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- #3: To Grow or to Die...
#3: To Grow or to Die...
Shem Opolot
January 20, 2023
What up though! Happy Friday 🍻! I attended a grad/birthday party last night—because Uganda—and the heartfelt speeches under fairy lights made me sentimental. This feeling bled into this week's issue. In a good way ❤️.
Let's get into it 🚀
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💡 1 thing A few things I've learned this week
Orient yourself toward growth 🌱
When I was getting married, I was amazed by all the advice and preparation my wife got: sessions with aunties, marination in ghee (I'm told that afterglow is unmatched), etc. Meanwhile, I hang with the boys waiting for the guillotine to collapse on my singleness. No prep. No chats with uncles (or aunties). Just awkward nods from married men welcoming me to the club of suffering. It's a shame really.
It baffles me that women shoulder most of the burden of self-improvement in marriage.
While listening to Jay Shetty's podcast this week, I learned a few profound things about sustaining relationships and love in general:
Creating things (love, businesses, friendships, etc) is harder than sustaining them. To sustain them: set new goals and milestones constantly, don't be fixated on the nostalgia of the past, and make new memories...
Expect change (in relationships, business, etc). In fact, hope for change, plan for that change and you'll weather the change when it (inevitably) comes
Keeping something is not about keeping it the same, it’s about being open to change
Blockbuster, the movie-selling giant (a really big Funz Video, for my Ugandan subscribers) of the 90s in America, could've been better prepared for Netflix if they defined themselves more by the value they provided (creating easy access to entertainment) and not what they did (selling DVDs in stores). Now, there's a comedy show on Netflix called Blockbuster about Blockbuster. Touché Netflix. Touché
If you don’t contemplate growth, and set new targets and organic milestones, life becomes boring.
Loving yourself comes from respecting yourself. How do you increase your self-respect? By doing what you said you'd do. By completing the challenging tasks you attempt
Being alone well is an art form, necessary for having successful relationships
Reframe obstacles as growth opportunities 🌱
🙏🏾 1 thing I'm grateful for
Clarity 🔮
This week I conceptualized the career workshops I'm going to run this year. I plan to run at least 4—one per quarter. The workshops will upskill young professionals and ready them for today's workplace. This includes things like CV design, LinkedIn, negotiating job offers, networking, basic Microsoft Office and Google Workspace competency, etc.
The workshops are part of my bigger strategy to plug a glaring hole in the quality of our workforce in Uganda.
Interested or know someone who needs this? Here's the sign-up list to secure priority seating 😉.
🚀 Pro-tip
Schedule emails in Gmail for sending later 🪄
Sometimes when I want to look impressive, I set my emails to go out at a specific time. I'll tell someone I'm going to email them at say, 4 pm, and I'll type the email up and schedule it to arrive at 3:59 pm just to look like a productivity guru 🕴🏾.
Methinks, you might also be interested in faking it til you make it, so here's how to do it:
When composing an email in Gmail in the browser on your computer, instead of hitting Send, hit the dropdown arrow next to Send to reveal "Schedule send". The rest is self-explanatory, I hope 😅.
In the Gmail app on your phone, hit the three dots (...) in the top right corner of the mail you're composing and select "Schedule send
🔥 What's hot
My YouTube video this week 📽️
The latest blog post
💎 Gems from the internet
Talking points for life 🎙️: "What do you do?" "When are you having kids?" This site offers talking points for navigating awkward social situations. Nosy aunties are shaking 🧂
An avid reader 🤓? These are the most anticipated books of 2023, in case you want to ready your torrents 😅
🌥️Check this out if you want to become a morning person
The Top 200 most common passwords 🧷: If yours is on this list, act accordingly before you actually have digital belongings worth protecting
100 ways to improve your life without trying 👽: I love a good list!
Tools for better thinking 🧰: This site has a collection of tools and frameworks for problem-solving. Most of the methods you use to solve problems—that you think are unique— are based on established paradigms.
Have a great weekend,
— Shem
🤝🏾 Let's connect
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