I always love your newsletter, but this part really struck me today: "We rented a car to drive up and back, and despite the long hours on the road (and the nightmare of navigating any rental care experience), we had a nice time singing along to the car stereo and making some travel plans for the rest of the year." In my head I was thinking of when they post pics of celebrities getting coffee, putting gas in their car, etc.--"Famous people--they do the same things we do!" I love that you write about real things. And the family reunion part about conversations that last for decades--so perfect <3 Thank you for all you do.
Thank YOU! I like writing about unremarkable stuff. Most of the time I do not lead a very fancy life, and so it's fun to write about road trips and snacks, which is a lot of what I do hahaha.
"People are more than their performance evaluations, even at work. You’re more than a score from one to five, or even from one to ten. Getting good survey scores is like figuring out how much you owe in taxes. Sure you have to do it, but you don’t have to attach your sense of self to the number at the end. You’re as good as you are regardless of what the survey says, with all due respect to Steve Harvey, “survey says” icon."
Feeling THIS pep talk so much as I (a one-person HR dept in a small company) facilitate employee reviews this month. And I helped draft the review template!!! I wish I could add your quote to the template for future years. The number of colleagues (we're a small firm, so most people interact with me regularly) that expressed worry over their self-evaluations is astonishing. I work with very talented and accomplished people! Zero of them should be worried!!
Do you know about the circle of grief ring theory? Useful and related to the tangentially bereaved: it's a framework for navigating grief that places those most affected (partner, immediate family) by a loss at the center of concentric rings. Working outward, the rings are people who are less immediately affected. And the idea is that the right thing to do is offer help and support to those closer to the middle than you, and dump your own feelings on those further outside the rings.
So processing your feelings to strangers who subscribe to your newsletter is consistent with this. :) Also, I am sorry for your loss. It is a loss. Take those hugs and nice words.
"Before dinner on Saturday, a few of us tasted the new-ish Dunkin’ Spiked Iced Teas, which my sister had tracked down as a favor-slash-punishment. The Strawberry Dragonfruit was the consensus pick for Worst Beverage (Possibly of All Time). It tasted like cough syrup if cough syrup got you you less drunk but made you more sick."
The Linkin Park/Jay Z Collision Course album holds a special place in my heart.
Oh wow a classic of the genre!
Thank you for both of those pep talks, both of which I really needed today. And also for your great appearance on The Bugle!
Thank YOU very much!
I always love your newsletter, but this part really struck me today: "We rented a car to drive up and back, and despite the long hours on the road (and the nightmare of navigating any rental care experience), we had a nice time singing along to the car stereo and making some travel plans for the rest of the year." In my head I was thinking of when they post pics of celebrities getting coffee, putting gas in their car, etc.--"Famous people--they do the same things we do!" I love that you write about real things. And the family reunion part about conversations that last for decades--so perfect <3 Thank you for all you do.
Thank YOU! I like writing about unremarkable stuff. Most of the time I do not lead a very fancy life, and so it's fun to write about road trips and snacks, which is a lot of what I do hahaha.
"People are more than their performance evaluations, even at work. You’re more than a score from one to five, or even from one to ten. Getting good survey scores is like figuring out how much you owe in taxes. Sure you have to do it, but you don’t have to attach your sense of self to the number at the end. You’re as good as you are regardless of what the survey says, with all due respect to Steve Harvey, “survey says” icon."
Feeling THIS pep talk so much as I (a one-person HR dept in a small company) facilitate employee reviews this month. And I helped draft the review template!!! I wish I could add your quote to the template for future years. The number of colleagues (we're a small firm, so most people interact with me regularly) that expressed worry over their self-evaluations is astonishing. I work with very talented and accomplished people! Zero of them should be worried!!
I'm so glad this resonated with your experiences!!
In the Grey Album, Girl Talk genre of early-00s computer fun music - I give you Wugazi.
https://youtu.be/x6TQa1iCNEc?si=8-rdoMf8WPeupjai
I had forgotten this one!!
Do you know about the circle of grief ring theory? Useful and related to the tangentially bereaved: it's a framework for navigating grief that places those most affected (partner, immediate family) by a loss at the center of concentric rings. Working outward, the rings are people who are less immediately affected. And the idea is that the right thing to do is offer help and support to those closer to the middle than you, and dump your own feelings on those further outside the rings.
So processing your feelings to strangers who subscribe to your newsletter is consistent with this. :) Also, I am sorry for your loss. It is a loss. Take those hugs and nice words.
Ahh thank you this is such a great way to think about this!
dear josh,
great post as always!
i love this portion A LOT:
"Before dinner on Saturday, a few of us tasted the new-ish Dunkin’ Spiked Iced Teas, which my sister had tracked down as a favor-slash-punishment. The Strawberry Dragonfruit was the consensus pick for Worst Beverage (Possibly of All Time). It tasted like cough syrup if cough syrup got you you less drunk but made you more sick."
love you and thank you for sharing!
myq
<3