Hi friends & new subscribers,
I'm officially back in Toronto after 5 weeks in the Philippines!
I'm not going to lie. These days, I'm reluctant to write to you.
I've decided to postpone travel nursing because of health reasons. The Canadian healthcare system is quite inefficient, so I'm giving myself two months to do everything I need.
In the meantime, I decided not to accept any work (freelance nursing or writing) as a challenge.
My husband earns enough for both of us, and my bank account tells me we'll be fine for one year, even if he also loses his job(s).
Weirdly enough, this fact isn't enough to reduce the fear I experience whenever I find myself in this situation.
I'm still working on disassociating my identity from my work, but I seem to often find myself in this vicious cycle.
So I went back to this blog post called Money is the Megaphone of Identity by Lawrence Yeo to understand why we feel this way.
While reading, this text stood out:
"When you're in a survival mindset, you will always feel like you're barely holding onto what you have. Whether that's $1,000 or $100,000, nothing you have can adequately push away the fears you have about sliding down the (money) spectrum. This may be the result of parental conditioning, personal experience, or any number of reasons, but the longer you view money as a means for survival, the less willing you will be to take the risks required to lead a fulfilling life.
It explains why having a year worth of savings in my bank account isn't putting my fears to rest.
I'm essentially operating from a survival mindset.
Lawrence continues, "risk is usually accompanied with the emotion of fear, and if you're operating on survival mode, you will be scared to do anything uncertain, no matter how small that risk actually is."
So even though there's a very small risk of me being homeless by doing random things online, the fear is heightened.
To shift out of it, he says:
"The key to shifting out of survival mode is to realize that you have enough. The word "enough" may evoke different feelings from different people, but I'm simply referring to the amount you require to have your basic necessities covered…Rather than using money as the ticket out of an unfulfilling career, use it as the ticket in to a fulfilling one."
This means that because I can afford to take time off work, I can use money to create a fulfilling career.
While this is easier said than done, I need to stop relying on my backup plans and go all-in (whatever that means) to create my desired life.
If you're in a survival mindset like I am, figure out how to shift out of it.
Make your fears (and their solutions) tangible by writing them out. I personally used Tim Ferris’s famous fear-setting exercise.
Doing this helped me realize that no matter what, I can always find a pandemic-proof job.
If you need someone to talk to, don't hesitate to reply to this email.
Lawrence hosted a mini meetup while he was visiting Toronto. (He’s the one on the left)
Write from your personal experiences.
I love reading LinkedIn stories because they're very personal. Unlike blog posts found on Google or company blogs, stories stand out.
And if you want to stand out in the creator economy, writing from your personal experiences is how you stand out.
It's how people become invested in you (as a person) versus an idea.
Observing my own consumption habits, I still follow creators whose stories I know versus one that gave me valuable advice on Notion or building an audience.
After a month or two, I mute these creators.
Is that the kind of creator you want to be?
Sprinkled Thoughts 🍩
Latest work on the internet in different mediums. I hope some of it resonates with you.
🎬 How I Became a Part-Time Writer and a Part-Time Nurse. In this video, I share the 3 things I did to become a part-time writer to make $1500+/month while doing nursing.
✍🏼 I’m having a hard time showing up because I don’t feel like I’m genuine with myself. This post is about learning how to be comfortable in life when nothing is happening.
If you need help in your writing journey, there are 3 ways I can help you:
Learn how to show up, create and make money in your own way with this digital workbook.
A 1:1 consultation call if you're a multipassionate creator who's struggling to create content online. Book here. (Only booking for March & April).
Free email course on how to start writing online.
Be kind to yourself ☕️ ,
J