Introducing the Building in Public Newsletter from 24 Letters: Sign Up to Receive a Journaling Quick Guide Today

Friends, I've been working on my first offering beyond the blog and newsletter, and I've decided to share the details of the building process via a revamp in my newsletter, now known as Building in Public.

I’ll also be giving anyone who subscribes and confirms their email address something that can help you in your journaling practice right now. More on that at the end of this post.

For now. You have questions? I've got answers. Read on.

What are you Working On?

I'm creating a guide to journaling. Now, I know this isn’t for everyone, but I'm kind of a nerd, and I think I could share some ideas that might prove helpful for you if you're starting or restarting, as the case so often is, your journaling practice.

Why?


I strongly feel that everyone could benefit from some sort of journaling practice. Whether you’re doing morning pages or an entry once a year on your birthday or something in between, there's a lot of value in writing things down to help figure it all out. I’ve written about these ideas here on the blog and on Threads, too.

I've been journaling for years, and it's helped me build confidence, feel more gratitude, and experience less anxiety. Journaling has helped me make difficult decisions and get through some tough times. A lot of people need help with that stuff, maybe even you, and journaling can be a part of that solution.

Okay, so what's the newsletter about?

I'm going to share my insights into the process of building this course and also offer updates and previews to subscribers. I'll email you roughly once a week and sometimes less frequently. We all get too much email, and I've had to talk myself into believing it's okay to offer this to people because going on this journey with me will provide some value to you.

What is the ultimate goal here?


In addition to building tools to help you in your journaling practice, I'm interested in developing something akin to a community of people interested in journaling, personal development, and the creative process. This isn't a thinly veiled sales funnel. I'm going to send you emails with fundamental ideas and authentic experiences.

Finally, as a thank you, I'll send you my quick guide Seven Thought-Provoking Prompts for Your Journaling Practice when you confirm your email.

I’ll be sending the first email out later this week. I hope you’ll join me.

From the Newsletter: 3 Tips for Starting Again

Every month, I send a short (approx. 5-minute read time) email with behind-the-scenes insights into what I'm working on, share a media recommendation, and offer tips, ideas, or quotes that can help keep you motivated. If that sounds like something you’d enjoy, you can subscribe here.

To give you an idea of what to expect in your inbox if you do subscribe, you can read the December issue in full here. Additionally, I'm sharing a piece from the November issue that may be helpful if you've fallen off a little on those new habits you're trying to build in 2023. The backstory is that I had just come through a tough month with my entire family getting sick, and I wanted to share three simple tips I used to get back on track.

Here you go:

1. Be Kind to Yourself

Start with this idea: Everyone goes through periods like this.

Even the most organized and accomplished person sometimes loses the thread through no fault of their own. Practice being kind to yourself and those around you. You will be tired, so negative self-talk will get louder. Prioritize sleep when you can, and try to maintain even a tiny aspect of your daily routine. That journaling habit I keep talking about can also help keep you on track.

2. Pick a Date to Start Back up

Once things return to normal, pick a day on the calendar and get back to some form of your normal schedule. Once my kids started sleeping again, I got back into getting up early to spend some time writing. If my job right now weren't a stay-at-home dad, I know I would have less control over this. Even if you work full-time, picking a date to anchor yourself is a good idea.

3. It Will Happen Again

The return to normal will probably be temporary. Things do not always go the way we plan, and how you deal with that matters. Practice the first principle of Stoicism (see the quote below); you cannot control what happens, but how you react is up to you. I'm only sometimes great at this, but remembering this helps me reset my perspective when things are challenging.

You can do it. Just remember to be kind to yourself, give yourself a break, and get back to it.

I’m enjoying the creative process of building the newsletter as a companion for the blog, and I’ve gotten some nice comments about it from readers which I so appreciate. If you’re interested you can join here to get it delivered to your inbox at the end of every month.

24 Letters Turns One

I launched 24 Letters on the first day of 2022, although the idea began coming together in October of 2021. I shared some thoughts on the motivation for launching this project in the first issue of the newsletter a few months back:

The idea for 24 Letters started taking shape a year ago. The timing coincides with the birth of my second child. At the end of my leave, I decided to take a career break and become a stay-at-home dad.

I quickly realized that I still had an overwhelming desire to be creative and find a new way to continue my favorite part of being in a leadership role, giving people the tools and ideas to develop, grow, and become stronger versions of themselves. That philosophy of empowerment is central to what I'm doing because I want to guide people to learn things that help improve their lives.

I thought about this philosophy for a few months before launch, finding time to write, wrestle The Resistance, and build on some of the ideas during the long sleepless nights that are part of the deal with a newborn before finally launching on January 1st.

I’m so glad to be here with you, building a community of curious and engaged folks. Thank you for being a part of this!

As we begin 2023, I have never felt stronger about the above sections in bold. I’m planning a lot to deliver on this statement for the coming year, and I'm thrilled you will be a part of this with me.

The November Newsletter Arrives This Week

The November edition of the newsletter will be coming out later this week, and now is a great time to subscribe. This month, I’ll be sharing some tips on how to pick up the pieces and get started again when things fall apart, as well as a media recommendation and some ideas about year-end planning. I hope you’ll check it out!

Giving Thanks

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving here in the United States. My family is looking forward to jumping in the car and heading to the Connecticut shore to visit relatives for a few days. It’s been a rocky month because one of those nasty viruses stopped by, and it has slowly worked its way through the household. Thankfully, we are all on the mend and excited for some time to have fun and take a break with people that we love.

As we get the car packed today, I want to thank you for being a 24 Letters reader. My goal is to share content that helps you, so if there’s something you’d like to see me write about or a topic you’d like a deeper look at, please let me know.

Happy Thanksgiving! Look for the weekly quote hitting the site or your RSS reader of choice on Friday morning, just in time for leftover pumpkin pie and coffee, the best post-holiday breakfast there is!

Introducing the New Monthly Newsletter from 24 Letters

I’m excited to announce the launch of a free monthly newsletter that will bring additional content to readers who choose to subscribe.

I’m choosing this schedule because I think a once-monthly check-in with new ideas, behind-the-scenes stuff, links, recommendations, and reviews is the right fit for the pace of this site.

You can sign up here. If you do, you’ll receive the first issue in October.

Thank you for your support

I am excited about what I want to share with you via this site, the newsletter, and other projects that are currently brewing. I appreciate all of you and look forward to bringing you more content that you find useful and interesting!

My Home Screen on MacSparky

I’m a big fan of the work that David Sparks does at MacSparky, the newly formed Labs, and on his podcasts, Mac Power Users, Focused, and Automators. I count David as one of the people who helped inspire me to do this project so I was excited when I was offered a chance to share my Home Screen and give some insight into the apps and tools that I enjoy using.

You can check out the post here, and if you are a Mac or technology geek, you should (and probably already are) check his stuff out!

Site News: RSS Feed

I’ve added a link to the RSS in the navigation on this site. The feed looks pretty good from my testing in NetNewsWire, aside from a missing embedded YouTube video. I’m going to look into how to handle that in the future.. Let me know if you run into any issues or have any suggestions on how to make the RSS feed a better experience.