentially. May you find something that gives you the afternoon giggles and lets you take a break from the screen, to be like "damn. that was funny." I used to say this line all the time: "I help women in tech fall back in love with their careers." And for a while, it felt right. I said it on LinkedIn, intro calls, workshops. I said it everywhere. (kind of like a parrot 🦜) And it resonated at the time with what I was...
2 months ago • 3 min read
Greetings from Kansas, Reader! Let me say that again. Kansas! I'm going to take a poll - how many of you have been here before? ....that's what I thought. Literally the only person I could think of from Kansas was Dorothy from Wizard of Oz. And well, she wasn't real. I just spent the last day flying for 10+ hours to arrive in Lawrence, Kansas (more on why in another newsletter). And I do this thing every time I land somewhere. I start picturing my life there. The possibilities. Could I make...
3 months ago • 2 min read
So, let me set the scene. I'm holding a paper plate with a bagel on it, standing in the bathroom. Two feet of space. Right next to the toilet. A flickering fluorescent light overhead. Why? Because I was trying to avoid the pre-meeting small talk. That awkward dance of people hovering by the cold brew, making chit-chat about their weekend plans. I didn't know anyone all that well. And I didn't want to pretend I did. So the better option? I stood in the bathroom. Waiting for the actual meeting...
3 months ago • 2 min read
I’ve been a little nostalgic lately.Humor me for a sec? I remember the exact moment I realized I couldn’t keep putting my career on autopilot. I was 8 years into tech as a senior engineer. Drained from back-to-back meetings.Numb from endless LinkedIn scrolling (cue the doom scrolling).Worn out from pretending I was fine when I wasn’t. Work crept into everything.I found myself checking Slack constantly, even while at dinner with friends. Worrying about what the next ping was going to be about....
4 months ago • 2 min read
Hi friend, If I had to name the theme of the next few weeks, it’d be this: A Little More Real. A little messier. A little more honest. A little more connection. I’ve been moving through some personal life changes that completely whammed me. Like, full-on crying in the car kind of days (welp, that was yesterday). And in a world of AI, scrolls, and fast-paced everything… I’m craving what’s real. Bring on the tears and typos.And summon in our moments for human connection. Are you wanting this...
4 months ago • 2 min read
Hi friend, May today bring with it....Dreaminess.The kind of dreaminess where you stare out the window, daydream wistfully, and fully indulge in your creative, creative imagination. ✨✨✨✨✨✨ ✨✨✨✨✨✨ ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ I’ve hit some unexpected milestones in my business and they're not what you think. Not revenue targets.Not # of followers.Not the kind that lands you on a “30 Under 30” (ahem 40) list. I’m talking about the ones that make you pause and think:“Wait…this is my life now?” Like: 🔥 Got roasted on...
5 months ago • 1 min read