Jessica's Friday Five

Hi Reader, A special shout-out to everyone who joined yesterday for the Team Communication Expectations workshop! Really impressed by the progress everyone made in just an hour. On a separate topic, I have found myself in the role of co-president of my youngest's school PTA(ish) organization this coming year - anyone else here helping out in a leadership role in a parents club/PTO/PTA org at your kids' school? Let me know. Maybe we can share some tips with each other! Let's get to your Friday...

Hi Reader, Many of you reading this are Americans like me - if so, Happy 4th of July Weekend. The American experiment is ongoing - inspiring often, tragic often, embarrassing at times, and our collective responsibility to shape. Here's a quick watch I enjoyed on this topic. Separately, I’ve updated my workshops page with some additional topics I've been enjoying leading with teams these days. I'm currently booking fall workshops if your company could use professional development - just hit...

Hi Reader, “For urgent things, do we Slack or email or text or DM or..." “What does a 48-hour response expectation really mean?” “Who needs to be in the loop about what?” "Should I just CC the whole team on emails about that?" If your team at work hasn’t established the answers to these questions, then the Team Communications Expectations Workshop was created for you! During this hour, I'll walk you through building a shared set of internal communication norms your team will actually use. By...

Hi Reader, I'm currently on a "team retreat" with my team at work (I'm the only one on the team). I like to do this 2-4 times a year where I get out of my day-to-day life and get to focus on projects and planning for my business while also enjoying the heck out of some extra sleep. Almost every time I do this, it's by finding a housesit on Trusted Housesitters so that I can stay for free and usually have a cute pet or two to cuddle. An adorable cat named Turtle and I are hanging out right now...

Hi Reader, Does this sound at all like you? “When was the last time we replaced the A/C filter?” "Have we ever gotten these knives sharpened?" “I like the idea of indoor plants, but I kill them all” If you’ve said or experienced any of these things, then the Home Maintenance Workshop was created for you! During this workshop, my husband Jonathon and I will walk you through creating a simple home maintenance tracking system to help you keep track of all the home tasks that often slip through...

Hi Reader, I've been doing a lot of "scrubbing" my email list lately! If folks aren't opening emails for several months, I'm gently letting them go to help keep my email list healthy and engaged. Thanks for staying engaged - opening emails, clicking on things that interest you, and replying to me. It's so lovely to be connected to the 12k+ of you, and I genuinely enjoy hearing from you. And one of you is the lucky winner of Unmuted: Leaders Discover Their Voice to Speak Up and Stand Out from...

Hi Reader, My family's annual tradition of random acts of kindness is coming up in a few weeks. Each year, on July 3rd, we set aside time to practice intentional kindness to honor the memory of my brother Nick, who passed away suddenly in 2015, and we encourage others in our community to do the same. To learn more about Nick and our commitment to practicing kindness, watch Nick Was Kind: One Simple Day of Kindness That Makes a Real Impact. #nickwaskind Also - quick tip if you've got...

Hi Reader, Thank you to everyone who voted last Friday for where we should donate our Friday Five affiliate proceeds! The $257 from the last few months was donated yesterday to the Environmental Protection Network! We'll vote again in a few months once we've got another good amount to give to charity. And happy Pride Month to all the folks who celebrate! I had a disappointing experience earlier this week that reminded me why it's so critical that we celebrate this month, but I was also so...

Hi Reader, Thanks for the kind words so many of you sent last week about my friend Matt, who recently passed away. I am grateful to be a part of this thoughtful Friday Five community. This week I did my best to be present and grateful with all of my blessings as I know he would have wanted me to - a baseball game with friends, my daughter's orchestra concert, my son's grade-school music performance, getting to Pilates classes even when my to-do list or grief tries to tempt me to skip it, and...