Top of the mornin' to ya friend,
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(Sorry but it's St Paddy's day☘️ and according to 23&Me I'm 100% irish so I had to start my email like that.)

The Oscars were last weekend, I didn’t watch them but it reminded me to go back and watch this speech by Matthew McConaughey which I still feel is the best Oscar speech ever.

2022 review — What I learned & my 2023 goals

It’s very appropriate that my first review since becoming a parent would publish in March. It’s been in the drafts since January so here we are. Better late than never!

​👉🏻 Read it here.

75Hard (Why hard stuff is easier with friends)

I started the 75Hard challenge on March 1st. 75 Hard is a mental toughness and self-improvement program created by Andy Frisella. The program is designed to help individuals develop discipline, consistency, and resilience over the course of 75 days.

Everyday you need to adhere to these rules:

• Do 2 45-minute workouts, one of which must be outside
• Read 10 pages of a nonfiction book
• Follow a diet
• Drink 1 gallon of water
• Take a progress pic
• No alcohol or cheat meals

I wanted to do this for a few reasons. The obvious reason was to get in shape post-baby, but the bigger reason was to create some discipline in my life now that I have more time on my hands.

Rather than do it alone, I wanted to get an accountability group together. I knew the chances of me sticking it out would be higher if I had to show my face in front of others.

Also, misery loves company 😘.

I posted on Twitter and on my personal IG to see if anyone wanted to join. The rules were simple:

I somehow roped 15 people into doing it with me 😈.

All worked fine to start. Then on day 10 I got COVID 😱.

First time I’ve had it and it sucked. Had I not created this 75Hard accountability group I would have given myself the excuse to stop. But the thing about this challenge is that it’s more of a mental challenge than a physical. Building mental toughness to not make excuses.

So I stuck with it. My workouts became just long walks outside to get that box checked. I made it out the other side. I tell my wife I would drop off at the point my sickness overtook my stubbornness, luckily that didn't happen 😅.

Takeaway: If you want to commit to a goal, create an accountability group. Research has shown that you are more likely to achieve your goals by doing this.

Espresso 101

I took an ‘intro to espresso’ class last weekend.

I’ve had an espresso machine for 5 years… yet I never thought to take a class. I learned I was doing almost everything wrong. Did you know a good coffee grinder matters more in making a good espresso than the espresso machine does?

One 90-minute class and my morning cappuccinos are already so much better.

Takeaway: What are you doing everyday that if you were better at would improve your life? Something as simple as an espresso class has upgraded my life. What else is possible?

If you’re interested in learning this stuff and are ever in Austin there’s a wonderful coffee spot on the East side called Greater Goods that does these classes. I already signed up for another one on latte art. I’m going to be a personal barista to my family and friends 😄

Alright that’s it for now, a bunch of you responded to my last newsletter telling me you wanted the ‘how I delegate my life to a VA’ article so that’ll be coming up next.

​📄Resource: How to say no​

Here’s a great resource for my people pleasers out there. Templates to help you say no in any situation. Here's one of many examples:

Shoutout

I get super sweet emails from peeps who read this newsletter, if that’s you. Thank you!

Please consider writing something on my Shoutout wall so that I can find more awesome people like you. Go here.​

That's it for now!

Happy St Paddy’s day from me and my little leprechaun ☘️

Have a great weekend,

Cathryn
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