Trade-offs and Triumphs 14
Issue 14: It's November: NaNoWriMo, Gratitude Month, and Rest of 2020; FinMango and Financial Literacy; Be Grateful for Your Bad Experience
Hello, friends! Thank you to my 75 subscribers, and welcome to my new subscribers!
Welcome to issue 14!
How was your week? What were your trade-offs and triumphs?
Photo by Victoria Borodinova from Pexels
It’s November: NaNoWriMo, Gratitude Month, and the Rest of 2020
There are fewer than 60 days left to the rest of 2020.
Last week, I asked three questions, one of which was “What is your plan for the rest of 2020?”
With fewer than 60 days left, here is how I intend to finish 2020:
Participate in NaNoWriMo and write those 50,000 words from November 1-November 30. I will not be writing a novel, however - just random thoughts, essays, tweets, observations, and notes from books I have read and movies that I have watched. Each year, I intend to participate, but I have not, and this is the time, because life is the way. Besides, I used to write a novel a year back in the day- how hard can this be? 🤣 🤣 🤣
Participate in Gratitude month, because I should be grateful for what I have. 🙏🙏🙏
Prepare my holiday card list and be thoughtful and intentional with each card and message individualized for each person with my “it has seen better days” penmanship. And to all my elementary and high school teachers with whom I still keep in touch, thank you for the lessons that you imparted to me.
Photo by fotografierende from Pexels
Write at least 1 “thank you” note a week to someone who may least expect it, but who needs to hear it.
Photo by cottonbro from Pexels
Become more comfortable on video via Minimum Viable Video by Cam Houser and Julia Saxena and rinse and repeat.
Watch at least two-thirds of Visualize Value and apply those lessons.
Throughout the months of November and December, I plan to record all this on my blog, Putting It Together. Follow my progress, or lack there of, too, as I stumble and fall.
FinMango and Financial Literacy - Gratitude for Financial Independence and Making New Friends
Last year, when I spoke at an event in Detroit, Michigan (courtesy of Christin Fernandez), I had the privilege and pleasure of meeting Scott Glasgow, founder of FinMango. FinMango is an organization focused on solving the financial exclusion problem with data, tech, and advocacy. He asked all the speakers on the stage to stand together and took photos. We all shook hands, and I had not expected much beyond that.
Fast forward a year later - Scott reached out to me to speak to his entire FinMango crew over Zoom. It was a terrific conversation - many reached out and kept in touch through Twitter, LinkedIn, and plain old email.
All of this led to my being asked to speak at their Extravaganza a few weeks later, and becoming a podcast guest on Genein Letford’s podcast, “Create and Grow Rich.”
I continue corresponding with the “Mangoes” as the volunteers call themselves - they have been a source of inspiration to me, particularly on rubber balls and glass balls (s/o Kaylei).
#Covidfritz (s/o Dan Greenwald) has been a period of reflection not just for me, but for the mangoes too. I wanted to highlight two essays, in particular, by Anthony Schilt and Ahana Samat:
“How Passion Creates a Domino Effect: The Role of Interpersonal Uplifting in the FinLit World” - Anthony writes about how: 1) he discovered a new “family,” 2) interpersonal communications created a domino-effect for passion.
“Cultivating Potential to Cultivate Potential - How FinMango Changed My View of Finance” - Ahana details the evolution of her interest in finance. She also moderated the panel (Women in Business and the Importance of Financial Literacy) that I spoke on during the Extravaganza.
Speaking about the importance of financial literacy made me wonder about what other forms of literacy would be important to build and to sustain a healthy life.
Be Grateful for Your Bad Experiences Too and Don’t Always Try to Seek the Happy and Perfect Ending Everytime - Why Our Obsession With Happy Endings Can Lead to Bad Decisions
It seems that everywhere we turn, everyone is seeking perfection and happiness. The perfect Instagram post will make you happy. The perfect airbrushed photo will make you happy. The perfect vacation will make you happy.
But when we focus on that perfect happy ending, what else would we be missing? And, what are we giving up in terms of long-term goals when we are fixated on the short-term moment? And, how would this affect good decision-making?
Have any questions or comments? You can find me on Twitter @jennykim or email me at jennykimwop@gmail.com
Check out my website for more: puttingittogether.blog
See you next week!
No lie as a trade-off is ever worth the temporary illusion of triumph. Keep on cultivating that rubber ball heart.
And, find that trade-off that will lead to triumph this week, no matter how small, and celebrate it.