April Monthly Review
“Even after all this time, the Sun never says to the Earth “you owe me”. Look what happens with a love like that, it lights up the whole sky.”
Notes:
April was a whirlwind — I was definitely not prepared for this. The original intention was to take a break from the last 6 months of deep work and visit some friends & clients in LA and SF.
Then came some shockers:
- I got featured on Forbes on how to overcome the imposter syndrome! 🎇
- I had a total meltdown over my relationship 💔
April started with such a high and then a low, and now back again to contentment. It feels like when you have one area figured out (careers), something else then comes along (relationship tribulations).
And I learned that important to remember that this is the ebb and flow of life. Everything, especially growth, is a lifelong practice.
REFLECTIONS 🎉
Highlights from the past month
1. What was your biggest accomplishment this month?
Definitely getting featured on Forbes in the careers section! This was a dream and goal that I had set for this year (it actually felt really embarrassing to put set a big goal online for everyone to see). And I’m glad I did, because it’s been amazing to make it happen, learn about the whole publications process, and get connected to incredible people online.
It’s also scary to think about what the alternative would’ve been if I didn’t let myself dream this big: If I didn’t believe in it, then I wouldn’t have tried to make it come true. If I didn’t believe in myself, I wouldn’t have worked hard to pursue it. And it would’ve been a self-fulfilling prophecy.
2. What was your peak experience this month?
It was falling in love again 💕. At the tail-end of my west coast road trip with my significant other, I felt like I was falling in love with him a second time. It was like a wave — this strong and immense love for him filling up my heart. I had no idea this was going to happen, in fact, I felt my love for him was continuously tested and wavered a lot throughout the trip. We’ve had very difficult conversations, at times, I wasn’t sure if we would be able to make it.
Especially since during the last 6 months, my biggest priority was to focus on my work, so much that love has taken a backseat in my life. I was still nurturing it and being grateful for it, but it definitely became a stable background in my life. And now, it felt like a renewal in our commitment to each other.
I’m so so thankful to be feeling this way, and continuously choosing to work on this relationship. He inspires me and I want to become an even better person because of it ✨
3. What main challenge did you face this month?
Relationships: when my partner suggested alternative forms of dating, I flipped out. My whole life, I only know one way — the traditional form. And so it felt like my whole world was uprooted when he suggested that, and all my fears about abandonment, rejection and feeling that I wasn’t good enough came up.
During this time, I learned to become fully responsible for my life: to make requests, ask for what I want, separating feeling from action, etc.
4. What do you want to do less of and more of to balance your life?
I’d like less doing, and more being. If I take on the identity of someone who I want to be, the actions will naturally align and flow (thanks James Clear’s Atomic Habits!).
For example, if I internalize that I am a secure person, then I’ll take actions that reflect my security. If I take on the identity that I am a six figure career coach, then I’ll naturally think big and act like someone who is.
I want to start living into that now and reality will follow.
5. What is your favorite discovery this month?
Circling! I did circling (similar to meditation and authentic relating) where we held space for each other, with my good friend before I left Palo Alto and time seemed to stop. We had our eyes closed and I felt so content, with white fog, distant birds, sunshine and slight breeze. Time was still and I was just there, sitting; breathing ; taking it all in.
When we looked at the clock, 3 hours has passed.
Earlier that day too, everything looked so bright, vivid and slow. I don’t know what happened but I’m content knowing that I can bring that back into my life again. It was like heaven, paradise.
FUN GOODIES 🎈
things that have captured my interest
Books I read:
- The Happiness Project
- More than Two
- The Ethical Slut (I know, marketing plays a big role in titles)
Articles I liked (mainly concepts):
- Jealousy: it’s the feeling of projecting one’s uncomfortable feelings onto one’s partner. Jealousy might be associated with wanting to be number one. But there’s no ranking of who is better or not, everyone is unique and irreplaceable. And like it or not, the only person who can make their jealousy hurt less or go away is you.
- Security: “may your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” Security comes from within, that everything is already enough the way it is, without needing external metrics or comparisons to validate. Confidence comes from self-acceptance — not changing anything about yourself, but rather your beliefs about them.
- Clean love: is love without attachment, opening our hearts to someone with no expectations, loving for the joy of it, regardless of what we might get back. It’s love without jealousy, without possessiveness — love washed clean of all its clinginess and desperation.
- Unconditional love: the most important part of love isn’t loving someone for their beauty, strength, and virtue. Unconditional love is when someone sees us for everything that we are (strengths + weaknesses) and still loves us.
Productivity experiments:
- Solid 3 hours in the morning or afternoon when traveling (really doable and leaves so much space for fun during the day)
- Not watching tv shows out of boredom, this is something that I often notice the absence of when I’m traveling and think I’m close to quitting watching dramas to waste time for good!
Quotes on careers
- “Work to become, not to acquire.” (I want to create a new norm — where your career empowers you the lifestyle you want to live)
- “Your beliefs create your reality.”
- “Luck is when opportunity meets preparedness.”
Questions I’m pondering
- In the grand scheme of things, what actually really matters?
- How can I practice self love, self worth and security?
- How do I unconditionally love someone?
APRIL HABIT PROJECT : 30 days of LinkedIn 🌱
My original project for April was LinkedIn videos but I didn’t follow through on it, because I prioritized traveling over consistent content creation. Though I did do a couple of things:
- Met up with some content creators at a LinkedIn summit in LA
- Took some LinkedIn video courses by current influencers
- Made a list of people whose posts / work that I love
PLANNING ✏️
Intentions and goals for the upcoming month
The most important business priority is: master LinkedIn videos to provide value and build relationships with career changers.
The most important personal priority is: nurturing love for myself and in relationships (oh, and maybe some headstands)!
My May project is: 30 days of LinkedIn (finally)! Everyday, I’ll be doing some form of LinkedIn, whether it’s through video, status posts or articles.
This is the end of my monthly review for April, thanks so much for reading!
